
Were You Worried When That Late Lead Was Dwindling in Vegas?
LARAMIE -- While you were busy gnawing off all 10 fingernails -- and maybe some toenails, too -- in the dying seconds of last Tuesday night's game in Las Vegas, Sundance Wicks was having a chat with a pair of young kids sitting courtside.
The visitors were in cruise control, leading by 10 with 50 ticks remaining thanks to a second-chance jumper off the right hand of Obi Agbim. Wyoming was going to claim a regular-season victory inside the Thomas and Mack Center for the first time since 2003.

"I looked over and I said, 'There's a lot more ways to lose a game than to win a game," the Cowboys first year head coach said Friday morning, accompanied by a wide grin, referring to those youngsters in the front row. "... It's just, that's what happens."
His words were prophetic.
Rebel guard Dedan Thomas got the party started, drilling a pair of free throws. A Kobe Newton turnover, right into the full-court press, would soon follow. UNLV was right back at the line after a shooting foul. Brooklyn Hicks missed the first -- and the second. His teammate Jaden Henley cleaned up the offensive rebound on the latter, though, and cut the lead to six with a second-chance lay-in with 29 seconds remaining.
Worried yet? Not Wicks.
Forward Cole Henry then missed the front end of a 1-and-1 after being quickly fouled by Hicks. Henley again raced down the floor and threw down a dunk.
With 17 seconds to go, Wyoming's point guard was pestered from behind after hauling in the inbound pass. Jailen Bedford eventually poked the ball loose from the sure-handed Agbim. Thomas, who snagged an offensive rebound off the 3-point miss that followed, scooped it up and in.
The deficit was now just two.
"You don't quite think it's going to happen that way," Wicks said. "You don't expect Kobe to trip and throw the ball right to the other team. You don't expect Obi to get a reach around and get that thing poked out. You don't expect the free-throw block out to go all the way back to the free-throw shooter. You don't expect the transition three to go from the back of the rim all the way out to the three-point line."
Those things did happen.
You can also tack on another miss on the following free throw from Agbim and the Runnin' Rebels were again off to the races. To make matters worse, the ball was in the hands of Thomas, who not only averages nearly 16 points per game, but loves to shoot the turnaround jumper.
That's the exact look he got, too.
Brick. Buzzer.
"This is why athletics is crazy," Wicks said, referring to that 63-61 win. "This is, like, why you should never gamble, right?"
Wicks added, in reality, the lessons learned over that final minute will go a long way for this mishmash group, who snapped its own three-game skid and put a halt to an impressive run by the Rebels the week prior that saw them knock off No. 22 Utah State and go on the road and topple Mountain West bully San Diego State.
It now provides one of those "special situations" coaches harp on. It shows the value of making free throws, especially without the cushion of the bonus.
Wyoming committed 16 turnovers in the victory, none bigger than the final two. Wicks said an official approached him with roughly 25 seconds remaining and warned him to tell his players to be strong with the basketball.
Why?
Because the refs are going to let the opposing team get a "good swipe" when they are in comeback mode, Wicks said.
Ultimately, though, it's all about one thing.
"You have to learn how not to lose and learn how to win," he said.
Was Wicks really that calm during crunch time?
"What's going through my mind is, I just don't panic, because what will be, will be, in a lot of ways."
Wyoming (10-9, 3-5) travels to San Jose State (9-11, 2-6) Saturday for a 5:30 p.m. meeting inside the Provident Credit Union Event Center. The game will be streamed on the Mountain West Network.
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