# 2021–22 UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball team

The 2021–22 UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball team represented the University of Nevada, Las Vegas during the 2021–22 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Runnin' Rebels were led by first-year head coach Kevin Kruger and played their home games at the Thomas & Mack Center in Paradise, Nevada as members of the Mountain West Conference. They finished the season 18–14, 10–8 in MWC play to finish in fifth place. They lost to Wyoming in the quarterfinals of the MWC tournament. They failed to receive an invite to a postseason tournament.

## Previous season

In a season limited due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Runnin' Rebels finished the 2020–21 season 12–15, 12–6 in Mountain West play to finish in seventh place. They defeated Air Force in the first round of the Mountain West tournament before losing in the quarterfinals to Utah State.
On March 18, 2021, head coach T. J. Otzelberger left UNLV after two seasons for the Iowa State head coaching job. On March 21, the school announced that assistant coach Kevin Kruger would be promoted to the head coaching position.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Donovan Yap | 0 | G | 6'3" | 175 | Freshman | Las Vegas, NV | Transferred to Fresno State |
| Moses Wood | 1 | F | 6'8" | 210 | RS Sophomore | Reno, NV | Transferred to Portland |
| Caleb Grill | 3 | G | 6'3" | 195 | Sophomore | Wichita, KS | Transferred to Iowa State |
| David Jenkins Jr. | 5 | G | 6'2" | 195 | RS Junior | Tacoma, WA | Graduate transferred from Utah |
| Edoardo Del Cadia | 10 | F | 6'7" | 235 | Junior | Senigallia, Italy | Transferred to Nicholls |
| Jhaylon Martinez | 12 | C | 6'11" | 260 | Freshman | Vallejo, CA | Transferred to UC Riverside |
| Issac Lindsey | 14 | G | 6'4" | 190 | Freshman | Mineral Point, WI | Walk-on; transferred to Wisconsin |
| Nick Blake | 22 | G | 6'6" | 220 | Freshman | Las Vegas, NV | Transferred to Pacific |
| Kendrick Gilbert | 24 | F | 6'5" | 190 | Freshman | Las Vegas, NV | Walk-on; no long on team roster |
| Devin Tillis | 30 | F | 6'6" | 215 | Freshman | Los Angeles, CA | Transferred to UC Irvine |
| Cheikh Mbacke Diong | 34 | F | 6'11" | 220 | Senior | Dakar, Senegal | Graduate transferred to UCF |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous School |
| Victor Iwuakor | 0 | F | 6'7" | 223 | Junior | Abuja, Nigeria | Transferred from Oklahoma. Under NCAA transfer rules, Iwuakor will have to sit out for the 2021–22 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility. |
| Mike Nuga | 1 | G | 6'2" | 180 | GS Senior | Toronto, ON | Transferred from Kent State. Will be eligible to play immediately since Nuga graduated from Kent State. |
| Justin Webster | 2 | G | 6'3" | 180 | Junior | Dallas, TX | Transferred from Hawaii. Under NCAA transfer rules, Webster will have to sit out for the 2021–22 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility. |
| Donovan Williams | 3 | G | 6’6” | 190 | Junior | Houston, TX | Transferred from Texas. Under NCAA transfer rules, Williams will have to sit out for the 2021–22 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility. |
| Jordan McCabe | 5 | G | 6'0" | 188 | Senior | Kaukauna, WI | Transferred from West Virginia. Will be eligible to play immediately since McCabe graduated from West Virginia. |
