UNLV’s women return to the NCAA Tournament behind a dominant year from Desi-Rae Young (2024)

The UNLV women’s basketball team features one of the most high-powered scoring attacks in the nation, ranking 20th in points per game, 16th in field-goal percentage and ninth in offensive rating.

The squad has an elite point guard in senior Essence Booker, sharpshooters on the wings in senior Justice Ethridge and sophom*ore Alyssa Durazo-Frescas, and a fearsome post scorer in junior Desi-Rae Young.

When the offense is in sync, it’s clockwork. Between continuous motion sets, pick-and-rolls, inside-out action and everything else in coach Lindy La Rocque’s playbook, it seems like the Scarlet and Gray has a million ways to put points on the board.

And yet, sometimes UNLV’s best offense is a missed shot. That’s because it often feels like every time a ball hits the rim, it belongs to Young.

Young, a 6-foot-1 center, has become UNLV’s last line of offense this season, using her preternatural rebounding skill to track down misses and turn them into points at the most crucial moments.

It might not be pretty, but Young’s ferocious effort on the glass is a big reason why the Scarlet and Gray has won 22 straight games and reached its second straight NCAA Tournament. UNLV, a No. 11 seed, faces No. 6 seed Michigan in the first round March 17 at noon in Baton Rogue, Louisiana.

“She’s just so relentless,” La Rocque says of Young. “She has that knack for going and getting it.”

In UNLV’s win over Wyoming in the Mountain West Conference Tournament Final, Young hauled in five offensive rebounds in the fourth quarter alone—including a stretch in which she got an offensive board on three straight possessions. She converted two of those into immediate putbacks and finished the game with 28 points and 17 rebounds—seven of them offensive.

In an 11-point victory, UNLV outscored Wyoming in second-chance points by a margin of 17-5. Ten of those points followed Young offensive rebounds.

It was a similar story in the MWC Tournament semifinals, where Young posted 20 points and 13 rebounds—five offensive—in a 71-68 triumph over San Diego State. For the season, Young ranks 18th in the nation in rebounding, averaging 10.2 per contest.

“We take pride in that,” Young says of her offensive rebounding. “It helps us get those extra points. And it shows we just want to out-work and out-hustle everybody. We practice that all the time. We have drills for that. It’s our identity.”

With Young patrolling the paint, UNLV isn’t just another team with a fast pace and a pretty offense. The Scarlet and Gray win the physical battle more often than not, ranking 22nd nationally in rebounding margin at +7.8.

When La Rocque was named head coach prior to the 2020-21 season, Young had already committed to UNLV as a prized local recruit out of Desert Oasis High School. La Rocque had a pair of Las Vegas natives to build the program around in Young and Ethridge, out of Centennial High, before also bringing home Spring Valley High’s Booker after stints at Ball State and UNR.

The coach quickly recognized that Young’s scrappiness under the basket was something special.

Two years later, Young is a perfect fit for La Rocque’s system—and vice versa. After earning Mountain West Player of the Year honors as a sophom*ore, Young put up even better numbers this year, and La Rocque continues to fine-tune her scheme to take advantage of Young’s unique talents.

That even includes set plays in which a missed shot is almost by design. “Coach Lindy says it’s better to get the ball on the rim to allow me to go in there and get it,” Young says. “Throwing it off the rim is just like getting an assist once you get the offensive rebound.”

When Young gets inside position, La Rocque wants her guards shooting the ball. She sees it as a win-win.

“With Desi in a pick-and-roll and Essence shooting the ball, it’s either going in or Desi’s getting the rebound,” La Rocque says. “That’s sometimes even better than an assist.”

It’s also a key element of the team’s defense, according to La Rocque. While some coaches de-emphasize offensive rebounding in favor of getting back on defense to stifle opponents’ transition opportunities, La Rocque wants Young to apply continual pressure until the possession is over.

Even if Young doesn’t come up with the board, she is keeping opponents honest.

“She has the green light to go rebound wherever she is on the court,” La Rocque says. “I’m mad when she doesn’t go. Sometimes our best defense is our offense. Our offensive rebounding and scoring the ball is a big reason we can get our defense set.”

Young is ninth in the country in double-doubles, recording 18 in 33 games.

With a buoyant personality and a penchant for making teammates laugh, Young has also taken on a leadership role for the Scarlet and Gray. She remembers the disappointment in the locker room following the team’s defeat in the NCAA Tournament last year, when UNLV watched a fourth-quarter lead slip away in a 72-67 loss to Arizona, and she has used that as motivation during her team’s win streak.

If Michigan makes the mistake of underestimating UNLV, Young will be first in line to take advantage with easy putbacks. It’s a formula that has worked all season.

“We were undefeated [in the Mountain West],” Young says. “No one could stop us when we played our best game. When we come out strong, we’re really an unstoppable team. We’re going to see how this game goes.”

Breaking down UNLV’s first-round matchup with Michigan

The UNLV women head into the first round of the NCAA Tournament on a 22-game winning streak, and if they want to make it 23, there’s one thing they’ll have to do. Score.

Friday’s opening-round matchup with No. 6 seed Michigan figures to turn into a shootout. Michigan is just as potent as UNLV offensively, sitting 36th in the nation in points and 14th in field-goal percentage.

The last time UNLV played an offense as strong as Michigan’s was three months ago—and that was also UNLV’s last loss, as it couldn’t keep up and fell at Oklahoma State, 87-62, on December 18. Michigan and Oklahoma State share a similar offensive profile (No. 37 and No. 34 in offensive rating, respectively), and the Wolverines present matchup problems inside and out. Michigan senior guard Leigha Brown averages 18.0 points and 5.9 assists, while senior post Emily Kiser puts up 16.2 points.

Can UNLV crank its offense up to high gear on the biggest stage? One thing is for sure, after coming so close last year, the Scarlet and Gray isn’t going into this game with an underdog mentality.

At the team’s watch party on selection Sunday, head coach Lindy La Rocque said she expects her squad to set the tone. “They’ve got to play us,” La Rocque said.

UNLV(31-2)vs.Michigan(22-9)

When:Friday, March 17, noon

Where:Pete Maravich Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana

TV & Radio:ESPNU & ESPN 1100-AM

Seeding:UNLV 11, Michigan 6

Betting Line:Michigan -3, over/under 133.5

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