LAS VEGAS — UNLV did not fix its problems Tuesday night.

It survived them.

In an 89-85 overtime win over Boise State at the Thomas & Mack Center, the Rebels finally did the one thing their recent road losses denied them: finish. Not cleanly. Not comfortably. But decisively enough to matter.

This game played out exactly as the warning signs suggested it would. Missed free throws. Extended possessions. Physicality in the paint. A disciplined opponent content to wait for mistakes.

The difference this time was not effort. UNLV has fought before. The difference was closure.

UNLV led, trailed, tied, and stumbled its way through regulation. Boise State erased advantages quietly, living at the rim and forcing the Rebels to complete possessions they’ve too often left unfinished.

With UNLV up three late in regulation, head coach Josh Pastner resisted the obvious move: foul and reset.

“I wasn’t comfortable fouling up three,” Pastner said. “We haven’t been great boxing out on free throws.”

That decision sent the game to overtime, the exact kind of scenario Boise State prefers. One more stretch where every mistake is magnified.

Instead of breaking, UNLV leaned into the grind.

“There was some toughness, it wasn’t pretty, but we found a way,” Pastner said.

Overtime belonged to Dra Gibbs-Lawhorn, who finished with a career-high 33 points and controlled the game when chaos threatened to take over. He attacked downhill, drew contact, and made enough plays to tilt a possession-by-possession battle.

More importantly, he owned the responsibility that comes with it.

“I’m still not satisfied,” Gibbs-Lawhorn said. “I’ve got to keep putting in the hours to be the best point guard I can be.”

That mindset mattered. UNLV didn’t suddenly become efficient. It became intentional. Every late possession had a purpose. Every trip to the line carried consequences.

If Gibbs-Lawhorn carried the ball, Tyrin Jones carried the edge. His shot blocking, rebounding, and second efforts anchored the Rebels through long defensive sequences, the kind Boise State usually wins.

“Coach has been on us about playing with physicality,” Jones said. “Fighting without fouling. Staying clean.”

That showed up late. Boise State’s final push stalled not because of a single stop, but because UNLV strung together enough of them in a row.

UNLV didn’t win because it shot well. It didn’t win because it avoided mistakes. It won because it absorbed pressure without fracturing.

That distinction matters in the Mountain West.

Boise State will not beat itself. It will wait for missed free throws, lost box-outs, and half-finished possessions. For once, UNLV didn’t give it enough of them in the moments that decide games.

The Rebels didn’t solve their season Tuesday night. They proved they can survive it and in a league where margins decide March, that may be the most important step they could take.

UNLV 89, Boise State 85 (OT)

Key Performers

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