# 2024–25 UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball team

The 2024–25 UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball team represents the University of Nevada, Las Vegas during the 2024–25 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Runnin' Rebels, led by fourth-year head coach Kevin Kruger, play their home games for the 42nd season at the Thomas & Mack Center in Paradise, Nevada. They participate as members of the Mountain West Conference for the 26th season.

## Previous season

The Runnin' Rebels finished the 2023–24 season 21–13, 12–6 in Mountain West play to finish in fourth place. In the MWC tournament, they were defeated by San Diego State in the quarterfinals. They received an automatic bid to the NIT in the Seton Hall Bracket where they defeated Princeton in the first round and Boston College in the second round before losing Seton Hall in the quarterfinals.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Justin Webster | 2 | G | 6'3" | 190 | GS Senior | Dallas, TX | Graduated |
| Shane Nowell | 3 | G | 6'6" | 220 | Junior | Seattle, WA | Transferred to Portland State |
| Kalib Boone | 10 | F | 6'9" | 215 | GS Senior | Tulsa, OK | Graduated |
| Luis Rodriguez | 15 | G | 6'6" | 220 | GS Senior | Los Angeles, CA | Graduated |
| Keylan Boone | 20 | F | 6'8" | 200 | GS Senior | Tulsa, OK | Graduated |
| Karl Jones | 22 | F | 6'10" | 260 | Senior | Chicago, IL | Graduated |
| Jackie Johnson III | 24 | G | 5'11" | 185 | Junior | Wichita, KS | Transferred to Fordham |
| Nick Walters | 31 | G | 6'1" | 185 | Senior | Henderson, NV | Walk-on; graduated |

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous college |
| Jaden Henley | 10 | G/F | 6'7" | 200 | Junior | Ontario, CA | DePaul |
| Jailen Bedford | 14 | G/F | 6'4" | 181 | Senior | Austin, TX | Oral Roberts |
| Jace Whiting | 15 | G | 6'3" | 188 | Junior | Burley, ID | Boise State |
| Julian Rishwain | 20 | G | 6'5" | 200 | GS Senior | Los Angeles, CA | Florida |
| Jeremiah Cherry | 45 | F/C | 6'11" | | Junior | San Diego, CA | New Mexico JC |

### 2024 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| James Evans #28 SF | Santa Clarita, CA | West Ranch High School | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | Jun 30, 2023 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 81 ||||||
| Pape N'Diaye #42 C | Las Vegas, NV | Trinity International School | 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) | 215 lb (98 kg) | Oct 2, 2023 |
| Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 79 ||||||
| 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: "2024 UNLV Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 8, 2024. "2024 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 8, 2024. ||||||