| David Muoka | 12 | C | 6'10" | 211 | Junior | Hong Kong | Transferred from Lamar. Under NCAA transfer rules, Muoka will have to sit out for the 2021–22 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility. |
| Royce Hamm Jr. | 13 | F | 6'9" | 225 | GS Senior | Houston, TX | Transferred from Texas. Will be eligible to play immediately since Hamm Jr. graduated from Texas. |
| Josh Baker | 22 | G | 6'2" | 169 | Junior | Tempe, AZ | Junior college transferred from Hutchinson CC. |
| James Hampshire | 30 | C | 7'1" | 242 | GS Senior | Flagstaff, AZ | Transferred from Pacific. Will be eligible to play immediately since Hampshire graduated from Pacific. |

### 2021 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Keshon Gilbert PG | Las Vegas, NV | Durango High School | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | Sep 7, 2019 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2021 UNLV Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 3, 2019. "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved November 3, 2019. ||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| November 10, 2021* 7:00 p.m. | | Gardner–Webb | W 64–58 | 1–0 | 22 – Hamilton | 17 – Hamm Jr. | 3 – Baker | Thomas & Mack Center (4,962) Paradise, NV |
| November 13, 2021* 5:00 p.m., Stadium | | California | W 55–52 | 2–0 | 12 – Hamilton | 7 – Hamm Jr. | 3 – Tied | Thomas & Mack Center (4,937) Paradise, NV |
| November 15, 2021* 7:00 p.m., YurView | | North Dakota State Roman Main Event Campus-Site Game | W 64–62 | 3–0 | 17 – Hamilton | 17 – Hamm Jr. | 4 – Coleman | Thomas & Mack Center (4,381) Paradise, NV |
| November 19, 2021* 9:30 p.m., ESPN2 | | vs. No. 4 Michigan Roman Main Event Semifinals | L 61–74 | 3–1 | 21 – Hamilton | 10 – Hamm Jr. | 5 – McCabe | T-Mobile Arena Paradise, NV |
| November 21, 2021* 9:30 p.m., ESPN2 | | vs. Wichita State Roman Main Event Consolation – 3rd Place | L 73–74 | 3–2 | 18 – Hamilton | 11 – Hamm Jr. | 8 – McCabe | T-Mobile Arena (8,624) Paradise, NV |
| November 24, 2021* 6:30 p.m. | | Whittier | W 101–45 | 4–2 | 17 – Webster | 9 – Coleman | 5 – Webster | Thomas & Mack Center (4,288) Paradise, NV |
| November 27, 2021* 2:00 p.m., Stadium | | No. 2 UCLA | L 51–73 | 4–3 | 18 – Hamilton | 4 – Tied | 5 – McCabe | Thomas & Mack Center (6,392) Paradise, NV |
| December 1, 2021* 5:00 p.m., ESPN+ | | at SMU | L 64–83 | 4–4 | 13 – Hamm Jr. | 10 – Hamm Jr. | 5 – McCabe | Moody Coliseum (3,399) Dallas, TX |
| December 4, 2021* 7:00 p.m. | | at San Francisco | L 62–83 | 4–5 | 23 – Hamilton | 5 – Hamilton | 4 – Gilbert | War Memorial Gymnasium (1,327) San Francisco, CA |
| December 8, 2021* 7:00 p.m. | | vs. Seattle UNLV at the Mandalay Bay | W 76–56 | 5–5 | 21 – Nuga | 14 – Hamm Jr. | 8 – Nuga | Michelob Ultra Arena (637) Paradise, NV |
| December 11, 2021* 7:00 p.m. | | vs. Hartford UNLV at the Mandalay Bay | W 95–78 | 6–5 | 33 – Hamilton | 7 – Hamm Jr. | 11 – McCabe | Michelob Ultra Arena (3,257) Paradise, NV |
| December 15, 2021* 7:00 p.m., YurView | | Omaha | W 84–71 | 7–5 | 26 – Hamilton | 12 – Hamm Jr. | 5 – Tied | Thomas & Mack Center (4,345) Paradise, NV |
| December 22, 2021* 7:00 p.m., YurView | | San Diego | W 80–57 | 8–5 | 20 – Tied | 10 – Hamm Jr. | 7 – McCabe | Thomas & Mack Center (4,377) Paradise, NV |
| Mountain West regular season |||||||||
