Wink helps Rebels dodge a big bullet

Wink Adams has made a lot of big baskets during his four-year UNLV career, but considering what was at stake on Senior Night on Wednesday at the Thomas & Mack Center few were any bigger than this one.

The Runnin’ Rebels (21-8, 9-6), playing perhaps their ugliest game of the Lon Kruger Era, were nursing just a two-point lead over lowly Air Force (9-19, 0-15) when Adams drove through heavy traffic and banked in a difficult left-handed layup with 24.6 seconds left to up the lead to a much more comfortable 45-41.

That would prove to be the game-winning basket in a 46-43 victory over a Falcons squad that has now lost 16 straight games.

How devastating would a home loss to Air Force have been on Wednesday night? Huge, unless you are a big fan of the NIT.

Home losses to a team like Air Force are bad on any NCAA Tournament resume but this one would have wiped out all the good gained by the Rebels’ New Year’s Eve upset of Louisville or its regular season sweep of BYU.

The 46 points were the fewest scored in a UNLV victory since 1962 when the Rebels edged mighty Grand Canyon College, 43-42.

“Obviously a struggle all night long,” Kruger said in perhaps the night’s biggest understatement.

UNLV matched its season low for first half points (20 at Nevada) and assists (6 at Wyoming). They went 11 minutes between baskets during one first half stretch and seven minutes without a point late in the second half.

But thanks to some tough defense, the Rebels found a way to avoid a disastrous loss to the Falcons.

It was only fitting that Adams, who finished with a team-high 11 points, made the game-winner with his clutch drive.

“Wink made a big play,” Kruger said. “Sure did. It’s something he’s done a lot during his career. He drove it, was aggressive and got the layup to go that put us back up by four at a critical time.”

“That was a tremendous shot,” senior guard Rene Rougeau added. “It was probably the biggest basket of the night. … He’s really stepping his game up and thats what we really needed. I was just so happy to see him make that basket.”

Adams compared the drive to his game-winner in last year’s 89-88 Mountain West Conference Tournament quarterfinal win over TCU. The difference was Adams used his right hand to finish a floater against the Horned Frogs.

“It was kind of the same situation as the TCU game,” Adams said. “I got the ball with a couple seconds left and I just told myself I was going to try and get to the basket and draw a foul and hit a layup. … I’m glad it went in when it did.”

He wasn’t the only one in the crowd of 14,943.

Rougeau was asked if he thought the Rebels had dodged a bullet.

“Without a doubt,” he said.