Fresno State, with some less familiar faces in lead roles, pulls out road win at UNLV

Fresno State with one field goal from Orlando Robinson over a stretch of more than 17 minutes, particularly the final 17 minutes in the game, wouldn’t seem a great recipe for success. The 7-foot forward has dominated play at the offensive end for much of the season, taking better than 25% of the Bulldogs’ shots, ranking second on the team in assists, and he did that and more again on Friday at UNLV.

Robinson dropped 24 points on the Rebels while getting bumped and bruised and beaten up before leaving late with a cut over his left eye and another in his mouth after a collision under the Bulldogs’ basket.

But he did have just the one basket and one foul shot in the final 17:24 and the Bulldogs still were able to make some big plays down the stretch to come away with a 73-68 victory at the Thomas & Mack Center.

“Execution, focusing on the game plan and trying to finish strong and not let them punk us for the win,” said forward Anthony Holland, who finished with 16 points, five rebounds and one assist on his 21st birthday.

“If they’re going to win, they have to take it from us and we weren’t going to let them take it. We’ve had some tough losses and we’ve really focused on finishing games strong and we really did that tonight.”

The Bulldogs (12-4, 2-1 in the MW) got plays up and down the rotation, and are now off to their best start since opening 13-3 in 2006-07 on their way to a 22-10 finish behind Quinton Hosley and Dominic McGuire.

Robinson, who went to the foul line a career-high tying 11 times (11 of the 20 UNLV fouls were called on players defending him), ended up with the 24 and likely a trip to the ER. “He got gashed in the eye and cut his tongue a little bit,” coach Justin Hutson said. “He’s a tough kid so I’m sure he’ll be OK, but probably has to get some stitches in his eye.”

But Isaiah Hill, who had struggled with his health and his shot (29.5% over the past five games), hit 4 of 6 shots in scoring 10 points with three assists. Holland had 14 of his 16 points in the second half.

Jordan Campbell scored on a big drive off a turnover. Deon Stroud made a steller pass to Leo Colimerio for an assist and a dunk that gave the Bulldogs a 61-47 lead with 8:59 remaining. Donavan Yap, who had not played at all in the victory over San Jose State coming out of that COVID-19 pause, hit a jumper.

“I’m not saying they’re doing it all the time, but it wasn’t unexpected. It wasn’t a surprise,” Hutson said. “They know we need that from them and I’m glad they were able to step up and do it.

“Isaiah, he has had two pretty good games as of late. We’ve been trying to get some extra shots up with him, and he was unhealthy there for a while. I’m glad he’s got back healthy and has been able to get in the gym and get some extra shots up, is playing with confidence.”

UNLV (9-7, 1-2) did close, getting to within 71-68 on a 3-point play by Bryce Hamilton with 53 seconds to go, putting the Bulldogs in a difficult spot in tight and on the road in front of a loud crowd.

But Hamilton missed a three to tie and the Rebels didn’t score again.

Coming out of a two-week break due to COVID-19 concerns in the program, Fresno State has now hit 51.4% of its shots including 37.5% on its threes, is averaging 76.0 points per game and is 2-0. In their first 14 games they hit 43.8% of their shots including a Mountain West worst 30.5% from the 3-point line and averaged 65.7 points.

“I didn’t really think (that would happen), but I’m glad we’re playing this well and we want to keep building on that momentum,” Holland said.

Bulldogs notes

Robinson had attempted 11 free throws in a game four times before Friday – a loss to UC Riverside in his freshman season, a victory over Wyoming, a loss at Nevada and a win over New Mexico in the Mountain West Conference Tournament last season.

Guard Destin Whitaker, who has been sidelined by a foot injury, was in uniform. Whitaker has not played since a Dec. 11 victory over UC Irvine. He is averaging 15.4 minutes per game and at 33.3% is one of the Bulldogs’ better shooters at the 3-point line, ranking fourth on the team.

Fresno State won despite 15 turnovers, its most in a game since a Nov. 15 win over Idaho. The Bulldogs had 17 over their three previous games with seven at Weber State, six at Boise State and five against San Jose State.

Up next: Fresno State vs. Utah State

When: Tuesday, 8 p.m.

Where: Save Mart Center

TV: CBS Sports Network

• Find it fast: AT&T Uverse (643, 1643), Comcast (418, 732), DirecTV (211), Dish Network (158).

Radio: Bulldog Sports Network (Paul Loeffler, Marc Q. Jones)

• Find it fast: Fresno (AM1340), Bakersfield (AM970), Visalia (AM1130), Modesto (FM92.9), Stockton (AM1280), Bulldogs app, iHeartMedia app

The records: Fresno State (12-4, 2-1 in the MW), Utah State (10-6, 1-2).

The coaches: Justin Hutson (58-44, fourth season); Ryan Odom (10-6 first season, 115-77 overall)

The Aggies: Utah State plays Wyoming on Saturday at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum. The Aggies are led by 6-foot-7 forward Justin Bean, who was ranked second in the Mountain West in scoring and rebounding going into games Friday at 19.6 points and 10.2 rebounds per game. Utah State was last in the conference in defending the 3-point line, with opponents hitting 34.4%. That is not an area the Bulldogs have excelled, however. Fresno State is last in the Mountain West and 290th in the nation in 3-point shooting at 31%.