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LOGAN, Utah - Utah State's men's basketball team had its two-game winning streak snapped on Tuesday night, falling to UNLV 80-68 in front of 9,394 fans at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.

Senior guard Chris Smith led the Aggies (11-7, 3-4 Mountain West) with 16 points on 5-of-12 shooting from the field, to go along with a team-high-tying seven rebounds. It was the fourth straight game Smith has scored in double figures.

Junior guard Shane Rector and redshirt junior forward Lew Evans both came off the bench to add 12 points apiece, while Evans also pulled down seven rebounds for Utah State, which shot just 39.1 percent on the night (25-of-64), including just 32.4 percent in the second half alone (11-of-34).

This was Utah State's first game without the services of senior forward Grayson Moore, who injured his foot midway through the first half of the Aggies' 96-92 win at Colorado State last Saturday afternoon.

Freshman forward Derrick Jones Jr. led five UNLV players in double-figure scoring as he had 21 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the field, helping the Runnin' Rebels spoil Utah State's Black-Out Game.

Sophomore forward Dwayne Morgan added 13 points for UNLV (12-7, 3-3), while freshman forward Stephen Zimmerman Jr. had 12 points, 16 rebounds and four blocks. Senior guard Jerome Seagers also scored 12 and sophomore guard Jordan Cornish chipped in 10 points off the bench.

The Runnin' Rebels, who have won three straight games since the resignation of head coach Dave Rice, a former Utah State assistant, shot 53.4 percent on the night (31-of-58), including a 60.7 percent clip in the second half (17-of-28).

UNLV dominated inside with a 46-28 advantage and scored 23 fast-break points, compared to just two by Utah State.

The first 6 1/2 minutes of the second half proved to be the Aggies' undoing. Utah State committed four turnovers on its first four trips down the court and shot just 1-for-7 coming out of the break. As a result, the Runnin' Rebels turned a one-point deficit at halftime into a 56-38 lead with 13:31 to go.

During that same game-changing stretch, UNLV shot 8-for-14 from the floor as it opened the second half on a 21-2 run.

After falling behind by 18, the Aggies pared the deficit to 66-58 with 6:28 to go, but that's as close as they would get the rest of the way.

Utah State used its sixth different starting lineup of the season and freshman guard John Middleton made his Aggie debut, scoring two points while recording one of the Aggies' season-high tying 10 steals.

The first half was back and forth as there were 13 lead changes and 10 ties. The Aggies took their final lead of the night on a jumper by Rector with 38 seconds left in the opening half, giving Utah State a 36-35 advantage at the break.

Rector also added four assists, four rebounds and three steals to his stat line.

Utah State will be back in action on Saturday when they face San Diego State in San Diego, Calif. The game, which will be aired on the CBS Sports Network, is slated to begin at 4 p.m. (MT).

Single game tickets for the 2015-16 season are now available and begin at $17. For more basketball ticket information, fans can contact the USU Athletics Ticket Office over the phone by calling 1-888-USTATE-1 or 435-797-0305 during regular hours of operation. Fans can also buy their tickets in person at the USU Ticket Office inside the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum or online by clicking on the "Buy Tickets" tab at www.utahstateaggies.com.

Utah State men's basketball news and information is available on Facebook (facebook.com/usumen'sbasketball) and on Twitter (@Aggiehoops). Fans can also get USU men's basketball highlights on YouTube (youtube.com/utahstateathletics). Aggie fans can follow the Utah State athletic program on Twitter (@usuathletics), on Facebook (facebook.com/usuathletics) or on Instagram (@usuathletics).