AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo.—A dozen UNLV 3-pointers along with poor shooting for Air Force was too much for the struggling Falcons, who lost their eighth straight game Saturday, 59-38.
Joe Darger had a game-high 18 points and UNLV connected on 12 3-pointers as the Rebels improved to 17-4 on the season, 5-2 in the Mountain West Conference. Air Force fell to 9-11 overall and 0-7 in conference play.
“We had some looks that didn’t go in, and that affected our defense on the other end,” Air Force coach Jeff Reynolds said the Falcons’ ninth loss in 10 games. “We just need to keep working, have more energy and give a better effort.”
The Rebels attempted 30 shots from 3-point range, with Kendall Wallace scoring all of his 15 points from beyond the arc. Wink Adams added 13 points for UNLV, while Matt Holland led Air Force with 13 points.
The Rebels used a pair of 12-2 second-half runs to pull away and scored their final 12 points on 3-pointers. The Falcons hit just 5-of-20 shots from 3-point range and shot 35.1 percent from the field.
Air Force took a 13-12 lead with 7:33 remaining in the first half when Holland connected on back-to-back 3-pointers, but it would be the Falcons’ final lead of the game. UNLV scored the game’s next eight points and closed the half with a 17-6 run to take a 29-19 lead to the locker room.
