The youngest player for the Rebels has been the steadiest and most key player on the squad and he showed that again Tuesday night at the Thomas and Mack Center. With 18.6 seconds remaining, freshman phenom Dedan Thomas drained a step back jumper to break a tie with rival San Diego State, who entered the game ranked at #21.

After a subsequent three point attempt by Micah Parrish was blocked by Kalib Boone, Thomas put the finishing touches on the game by calmly hitting two free throws to give the Rebels 62-58 win. San Diego State has been a thorn in the Rebels side, having defeated the Rebels in 37 of the last 48 contests including 13 of the last 14 at the Thomas and Mack Center. But on senior night, the Rebels found a way to hold off the Aztec charge.

In nearly a complete flip from UNLV's earlier loss in San Diego, the Rebels started hot while the Aztecs couldn't find the rim. The Aztecs missed their first 13 shots and didn't score until a free throw nearly five minutes into the game.

The Rebels were able to build a 27-10 lead before the Aztecs started to find their rhythm, using a 13-1 to get back into the game. The Rebels nearly led wire to wire, but Lamont Butler hit a three pointer and converted a layup off a steal to knot the game at 58 with 44 seconds remaining in the game. That's when Thomas stepped up most.

Robert Whaley was able to body up the Aztecs best player, Jaedon LeDee, holding him to 12 points on only 2-12 shooting. The Rebels were also able to beat the Atzecs on the boards out-rebounding San Diego State 42-36.

Keylan Boone provided the Rebels with a punch with his third double-double of the season with 16 points and 11 rebounds. He also drained a game-high four 3-pointers.

Thomas led the Rebels 19 points to go with three rebounds and three assists.

It was UNLV's fourth win against a ranked team and 10th in 11 games overall. The win also broke a six-game losing streak to the Aztecs and six straight to SDSU at the Thomas & Mack Center. With the win, the surging Rebels are the hottest team in the Mountain West.

There's still an outside chance that the Rebels could tie for the regular season championship, but that would require the remaining conference games to be even more wild than they have already been this season.

UNLV will finishes the regular season at UNR on Saturday. It's a key contest in determining the final seedings for the Mountain West Conference Tournament. The 7:30 p.m. game will be televised nationally on CBS Sports Network.