Men's Basketball Secures Victory Over UNLV in Exhibition Opener

Wednesday, October 7

Las Vegas, NV / Thomas & Mack Center

8:00 PM

University of Utah

0-0,0-0Big 12

UNLV [Exh]

0-0,0-0Mountain West

Team	1	2	F
Utah	45	34	79
UNLV	35	34	69

Box Score (PDF)

Photo Courtesy: Lucas Peltier / UNLV Athletics

Men's Basketball Secures Victory Over UNLV in Exhibition Opener

10/7/2026 11:26 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

The Runnin’ Utes defeated UNLV in their first exhibition game of the season 79-69.

LAS VEGAS – The Utah men's basketball team defeated UNLV 79-69 in exhibition play Wednesday night inside the Thomas & Mack Center.

Malek Gomma got the scoring started for Utah at the 18:20 mark followed by a quick 8-0 run, forcing UNLV to call a timeout with Utah ahead 10-5 (15:13). The Runnin' Rebels cut Utah's lead down to single-digits (28-19) before a second 3-pointer from Jaxon Johnson pushed Utah's lead back into double-figures (31-19).

That three from Johnson ignited 13-5 run, giving Utah the 41-24 advantage behind Trey Campbell's third triple of the game with 4:07 left in the first fame. Utah would head into the locker room up 45-35.

Utah saw a lot of ball movement in the first 20-minutes of action, assisting on 10-of-13 made field-goals.

The Utes saw their lead get cut down to 60-53 with 10:23 to play after going cold from 3-point range (0-7) in the second half before entering the Under-8 (7:22) break hanging onto a 62-56 edge against the Rebels.

However, a reinvigorated Utah squad battle back to answer with a 9-2 run and pushed its lead back up to double-digits (71-58) with 3:29 left in the game thanks to elevated play on the defensive end that held UNLV to just 1-of-5 shooting during that stretch.

It was back-and-forth between the two teams the rest of the way, but time was on Utah's side as it walked away with the 79-69 victory over UNLV in its first exhibition game of the year.

Campbell led the Utes with 17 points, 3 assists and 2 steals while TJ Burch added 16 points off the bench on 5 rebounds and 4 steals – including an 8-for-10 effort from the free-throw line. Jackson Holcombe chipped in with 9 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists while Taison Chatman had 9 points with 4 rebounds and 3 assists.

BY THE NUMBERS
• Utah turned 12 UNLV turnovers into 18 points
• Utah converted 11 offensive boards into a 15-9 edge against UNLV
• The Utah bench outscored UNLV 32-12
• The Utes shot 84-percent from the charity stripe as a team, knocking down 21-of-25
• 10-of-11 that played recorded points for the Utes
• The Utes finished with 12 steals led by Burch's 4 swipes

UP NEXT
The Utes continue their exhibition slate next week as they head to Reno, Nev., for an afternoon match-up against the Nevada Wolfpack as part of a return trip. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. (MDT) inside the Lawlor Events Center.

For the latest news and information on the Runnin' Utes men's basketball program, fans can stay connected online at www.UtahUtes.com and on social media by following @UtahMBB on Facebook, X and Instagram. Fans can also stay connected on their mobile devices or tablets with the Utah 360 app.

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