One of the most recognizable names in college sports, The University of Nevada, Las Vegas Runnin’ Rebels (UNLV), founded in 1957, made a trip up to our beautiful province British Columbia this past month to take on some of Canada West men’s basketball’s top competition. The Runnin’ Rebels compete in the NCAA Division 1, the top NCAA division in the mountain west conference in 16 sports.
The Runnin’ Rebels trip began on August 16 against the University of British Columbia Thunderbirds (UBC). The game was electric and was played in a packed War Memorial Gym on the UBC campus. UBC’s stars shined early and ignited the game. Former B.C. Provincial MVP James Woods was on fire all night and finished the game with 33 points. Sukhman Sandhu, a former UFV player, had an impressive 23 points, 12 rebounds and knocked down 4 shots from beyond the arc.
The Runnin’ Rebels were no slouch and came out the gates quickly. Keshon Gilbert showed his versatility by going on a scoring barrage early on in the game and ended his night off with nine points and six assists. But it was Jackie Johnson III who led the way and finished the game strong with 16 points and three steals.
Although both sides played high-level basketball, the Runnin’ Rebels definitely seemed “jet-lagged” as they were a step late on defensive rotations. This left UBCs shooters enough time to make quality shots, ultimately helping them win the game 79-72 and upset the Runnin’ Rebels first game in BC.
The Runnin’ Rebels woke up to a new challenge on August 17, as the University of Calgary Dinos visited to play UNLV. Once the ball was tipped, the Runnin’ Rebels looked like a different team and were firing on all cylinders. UNLV played great team basketball, with everyone on the team scoring points, and multiple players scoring in the double digits. It wasn’t the Dinos’ night as they lost to the Runnin’ Rebels 104-74 and were outscored by the Rebels in every quarter.
Some players that stood out for the Dinos were Aidan Smith and Martynas Sabaliauskas, who both knocked down multiple triples and kept the game fun to watch.
The final match-up for the UNLV Runnin’ Rebels was against our very own University of the Fraser Valley Cascades and their new roster for the 2022-23 season. Similar to their game against the Dinos, UNLV started fast and with high energy but so did the Cascades, and the first quarter ended with the Rebels only up by five points 26-21.
Throughout the game, the Runnin’ Rebels’ offensive game plan started to show as they took a commanding 53-38 lead at the end of the half. The Cascades’ hopes of winning this game started to slip out of grasp, until first-year Clay Kurtz found himself at the free throw line three consecutive times, shooting 5/6 to bring the Cascades within ten. With six minutes left in regulation, the score was 72-69 for UNLV and the crowd was on the edge of their seats.
Unfortunately, the Runnin’ Rebels proved just how experienced and disciplined their team is, taking the game over and outscoring the Cascades 19-1 and winning the game 91-70. The Cascades Guard Dylan Kinley led the teams’ scoring with 20 points, followed by the versatile forward Chris Jackson with 19 points.
This year’s Cascades features six first-year players and many new faces to the squad. Returning to the Cascades is 4th year guard and leader of the team Dylan Kinley and 2nd year forward Dario Lopez. First-years Jaydan Bains and Clay Kurtz, both locals from the Fraser Valley, will be exciting players to watch this season. Kurtz won 3A provincial MVP with GW Graham in 2020 and will be rejoining a teammate who was on that provincial team: current Cascades player Matthias Klim. The Cascade’s mix of skilled youth and experienced veterans should make them a fierce squad in Canada West this season.
Esher is a second year law & communications student who is invested in sports. When he isn't filming and writing about basketball, he can often be found washing cars or cutting the grass. Esher hopes to one day enter the field of law enforcement and start his own media group.
