By GREG MENGELT

LAS VEGAS — Jake Heidbreder had eight points, four rebounds and three assists but it wasn’t enough in Air Force’s 78-44 loss at UNLV on Tuesday evening at the Thomas & Mack Center.

Heidbreder, a freshman from Floyd Central, went 3 for 7 from the field and 2 for 6 from behind the 3-points stripe in his 38 minutes of game action. Fellow freshman Ethan Taylor led the Falcons with 10 points, but this one was all Runnin’ Rebels.

UNLV (14-10, 6-5 Mountain West) led by 14 at halftime then outscored the Falcons 39-19 after the break. Senior guard Bryce Hamilton led UNLV with 24 points and five rebounds.

Heidbreder and the Falcons next travel San Diego State for an 8 p.m. game Saturday. The Aztecs (13-6, 5-3) have won five of their last eight games heading into Thursday night’s tilt at San Jose State (7-15, 0-10). The Air Force-San Diego State game will air on CBS Sports Network.

By GREG MENGELT

RENO, Nev. — Colorado State improved to 18-3 overall and 8-3 in the Mountain West Conference by beating Tre Coleman and his Nevada Wolf Pack 82-72 on Tuesday evening at the Lawlor Events Center.

Coleman, a sophomore from Jeffersonville, finished with three points and two rebounds before fouling out. He started and played 29 minutes. Desmond Cambridge Jr. had a career night for the Wolf Pack with 36 points on 13 of 15 shooting. Cambridge made seven of his nine 3-pointers and scored exactly half of Nevada’s points in defeat.

Colorado State, which got 29 points from junior star David Roddy, is now 1.5 games behind Wyoming (20-3, 9-1 MWC) and Boise State (18-5, 9-1) atop the Mountain West standings.

Nevada (9-13, 3-8) goes to Utah State (15-10, 6-6) on Friday for a 9 p.m. tipoff. Coleman and the Wolf Pack can be seen on FS1.

By GREG MENGELT

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — Romeo Langford didn’t score in 12 minutes Tuesday, but his Boston Celtics continue to roll.

The Celtics won for the sixth straight time — five of the six coming by double figures — with a 126-91 victory at Brooklyn’s Barclay’s Center. The Nets, who were playing without Kevin Durant, James Harden, Kyrie Irving, LaMarcus Aldridge and Joe Harris, lost their ninth straight game.

Five Celtics scored in double figures, led by Marcus Smart and Jaylen Brown, who scored 22 points apiece. Brown, who was 9 for 12 from the field, also had nine assists and seven rebounds. Langford, who was 0 for 1 from the field and 0 for 2 at the foul line, had a rebound, a turnover and a personal foul off the Boston bench.

The Nets’ starters scored just 21 points in the loss. Their bench, led by 21 points from Jevon Carter, scored the other 70.

Boston, which is now up to the No. 7 seed in the Eastern Conference, moving the Nets down to No. 8, will try to make it seven in a row Friday when it hosts Denver (XX), which is 30-24 and sixth in the West. Tipoff is schedule for 7:30 p.m. and can be seen locally on NBA TV.

By GREG MENGELT

TOLEDO, Ohio — Toledo moved back to the top of the Mid-American Conference standings Tuesday with a 77-62 victory over visiting Ohio at Savage Arena.

Kooper Jacobi, a Toledo freshman from Sellersburg, played just 5 minutes and didn’t score. He did have two rebounds, including one on the offensive end. In fact, Toledo’s starters all played 30 minutes or more. Only one Rocket, junior guard Keshaun Saunders, played more than 6 minutes off the bench.

Four Toledo starters scored in double figures, led by junior forward Setric Millner Jr., who finished with 18 points. Sophomore guard Ryan Rollins had 15 points, 16 rebound and eight assists to help the Rockets improve to 19-5 overall and 11-2 in the MAC, a half-game ahead of the Bobcats, who entered Tuesday contest on a 5-game winning streak.

Ohio’s leading scorer on the season, sophomore guard Mark Sears, led by Bobcats with 13 points.

The Rockets, who have won 10 of their last 11 games, go to Northern Illinois on Saturday for a 4:30 p.m. tipoff. The Huskies lost 70-64 to Akron on Tuesday for their seventh loss in their last eight games. The game can be seen on ESPN Plus.

By GREG MENGELT

Silver Creek began its state championship defense by winning arguably Class 3A’s toughest sectional last week. The Dragons beat Scottsburg, Madison and 12th-ranked Corydon Central at North Harrison to win the program’s seven sectional title and just its third this century and earn the Hoosier Hills Hoops Girls’ Team of the Week honor.

The Dragons got by Scottsburg (11-12) with a 62-36 victory in last week’s opening round. On Saturday, Silver Creek edged Madison (12-9) for a 52-48 victory to set up a rematch with Corydon.

The Dragons beat a Corydon team that only had three losses all season for the second time. This time Silver Creek pulled away for a 65-56 victory. Four Creek seniors scored in double figures, led by Kynidi Mason-Striverson’s 16 points.

The Dragons will face Rushville (17-9) at approximately noon Saturday in the second regional semifinal at Charlestown. Vincennes (17-8) and Gibson Southern (18-7) will face off in the other semifinal.

By GREG MENGELT

Lanesville junior Linzie Wernert continued her Player of the Year-type season by becoming the Player of the Week for the third time this season. Wernert is the first player ever to be Hoosier Hills Hoops Girls’ Player of the Week three times, this time for Sectional Week.

Wernert completely another stellar week with 20 points in the Eagles’ 63-38 victory over host New Washington for the Eagles’ fourth consecutive sectional championship. It’s the first time any Lanesville team has won four consecutive sectional titles in any sport.

Wernert and the Eagles, who outscored their sectional opponents 184-58, will face a tough road in the West Washington Regional. They face No. 6 Vincennes Rivet (20-6), an 8-time regional champion, in the opening round and likely No. 7 Tecumseh (16-8), who ended Lanesville’s season at least year’s regional.

The second-ranked Eagles (25-1), who have won 21 games in a row, are looking for the program’s first regional title.