## 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 4, 2024* 8:30 p.m., SSSEN/MW Network | | Alabama State | W 93−79 | 1−0 | 24 – Cherry | 11 – Cherry | 7 – Thomas Jr. | Thomas & Mack Center (4,608) Paradise, NV |
| November 9, 2024* 3:00 p.m., SSSEN/MW Network | | Memphis | L 74–80 | 1–1 | 22 – Thomas Jr. | 7 – Cherry | 5 – Hill | Thomas & Mack Center (6,510) Paradise, NV |
| November 14, 2024* 7:00 p.m., SSSEN/MW Network | | Omaha | W 80–69 | 2–1 | 17 – Tied | 8 – Hill | 3 – Tied | Thomas & Mack Center (4,817) Paradise, NV |
| November 20, 2024* 7:00 p.m., SSSEN/MW Network | | Pepperdine | W 80–59 | 3–1 | 16 – Hicks | 6 – N'Diaye | 6 – Thomas | Thomas & Mack Center (4,544) Paradise, NV |
| November 23, 2024* 4:00 p.m., SSSEN/MW Network | | New Mexico State Arizona Tip-Off campus site game | W 72–65 | 4–1 | 22 – Thomas Jr. | 9 – Hill | 4 – Thomas Jr. | Thomas & Mack Center (4,850) Paradise, NV |
| November 28, 2024* 6:30 p.m., CBSSN | | vs. No. 25 Mississippi State Arizona Tip-Off Cactus Division semifinals | L 58–80 | 4–2 | 13 – Bedford | 5 – Tied | 6 – Thomas Jr. | Mullett Arena (1,736) Tempe, AZ |
| November 29, 2024* 4:00 p.m., CBSSN | | vs. Northwestern Arizona Tip-Off Cactus Division 3rd place game | L 61−66 | 4−3 | 17 – Thomas Jr. | 10 – Cherry | 2 – Tied | Mullett Arena Tempe, AZ |
| December 7, 2024* 1:00 p.m., FS1 | | at Creighton | L 65–83 | 4–4 | 20 – Bedford | 4 – Tied | 2 – Tied | CHI Health Center Omaha (17,080) Omaha, NE |
| December 14, 2024* 7:30 p.m., Baller TV | | vs. Pacific Jack Jones Classic | W 72–65 | 5–4 | 21 – Rishwain | 10 – N'Diaye | 5 – Thomas Jr. | Lee's Family Forum Henderson, NV |
| December 17, 2024* 4:00 p.m., Peacock | | at No. 22 Dayton | L 65–66 | 5–5 | 16 – Thomas Jr. | 7 – Henley | 6 – Thomas Jr. | UD Arena (13,407) Dayton, OH |
| December 21, 2024* 12:00 p.m., SSSEN/MW Network | | UC Riverside | W 66–53 | 6–5 | 15 – Thomas Jr. | 7 – Rishwain | 5 – Thomas Jr. | Thomas & Mack Center (4,105) Paradise, NV |
| Mountain West regular season |||||||||
| December 28, 2024 7:00 p.m., SSSEN/MW Network | | Fresno State | W 87–77 | 7–5 (1–0) | 21 – Thomas Jr. | 8 – Hicks | 6 – Thomas Jr. | Thomas & Mack Center (5,590) Paradise, NV |
| December 31, 2024 1:00 p.m., MW Network | | at Air Force | W 77–58 | 8–5 (2–0) | 16 – Rishwain | 9 – Hill | 3 – Thomas Jr. | Clune Arena (2,092) Colorado Springs, CO |
| January 4, 2025 3:00 p.m., SSSEN/MW Network | | San Jose State | W 79–73 | 9–5 (3–0) | 17 – Thomas Jr. | 5 – Tied | 6 – Tied | Thomas & Mack Center (5,182) Paradise, NV |
| January 7, 2025 7:30 p.m., FS1 | | at Boise State | L 59–81 | 9–6 (3–1) | 11 – Bedford | 5 – Cherry | 4 – Thomas Jr. | ExtraMile Arena (10,117) Boise, ID |
| January 11, 2025 1:00 p.m., MW Network | | at Colorado State | L 62–84 | 9–7 (3–2) | 19 – Tied | 8 – Bedford | 6 – Thomas Jr. | Moby Arena (3,912) Fort Collins, CO |
| January 15, 2025 8:00 p.m., CBSSN | | No. 22 Utah State | W 65–62 | 10–7 (4–2) | 15 – Hill | 8 – Hill | 6 – Thomas Jr. | Thomas & Mack Center (4,659) Paradise, NV |
| January 18, 2025 5:00 p.m., CBSSN | | at San Diego State Rivalry | W 76–68 | 11–7 (5–2) | 19 – Thomas Jr. | 8 – Henley | 5 – Thomas Jr. | Viejas Arena (12,414) San Diego, CA |
| January 21, 2025 8:00 p.m., CBSSN | | Wyoming | L 61–63 | 11–8 (5–3) | 17 – Thomas Jr. | 9 – Cherry | 4 – Thomas Jr. | Thomas & Mack Center (4,685) Paradise, NV |
| January 25, 2025 12:00 p.m., FOX | | New Mexico | L 73–75 | 11–9 (5–4) | 18 – Thomas Jr. | 8 – N'Diaye | 7 – Thomas Jr. | Thomas & Mack Center (6,158) Paradise, NV |
| January 29, 2025 7:00 p.m., FS1 | | at Utah State | L 71–76 | 11–10 (5–5) | 22 – Thomas Jr. | 6 – Henley | 6 – Thomas Jr. | Smith Spectrum (9,740) Logan, UT |
| February 1, 2025 7:00 p.m., CBSSN | | at Nevada Rivalry | L 65–71 | 11–11 (5–6) | 14 – Henley | 5 – N'Diaye | 6 – Thomas Jr. | Lawlor Events Center (11,008) Reno, NV |
| February 4, 2025 8:00 p.m., CBSSN | | Boise State | L 62–71 | 11–12 (5–7) | 20 – Thomas Jr. | 9 – Rishwain | 4 – Rishwain | Thomas & Mack Center (5,081) Paradise, NV |
| February 8, 2025 1:00 p.m., MW Network | | at Wyoming | W 68–57 | 12–12 (6–7) | 18 – Thomas Jr. | 6 – Cherry | 3 – Thomas Jr. | Arena-Auditorium (3,787) Laramie, WY |
| February 11, 2025 7:00 p.m., SSSEN/MW Network | | Air Force | W 77–52 | 13–12 (7–7) | 15 – Cherry | 6 – Bedford | 5 – Thomas Jr. | Thomas & Mack Center (5,004) Paradise, NV |
| February 15, 2025 4:00 p.m., MW Network | | at Fresno State | W 52–51 | 14–12 (8–7) | 13 – Tied | 9 – Henley | 7 – Thomas Jr. | Save Mart Center (5,289) Fresno, CA |
| February 22, 2025 7:00 p.m., CBSSN | | Colorado State | L 53–61 | 14–13 (8–8) | 17 – Bedford | 8 – Hill | 4 – Tied | Thomas & Mack Center (5,817) Paradise, NV |
| February 25, 2025 7:00 p.m., MW Network | | at San Jose State | W 77–71 | 15–13 (9–8) | 22 – Henley | 9 – Hill | 5 – Henley | Provident Credit Union Event Center (2,339) San Jose, CA |
| February 28, 2025 8:00 p.m., FS1 | | Nevada Rivalry | W 68–55 | 16–13 (10–8) | 23 – Henley | 9 – Cherry | 3 – Tied | Thomas & Mack Center (7,466) Paradise, NV |
| March 4, 2025 8:00 p.m., CBSSN | | San Diego State Rivalry | W 74–67 | 17–13 (11–8) | 26 – Rishwain | 8 – Bedford | 4 – Tied | Thomas & Mack Center (5,393) Paradise, NV |
| March 7, 2025 7:00 p.m., CBSSN | | at New Mexico | L 67–81 | 17–14 (11–9) | 16 – Hill | 7 – Bedford | 2 – Tied | The Pit (15,411) Albuquerque, NM |
| Mountain West tournament |||||||||
| March 12, 2025 4:00 p.m., MW Network | (6) | vs. (11) Air Force First Round | W 68–59 | 18–14 | 18 – Hill | 10 – Hill | 7 – Hill | Thomas & Mack Center Paradise, NV |
| March 13, 2025 8:30 p.m., CBSSN | (6) | vs. (3) Utah State Quarterfinals | L 58–70 | 18–15 | 19 – Henley | 7 – Hill | 3 – Henley | Thomas & Mack Center Paradise, NV |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Pacific Time. |||||||||
Source