Late miss makes difference as UNLV falls to New Mexico

UNLV Rebels guard D.J. Thomas (11) reacts to a call during an NCAA basketball game against the Memphis Tigers at the Thomas & Mack Center Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024. Photo by Steve Marcus

If anyone is wondering where to find D.J. Thomas on Sunday, he will be camped out at UNLV’s practice facility, sneakers firmly planted at the free-throw line, refining his 15-foot stroke.

Thomas announced his schedule just a few minutes after missing a game-tying free throw in the final seconds that allowed New Mexico to escape the Thomas & Mack Center with a 75-73 win.

The Scarlet and Gray trailed, 74-72, when Thomas drove into the paint and drew a foul with 1.3 seconds remaining. After he made the first free throw, New Mexico called timeout to ice him. Thomas gathered himself at the line and appeared to have a good release on the second shot, but his attempt bounced off the back of the rim.

New Mexico grabbed the rebound and made a free throw at the other end with 0.5 seconds left to account for the final margin.

It was a disappointing finish for Thomas, who played an otherwise splendid game with 18 points and seven assists.

The sophomore had been 8-of-9 from the line before the late attempt, but he promised to get back on the practice court to straighten out his form.

“We work on them every day after practice,” Thomas said. “Disappointing, but I’ll be back in the gym tomorrow getting up a hundred free throws.”

UNLV had several chances to win the game before Thomas’s fateful freebies. Trailing by two points with 2:04 remaining, the Scarlet and Gray had three straight empty possessions on offense, including a pair of costly turnovers.

One of the turnovers was particularly egregious; after forcing a New Mexico turnover, junior wing Jaden Henley tried to outlet the ball to Thomas. The two miscommunicated, however, with Thomas stopping short as Henley led him upcourt with the pass. The ball sailed out of bounds, giving possession back to New Mexico with 43 seconds on the clock.

UNLV got a defensive stop, setting up a final possession that began with Julian Rishwain missing a potential go-ahead 3-pointer with 10 seconds to play. Freshman big man Pape N’Diaye batted the rebound out to senior forward Jalen Hill, who handed it off to Thomas. Thomas split two defenders and drew a foul as he went up for a floater.

Thomas said he wasn’t affected by the timeout between free throws; he simply missed.

The loss was UNLV’s second straight at home, coming on the heels of Tuesday’s 63-61 defeat at the hands of Wyoming. The Scarlet and Gray are now 11-9 on the season and 5-4 in Mountain West play.

Rishwain stood up for Thomas.

“It shouldn’t have just come down to D.J. missing that one,” Rishwain said. “I missed some, I think J-Hill missed some, Bear missed some. Free throws as a team — D.J. works on them more than anybody, so he’s the guy we want on the line at the end of the game.”

New Mexico guard Donovan Dent went for 34 points and Lobos big man Nelly Junior Joseph tallied 22 points and 18 rebounds.

Rishwain hit 5-of-10 from 3-point range to keep UNLV in the game against the Mountain West’s first-place team. He finished with 16 points.

Thomas came into the day shooting 72.7% from the free-throw line and he made 74.3% as a freshman last year. In UNLV’s impressive win at San Diego State on Jan. 18, Thomas scored 10 of his 19 points from the line, going a perfect 10-of-10.

Rishwain expressed team-wide confidence in Thomas in clutch situations.

“At the end of practice every single time, D.J. and some other guys are always the last dudes in the gym shooting free throws. I know how seriously he takes it. I wouldn’t even blame it on D.J. at the end.”

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