Jaden Henley takes star turn as UNLV throttles UNR

UNLV Rebels guard Jaden Henley (10) celebrates after making a three-point basket against the UNR Wolf Pack during the first half of an NCAA basketball game at the Thomas & Mack Center Friday, Feb. 28, 2025. Photo by Steve Marcus

Does UNLV have a new star player?

Jaden Henley has certainly played like it this week, and especially on Friday as he scored 23 points to lead the Scarlet and Gray to a 68-55 rivalry win over UNR at the Thomas & Mack Center.

It’s a new career high for Henley, topping the 22 points he scored in a victory at San Jose State on Tuesday. UNR had no answers for the 6-foot-6 junior wing as he scored efficiently via jumpers, off the dribble and from the free-throw line.

With leading scorer D.J. Thomas missing his third consecutive game, Henley couldn’t have picked a better time to step up and take command of the UNLV offense.

“My confidence is really high,” Henley said. “I think the biggest thing is the game is starting to slow down. [Against] Colorado State I had a really bad game. I felt like I wasn’t really getting the team into their spots with D.J. going out, so the biggest thing is stepping up for my team.”

For the second straight game Henley turned in several highlight buckets. On one first-half possession he crossed over his man, then used a behind-the-back dribble to split a pair of UNR players before finishing with a two-handed dunk. In the second half he dribbled the length of the floor and weaved through three defenders in transition for a smooth finger roll.

Thomas was averaging 15.6 points per game when he went out with a shoulder injury. Henley is now up to 12.0 points on the season and 12.6 in conference play.

Head coach Kevin Kruger said Henley’s offensive contributions have been invaluable and, most importantly, very timely.

“Jaden’s done and unbelievable job the last two games being aggressive,” Kruger said. “Not being affected confidence-wise when a shot doesn’t go his way or a play doesn’t go his way. He’s had two great offensive nights that we’ve needed to get wins. We’ve got to do what we can to keep his confidence going.”

While Henley handled the offense, UNLV’s team defense put UNR through a meat grinder for 40 minutes, holding the Wolf Pack to 33.9% shooting (20-of-59) and 3-of-21 from point range. And when UNR missed, the home team swarmed the boards, allowing just seven offensive rebounds while building a 48-27 advantage on the glass.

Senior forward Jalen Hill went for 16 points and eight rebounds while junior center Jeremiah “Bear” Cherry posted 10 points and nine rebounds. Senior guard Jailen Bedford skied for 11 rebounds in his 24 minutes off the bench.

Hill, a Las Vegas native, said the opponent had something to do with UNLV’s ferocious efforts to crash the boards.

“I think that goes to show that we just don’t like ‘em,” Hill said. “That’s our rival so we always want to beat them. We want to beat up on ‘em and that’s it.”

When he wasn’t putting the ball in the basket, Henley chipped in eight rebounds, three assists and a block.

UNLV has now won two straight games without Thomas, who Kruger expects to return at some point this season. At 16-13 overall and 10-8 in conference play, the Scarlet and Gray are beginning to take on the look of a team no one will be happy about facing in the Mountain West tournament.

Kruger believes if his guys keep up their intensity on defense, handle the boards and keep Henley running hot, UNLV has a chance to make something happen.

“Couldn’t be more proud of them for competing the way they did and having such great defensive possessions for 40 minutes,” Kruger said. “It’s a group that I think defensively is feeling really good right now. We’ve got to keep that momentum going.

“Some curveballs that have been thrown make the offensive side a little more difficult, but the one thing we can control is how we’re guarding people, and the last handful of games the guys have been really good at that.”

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.