Las Vegas Review-Journal (Sunday)
Mooring’s shot off glass gets Rebels off the hook
Buzzer-beating 3 enables 2OT win against Air Force
UNLV had no business winning and then no business losing a basketball game in which each side forced extra time with banked-in 3-pointers.
The Rebels finally broke through, outlasting Air Force 87-85 in two overtimes Saturday at the Thomas & Mack Center.
It was reminiscent of the teams’ prior meeting in the same building, a 108-102 triple-overtime victory by the Rebels on March 9 in the Mountain West tournament.
Not as much was at stake in this game, one in which neither team shot well. UNLV (10-10, 3-4 MW) made 33.8 percent of its shots, and the Falcons (911, 2-5) made 37.5 percent.
But both teams made shots when they had to.
UNLV looked done when Jalen Poyser went to the foul line down 58-55 with 3.1 seconds left. He missed both free throws, the second intentionally, and the rebound went off Air Force’s Frank Toohey and Hayden Graham.
The Rebels then put in Larry Bush, who hadn’t played all day, to inbound the ball with 2.6 seconds remaining. He found Jovan Mooring, who banked in a 3-pointer at the buzzer to force overtime.
“The play wasn’t originally for me, but once I got it, I knew I had to get a shot,” Mooring said. “I was lucky enough for it to go in off the backboard, so I’ll take it any time.”
Mooring, who scored a career-high 30 points, made another 3-pointer with 3.2 seconds left in the first overtime to give the Rebels a 70-67 lead. But the Falcons’ Jacob Van then banked in a running 3 to send the game into a second extra session.
UNLV built an 80-73 lead, but a series of missed free throws kept the Rebels from putting away the game. Finally, Mooring made two free throws with three seconds left to seal the victory.