Rebels run past Queensland All-Stars, 96-76

BRISBANE, Queensland, Australia - Four Runnin' Rebels scored in double figures as the UNLV men's basketball team routed the Queensland All-Stars, 96-76, at the Queensland Academy of Sport’s Athletics Centre on Monday night.

Wink Adams led all scorers with 24 points - 17 in the second half - as UNLV led by as many as 35 points. Joe Darger added 17 points, while Tre’Von Willis and Mareceo Rutledge each added 14, helping UNLV to a 3-1 record and its third straight win on its Australian tour.

Beas Hamga had a game-high tying eight rebounds for the Runnin’ Rebels, while René Rougeau grabbed seven boards. Adams and Willis each had six rebounds.

UNLV made 13 3-pointers on the night and was led by Darger’s four makes. Queensland made just four 3-pointers on the night and committed 21 turnovers to UNLV’s 12.

"Our guys have continued to play better each game," said UNLV head coach Lon Kruger. "We shot the ball very well tonight, especially in the first half. We hadn’t done that in the first three ballgames, even though we have done some other things well, so it was good to see us shoot it like we can. We made the extra pass to one another tonight and made good plays for each other. On three or four occasions someone turned down an okay shot to make one more pass for a really good shot and I think that contributed to shooting the ball for a better percentage."

UNLV made seven first-half 3-pointers and shot 56 percent from the field in the first half, while limiting Queensland to just 28 percent from the field and 14 percent from 3-point range (1-for-7).

Trailing 12-6 three minutes into the game, UNLV went on a 24-6 run to end the quarter and took a 12-point lead, 30-18. The Runnin’ Rebels then outscored Queensland 24-10 in the second to take a 26-point lead into halftime, 54-28.

UNLV's largest lead of the game was at 69-34 in the third quarter.

"Beas had more touches in the paint and we need to continue to get him those looks, Tre’Von continues to play better at the point and it was good to see Joe and Wink shoot the ball like they can," Kruger said.

"We are used to playing in gyms like this one tonight," Adams said. "It was pretty hot in there and it felt good with the rims, the wooden floor and our fans here. It felt like we were back at home, so we were real comfortable. We knocked down a lot of shots and we were creating a lot of looks for each other and whenever we can do that and make our shots, we can always win games. I thought the whole game we just made it easy on ourselves by getting the shots we wanted and we made them."

Thalo Green scored 23 points for Queensland and Adam Darragh added 12. Steve Broom had eight rebounds, while Bryan Jett grabbed six.

The game was UNLV's fourth on its six-game exhibition tour of Australia that runs through Saturday, July 5. The Runnin' Rebels lost their first contest on Thursday, 72-64, to the Sutherland Sharks, defeated the Illawarra Seahawks, 77-75, on Friday and beat the West Sydney Razorbacks, 77-71, on Saturday.

UNLV’s next game is Tuesday night against the South West Metro Pirates at the same arena as Monday’s game.