LAS VEGAS, Nev. — In a game projected to be an easy victory for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas — ESPN projected an 85% win chance for the Rebels — Wyoming came out hot and stayed on top. The Cowboys looked and played their best for a well-earned 63–61 win.
Wyoming was .458 from the field collectively and a comfortable .500 from 3-point range. They drained a season-record-tying 14 3-pointers. According to UW Athletics, they also bagged 18 assists on 22 successful field goals. UNLV performed worse, shooting at .397 and .263 from the field and beyond three, respectively.
The cherry on top: This is the first time the Pokes have won a game in UNLV territory since 2003. For reference, that’s a longer period of time than most of the Pokes have even been alive.
Head Coach Sundance Wicks, still in his first year at the helm, credited his players for being in their bag and in the zone.
“That is what it takes to give a special effort like we did tonight to win in a place we haven’t in 22 years,” Wicks told UW Athletics. “I told our guys it takes special efforts, special days and special ways. This was a great game to share the basketball and we did that tonight. We just had monumental efforts from numerous guys tonight. We are not an easy out and I know it isn’t perfect, but we are going to be a tough out down the stretch.”
The Pokes advance to 10–9 and 3–5 in conference play. Last season they finished under .500 with a 15–17 record. The 2024–25 season is still relatively young, but it’s big games like this that make the difference between a winning and losing season.
Continuing his streak of double-doubles, guard Obi Agbim led in scoring with 19 points. Jordan Nesbitt also scored in double digits in two categories with 13 points and 12 rebounds — the most rebounds from a Poke for the night.
Despite coming off a disappointing loss to Colorado State University just a few days before, Wyoming played pretty comfortably for the duration of the game. They held a lead for almost the entire first quarter and kept up with UNLV through the rest.
UNLV would pull close at moments after halftime and even took a 4-point lead two minutes after the half, but Wyoming would always drag itself back up with the help of some momentous 3-pointers. In the final 10 minutes of the game, Wyoming even kept UNLV scoreless for four whole minutes.
In the final three minutes, Wyoming would extend its lead to 11. The Rebels would attempt — and nearly got away with — a huge comeback, shrinking the lead to 6 points with 30 seconds of game time.
Some turnovers forced by UNLV gave the Rebels the time they needed to grab a few more points, making it a 63–61 game with less than 10 seconds to go. A Wyoming foul gave the Rebels the chance to tie the game, but it wouldn’t go in, allowing the Cowboys to win in Sin City.
Before they get to rest at home, however, they must travel to San Jose State for a 5:30 p.m. game this Saturday. That game can be streamed on the Mountain West Network.
