Versus Game is tense and dramatic, with the potential to become an instant classic. It was the latter on Saturday night at the Thomas & Mack Center, and the story of the night was Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn.
He made 14 of 22 shots and 8 of 14 three-pointers, scoring a career-high 42 points to help the University of Nevada, Las Vegas defeat the University of Nevada 85-83 in overtime.
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Nevada comes into this game after beating Utah and New Mexico in the past week. Meanwhile, UNLV is down on its luck after losing to Grand Canyon by double digits on Wednesday
The first half was a back-and-forth affair. Nevada’s Vaughn Weems started the offense early, driving for a layup and finishing with 30 points.
Whenever the pack separated, Gibbs-Lawhorn responded.
He hit an early 3-pointer to tie the game for University of Nevada, Las Vegas and added another 3-pointer with 25 seconds left in the second half to tie the game at 35. Nevada led by two points at halftime, but the Rebels still held the lead.
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Gibbs Lawhorn scored 18 points at halftime, but he wasn’t even close to getting the job done.
In the second half, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) launched an attack. Jacob Bannarbie dunked and made free throws. At the beginning of the second half, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) led 40-37.
Nevada went on a 12-0 run on Wimes’ 3-pointer and Tayshaun Comer’s 3-pointer, giving the Wolfpack a 59-54 lead.
Thereafter, Gibbs-Lawhorn took over. With 37 seconds left in the game, he hit a three-pointer with 3 points behind, chasing the score to 74-74 and sending the score into overtime.
At the beginning of overtime, Gibbs Lawhorn opened the game the same way he ended the regular season, with a three-pointer to put UNLV ahead 77-74.
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Gibbs-Lawhorn, also a playmaker, found Tyrion Jones for an alley-oop dunk to give NV Las Vegas the lead. Jones scored 12 points and 5 rebounds.
With Nevada trailing by one with less than a minute left in the game, Gibbs Lawhorn fouled Tyler Rawlison. It was Gibbs-Lawhorn’s fifth foul, and he exited the game at a moment when he needed energy.
It was a good thing for the Rebels, as Rolison made just one free throw to keep the game tied.
Needing a spark after Gibbs Lawhorn was ejected, Jones drove to the rim in transition for a huge layup.
Jones hit the ball out of bounds as Nevada was on the court to eat up some time before taking its final shot. His burst of energy only gave Nevada three seconds to shoot. Rolison missed a three-pointer and the Rebels won.
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A win over Nevada is huge for building momentum, especially since the next team entering the Thomas & Mack Center will be Utah State, the best team in the conference on March 3.