| January 1, 2022 1:00 p.m., CBS | | San Diego State | L 55–62 | 8–6 (0–1) | 16 – Williams | 14 – Hamm Jr. | 5 – McCabe | Thomas & Mack Center (5,082) Paradise, NV |
| January 11, 2022 8:00 p.m., CBSSN | | New Mexico | W 85–56 | 9–6 (1–1) | 29 – Williams | 13 – Hamm Jr. | 5 – McCabe | Thomas & Mack Center (3,860) Paradise, NV |
| January 14, 2022 8:00 p.m., FS1 | | Fresno State | L 68–73 | 9–7 (1–2) | 24 – Hamilton | 8 – Hamm Jr. | 3 – McCabe | Thomas & Mack Center (4,976) Paradise, NV |
| January 17, 2022 6:00 p.m., CBSSN | | at San José State Rescheduled from January 5 | W 81–56 | 10–7 (2–2) | 20 – Williams | 9 – Muoka | 5 – McCabe | Provident Credit Union Event Center (1,182) San Jose, CA |
| January 20, 2022 6:00 p.m., Mountain West Network | | at Air Force Rescheduled from January 8 | L 62–69 | 10–8 (2–3) | 32 – Hamilton | 9 – Hamm Jr. | 2 – Tied | Clune Arena (934) Colorado Springs, CO |
| January 22, 2022 12:00 p.m., Stadium | | San José State | W 70–62 | 11–8 (3–3) | 30 – Hamilton | 14 – Hamm Jr. | 4 – Gilbert | Thomas & Mack Center (4,466) Paradise, NV |
| January 24, 2022 6:00 p.m., CBSSN | | at San Diego State Originally scheduled for Jan. 18 | L 55–80 | 11–9 (3–4) | 23 – Hamilton | 8 – Muoka | 5 – McCabe | Viejas Arena (10,528) San Diego, CA |
| January 28, 2022 6:00 p.m., FS1 | | at Colorado State | W 88–74 | 12–9 (4–4) | 45 – Hamilton | 7 – Hamilton | 5 – Tied | Moby Arena (8,083) Fort Collins, CO |
| February 1, 2022 7:00 p.m., FS1 | | Nevada Battle for Nevada | W 69–58 | 13–9 (5–4) | 17 – Tied | 8 – Hamm Jr. | 5 – Nuga | Thomas & Mack Center (6,670) Paradise, NV |
| February 5, 2022 4:00 p.m., CBSSN | | at Utah State | L 75–90 | 13–10 (5–5) | 33 – Hamilton | 5 – Tied | 8 – McCabe | Smith Spectrum (9,029) Logan, UT |
| February 8, 2022 8:00 p.m., MW Network | | Air Force | W 78–44 | 14–10 (6–5) | 24 – Hamilton | 16 – Hamm, Jr. | 10 – McCabe | Thomas & Mack Center (5,312) Paradise, NV |
| February 11, 2022 8:00 p.m., FS1 | | at Boise State | L 63–69 | 14–11 (6–6) | 32 – Hamilton | 7 – Hamm, Jr. | 6 – McCabe | ExtraMile Arena (7,660) Boise, ID |
| February 16, 2022 7:30 p.m., CBSSN | | at Fresno State | W 60–57 | 15–11 (7–6) | 17 – Hamilton | 8 – Muoka | 4 – Hamilton | Save Mart Center (4,723) Fresno, CA |
| February 19, 2022 5:00 p.m., CBSSN | | Colorado State | W 72–51 | 16–11 (8–6) | 20 – Hamilton | 12 – Hamm Jr. | 4 – Hamilton | Thomas & Mack Center (6,153) Paradise, NV |
| February 22, 2022 8:00 p.m., CBSSN | | at Nevada Battle for Nevada | W 62–54 | 17–11 (9–6) | 27 – Hamilton | 12 – Hamm Jr. | 7 – McCabe | Lawlor Events Center (9,148) Reno, NV |
| February 26, 2022 7:00 p.m., CBSSN | | Boise State | L 76–86 | 17–12 (9–7) | 25 – Hamilton | 7 – Muoka | 5 – McCabe | Thomas & Mack Center (7,176) Paradise, NV |
| March 2, 2022 7:30 p.m., FS1 | | Wyoming | W 64–57 | 18–12 (10–7) | 17 – Hamm Jr. | 10 – Hamm Jr. | 4 – Hamilton | Thomas & Mack Center (6,204) Paradise, NV |
| March 5, 2022 8:00 p.m., FS1 | | at New Mexico | L 67–76 | 18–13 (10–8) | 28 – Hamilton | 10 – Hamm, Jr. | 7 – McCabe | The Pit (9,404) Albuquerque, NM |
| Mountain West tournament |||||||||
| March 10, 2022 2:30 p.m., CBSSN | (5) | (4) Wyoming Quarterfinals | L 56–59 | 18–14 | 22 – Hamilton | 7 – Tied | 3 – Hamilton | Thomas & Mack Center Paradise, NV |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Pacific Time. |||||||||
Source