UNLV couldn't quite knock off BYU in Provo last month, but by staying close and holding Jimmer Fredette 14 points below his Mountain West-leading average there's reason to be confident heading into the rematch.
There's also little reason to expect another poor performance from Fredette.
Another scoring binge has followed Fredette's bout with strep throat, and he'll look to help the 12th-ranked Cougars maintain their hold on first place and snap a six-game road losing streak to the Runnin' Rebels on Saturday in Las Vegas.
BYU (22-2, 7-1) won 14 of its first 15 games out of conference, with Fredette's school-record 49 points at Arizona on Dec. 28 helping push his team into the Top 25 after a 99-69 win.
The junior guard missed the Cougars' game against Eastern New Mexico on Jan. 2 with strep throat, but tried to play Jan. 6 in their conference opener against UNLV (18-4, 6-2). Fredette played 25 minutes but shot 2 of 10 and scored seven points - 14.5 below his averages - while being affected by his illness and a subsequent allergic reaction.
Jonathan Tavernari stepped up, though, scoring 17 points to lead BYU to a 77-73 win despite his team shooting a season-low 36.8 percent.
"We've got to find a way to win those," UNLV guard Tre'Von Willis, who had a game-high 24 points, said after the loss. "That's the difference between winning the conference and not winning the conference."
Willis (17.2 points per game) is the Mountain West's second-leading scorer behind Fredette, and he's elevated his game since conference play began, averaging 21.6 points on 50.0 percent shooting.
Fredette, though, is fully healthy and making a convincing claim to run away with the conference player of the year award while leading his team to a fourth straight regular-season league title. He's averaged 30.5 points over the Cougars' last four games, and had 26 in 29 minutes of a 76-56 rout of TCU on Tuesday, three days after scoring 36 in a victory over rival Utah.
"You have to be consistent enough to win all types of games," coach Dave Rose said. "This team has proven that it can get up for really big games and this was a game where we had to guard against not being ready to play."
Horned Frogs coach Jim Christian was certainly impressed with Fredette, who's second in the conference in assists (4.9 per game).
"Jimmer is by far the best player in the conference and one of the top players in the country," Christian said.
Fredette has averaged 11.0 points in his three career trips to Las Vegas to face the Runnin' Rebels, all of which ended in losses. Overall, BYU has dropped its last six road games against UNLV by an average of 11.8 points.
Tavernari had 19 points and 11 rebounds in a 75-74 loss at the Thomas and Mack Center on Feb. 21.
There's reason to believe that streak can continue Saturday, as coach Lon Kruger's team has won its last four games to pull into a tie for second place with New Mexico - one game behind BYU.
Junior forward Matt Shaw scored a game-high 16 points and had six rebounds to lead a balanced attack in a 78-50 win at Wyoming on Wednesday.
UNLV guard Derrick Jasper, who averaged 6.7 points, is out until early March with an MCL sprain.
