SAN JOSE, Calif. – Fueled by a sensational defensive performance in which they held San José State to just 40 points on 33.3 percent shooting from the field and 25.0 percent from three, the University of Nevada Men's Basketball team earned a dominant 67-40 road win over the Spartans, marking the Pack's sixth consecutive victory.

With the win, Nevada moves to 14-3 overall this season, including a perfect mark of 4-0 in conference play.

The Pack had their most impressive defensive performance of the year, as the 40 points allowed marks the least that Nevada has allowed in a single game since 2008. It also marks the least amount of points that San José State has scored in a game since November of 2019.

San José State entered Saturday's contest second in the Mountain West in rebounding; but, Nevada dominated the glass in what was their best rebounding performance this season, as they outrebounded the Spartans, 42-31. 

Offensively, redshirt-freshman Nick Davidson led the way for the Pack, turning in one of the best performances of his young career. Davidson scored 15 points on 6-12 shooting from the field and 2-5 from behind the arc, in addition to pulling down a career-high nine rebounds. Davidson finished the game with an incredible plus/minus of +36 in 27 minutes of action.

Jarod Lucas chipped in 12 points, knocking down two 3-pointers in the contest. The senior guard has now reached double figures in scoring in 16 out of 17 games this season. Lucas has also hit multiple 3-pointers in 15 of the Pack's contests this year.

Kenan Blackshear had another stellar all-around outing for Nevada, as the senior scored 11 points, pulled down five rebounds, dished out three assists, and tallied three steals. Blackshear has now scored in double figures in eight straight games, and he has recorded at least three assists in 16 of 17 games this season.

Freshman forward Darrion Williams also had a sensational all-around performance for the Pack, scoring nine points, pulling down a game-high 10 rebounds, dishing out a game-high four assists, and tallying two steals. Williams has now reached double figures in rebounding in six games this season, and he has led Nevada in rebounding in 11 out of 17 contests this year. Williams finished the contest with a plus/minus of +26 in 31 minutes of gametime.

Junior forward Tre Coleman had another impressive defensive outing, limiting San José State's leading-scorer, Omari Moore, to just 10 points and two assists, while forcing Moore into six turnovers as the primary defender. Moore entered the contest holding averages of 15.4 points per game and 4.9 assists per contest.

The Pack received a tremendous boost from their bench, as Nevada's bench outscored San José State's bench, 27-18.

Outside of Davidson, Trey Pettigrew and Daniel Foster also had strong outings off the bench. Pettigrew scored five points on 2-3 shooting from the field and finished the game with an outstanding plus/minus of +26 in 15 minutes of action. Foster had his best performance of the season for the Pack, as the junior guard scored four points, pulled down two rebounds, dished out two assists, and recorded two steals in 18 minutes of playing time off the bench.

First Half

Nevada struggled offensively at the beginning of the contest. The Pack fell behind 15-7 in the first 10:39 of the game and were 3-16 from the field during that stretch, as they faced an early eight-point deficit.

Nevada responded in a massive way, holding the Spartans scoreless for the remainder of the half and ripping off a 25-0 run over the final 9:41 to take a 32-15 lead entering halftime.

The Pack was immaculate in all aspects of the game throughout the run, as they held San José State to 0-6 shooting from the field, including 0-5 from behind the arc, while also forcing the Spartans into eight turnovers.

The Pack outrebounded SJSU, 15-4, over the run, and nine of Nevada's boards were on the offensive glass. Davidson alone pulled down an incredible six offensive boards over the run.

Nevada also knocked down 8-19 shots from the field, including 4-9 shots from behind the arc throughout the stretch of nine minutes and 41 seconds.

The Pack held San José State to abysmal clips of 26.3 percent shooting from the field (5-19) and 25.0 percent from three (3-12) in the first half.

Second Half

After the Spartans opened the second half by scoring the first three points, Davidson picked up right where he left off in the first half, draining a 3-pointer at the 17:46 mark to push Nevada's lead back up to 17.

The Pack continued to extend their lead, taking a 22-point advantage after Jarod Lucas hit a difficult layup in the paint with 12:40 remaining. 

Nevada held at least a 19-point advantage over the next seven minutes, before using an 8-2 run over a three-minute stretch to take a commanding 65-37 lead after a Davidson made layup with 2:50 remaining. 

The Pack cruised over the remainder of the contest, going on to earn the 67-40 victory and hand the Spartans just their second home loss of the season. The 27-point win also marked Nevada's largest margin of victory against a Division I opponent this season.

Notable Stats:

• Nevada's win over San José State was their sixth consecutive victory, matching the Pack's longest winning streak under the guidance of Head Coach Steve Alford. 

• The Pack shot 55.2 percent from the field and 42.9 percent from three in the second half.

• Nevada outscored San José State in the paint, 36-16.

• The Pack were +10 in turnover margin.

• Nevada scored 19 points off of 20 San José State turnovers. 

• As a team, Nevada recorded 11 steals in the game, marking a new season-high.

• Over Nevada's past eight games, Kenan Blackshear is averaging 16.6 points per game on 50 percent shooting from the field, 35.3 percent from behind the arc, and 84.1 percent at the free throw line, in addition to 3.6 assists, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.8 steals per game.

• After scoring 12 points Saturday, Kenan Blackshear surpassed the 800-point scoring mark for his career.

• Following an eight-point outing Saturday, Will Baker has surpassed the 600-point scoring mark for his career.

Up Next

The Pack will travel to San Diego to take on San Diego State this Tuesday, January 10, with tip-off scheduled for 8pm.

Single-Game Tickets on Sale Now   

Single-game tickets for Nevada men's basketball home contests are available at www.mynevadatickets.com. Fans may also purchase single-game tickets for the season by phone at 775-348-PACK (7225). Those who have questions or need assistance may also contact the ticket office by phone or by emailing wolfpackticketinfo@unr.edu.  

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