LAS VEGAS – Loyola Marymount men's basketball erased a nine-point halftime deficit to remain undefeated and beat UNLV on the road Saturday night. The Lions (2-0) shot 51.7 percent (15-for-29) in the second half to top the Rebels (0-1), 61-50, in their home opener.

"Anytime you go on the road and hold a team to 50 points is a heck of an effort," said Head Coach Mike Dunlap. "Active hands led to 30 deflections in the game. We had team defense and we kept them off-balance. We went to small ball in the second half. We put Jeff at the four, which is a luxury since he is so tough defensively. It forced them to go small and that helped us loosen things things up. Then James Batemon got going. He's that special."
 
Following UNLV's opening basket of the second half, LMU responded with a 8-0 run sparked by a Joe Quintana steal and score to make it a one-point game, 27-26 with 16:15 remaining. James Batemon then hit LMU's first three of the game to it at 29-all with 15:26 remaining, and did it again to tie the score at 34-all. Batemon's second half shooting included a 6-for-10 stretch from the field 4-for-5 from three, and 5-for-7 from the charity stripe.
 
Batemon finished with a game-high 27 points, with Quintana being the game's next highest scorer at 13 points. 22 of Batemon's points and nine from Quintana came in the second half.
 
Jeffery McClendon gave the Lions their first lead of the second half with a hoop and harm converted three point play with 11:32 remaining. The Lions followed with an 13-0 run in less than four and a half minutes to push it to a 47-36 lead. McClendon also added nine of his 11 total points after intermission.
 
Quintana beat the shot clock to give LMU the largest lead of the night, 54-42, and the Lions never looked back.
 
McClendon made his presence known early, picking up a steal on UNLV's first possession then driving for a layup on the ensuing offensive end of the floor. LMU forced eight turnovers over a 6:09 minute stretch in the early goings of the first half. The Lions forced 12 Rebel turnovers in each half for a total of 24 on the night. Both McClendon and Batemon led the way with three steals apiece.
 
The Rebels took a lead after a mini 6-0 run, but Joe Quintana tied it at 10-all with a basket in the paint to answer. Mattias Markusson had an immediate impact on the glass. All three of his first baskets followed offensive rebounds as he tied the game at 12-12, then again at 14-14 on putbacks. Markusson picked up his 10^threbound of the game with 2:04 remaining in the first half and finished with 11 in the game.
 
UNLV built up their largest lead of the first half, 25-18, and carried that into the halftime break. The Lions did not hit a field goal in the final 3:29 of the first half. The Lions kept it a single digit game, despite shooting 25.8 percent (8-for-31) from the field and 0-for-6 from long range in the opening 20 minutes.
 
This was LMU's first win over UNLV since 2005, and the first win in Las Vegas against the Rebels since 1973, when the Lions won three-straight.
 
The schedule does not slow down from here. LMU hosts CSUN in a 6 p.m. Tuesday night match again Cal State Northridge back on The Bluff before departing the next morning for the Jamaica Classic in Montego Bay. The Lions have two games in Jamaica, Nov. 16 against Georgetown and Nov. 18 against Ohio University.