UNLV Runnin' Rebels Demolish The Air Force Falcons 67 - 39

The UNLV Runnin' Rebels held the Air Force Falcons under 40 points in a blowout victory.

UNLV Runnin' Rebels forward Tyrin Jones (6) celebrates a basket against the Stanford Cardinal in the first half at Maples Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: David Gonzales-Imagn Images | David Gonzales-Imagn Images

The UNLV Runnin' Rebels men's basketball team beat up on the Air Force Falcons this weekend. They won by a final score of 67 - 39. With this victory, it brings the Rebels' record to 7 - 6 overall and 2 - 0 in Mountain West Conference play. Air Force drops to 3 - 11 overall and 0 - 3 in the Mountain West. Holding any opponent under 40 points is an incredible feat, and this was the first time UNLV has accomplished it against a Division 1 opponent since they beat the Colorado State Rams 70 - 39 in 2010. Head coach Josh Pastner was thrilled with the way his team played defense in this game.

"That was a good win by the Runnin' Rebels," Pastner said. "I thought we really defended at a high level, and our guys executed the game plan today that we had set forth for them. It wasn't an easy week for us with guys being in and out with the flu bug, but we found a way to really execute. I don't care who you play; you hold a team to under 40 points, that's not easy to do. That means you were good defensively, and we were."

This was a dominant defensive performance by the Rebs. They held the Falcons to 28% shooting from the field and 16% from beyond the three-point arc. UNLV also forced 13 turnovers and blocked six shots in this game. Falcons' starter scored just 11 points, shooting 3 - 27 from the field.

Tyrin Jones was the star of the game for the Rebels. The freshman forward led the team with 14 points on 7 - 10 shooting from the field. He also chipped in with six rebounds, one steal, and a team-high two blocks.

Howie Fleming Jr had a big game of his own, scoring 10 points, leading the team with 12 rebounds, and was tied for the team lead in assists with Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn and Kimani Hamilton with three.

The best player for the Falcons was Caleb Walker. The junior forward scored 10 points in just 15 minutes, shooting 5 - 7 from the field and pulling down a team-best seven rebounds and recording one of their two blocks.

Next up for the Rebels are the Wyoming Cowboys on Tuesday night. Wyoming is currently sitting at 1 - 2 in the Mountain West, and the Rebels will look to move up to 3 - 0 in conference play and back into a share of first place.

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