LAS VEGAS, Nev. – The UCF women’s basketball team fell 71-52 to UNLV at the UNLV Thanksgiving Classic on Wednesday afternoon in the Thomas & Mack Center.
The Knights (6-1) got off to a slow start in their first road game of the season as UNLV (5-2) led the game with 45 rebounds, 10 assists and 16 steals while the Black and Gold forced 16 turnovers on the Rebels.
Achol Akot started the game off with a jump shot but the Rebels quickly went on an 8-0 run before the 5:19 media timeout, 10-4. The Knights struggled shooting from the field as they went 5-18 from the field and UNLV came out of the first quarter with a 24-10 advantage.
The Black and Gold got their defense back together as they limited the Rebels to 13 points in the second compared to 24 in the first. UCF fought to get out of a scoring drought with back-to-back threes in the last minute and a half of play. The Rebels headed into the half with the lead, 37-22.
Hannah Gusters came out early in the third with a jumper to start the Knights off. Emely Rodriguez sparked a 5-0 run that helped the Knights get within nine of the Rebels lead, 40-31. UCF picked up its free throw shooting going 5-7 in the quarter.
UNLV continued its scoring way gaining as much of a 28-point lead with 5:40 left in the game. The Knights chipped away at the end with a 6-0 push but ultimately fell short to the Rebels, 71-52.
Gusters recorded her fourth straight double-digit game with a team-high 18 points and came up short for a double-double with eight rebounds. Achol Akot led the squad with 12 rebounds along with four steals. Kaitlin Peterson chipped in nine points while Nevaeh Brown tallied seven.
The Knights continue their road stint in Vegas with a matchup against Montana State Friday, November 29 at 3 p.m.