Cowboys hold off Nevada in nail-biter

LARAMIE, Wyo. — The Wyoming Cowboys nailed a barrage of crucial 3-pointers against one of the nation’s top shooting teams on Saturday and downed Nevada 66–63 in an instant classic of a game.

With the win, the Pokes improved to 6–0 in the Arena-Auditorium, the best home start since the 2021–22 season.

“That is a good win against a quality opponent, and it was gritty, not pretty,” UW head coach Sundance Wicks said. “We just want to win, and for us pressure is good and stress is bad. We want pressure and our pace puts pressure on opponents and teams try to speed us up and we want opponents to have stressful possessions late in the game.”

The contest featured 23 lead changes and seven ties. Wyoming hit 11 3-pointers, making it the third straight game with double-digit triples. In the process, the team shot a season-high 52.4% from beyond the arc.

Wyoming was led by Obi Agbim’s 18 points. He was 4-of-7 from 3-point, and currently leads the conference in 3-point percentage.

Touko Tainamo scored a season-high 15 points, going 2-of-3 from deep and 7-of-8 from the free throw line. Dontaie Allen added a trio of threes, tying a career best, and led the team with five rebounds.

Matija Belic scored eight points and hit two 3-pointers in his first action of the season.

Nevada held an early advantage on the Cowboys in a defensive battle in the opening minutes. However, five straight points from Agbim helped give Wyoming an early 8–7 lead.

Wyoming went on a 9–0 run over nearly four minutes to take a 17–9 lead halfway through the first half. Four different Cowboys added buckets during the run, including a triple from Belic for his second of the game.

Nevada would respond, though. The Wolf Pack held Wyoming scoreless for nearly three minutes, and quickly made it a 19–16 game. Nevada eventually took a lead, but an Allen three gave Wyoming a 26–24 lead.

The two teams continued to trade the lead through the first five minutes of the second half. Wyoming went to the rim on an 8–0 run for a 41–36 lead with 12 minutes left. The Wolf Pack then battled back and tied the game at 46–46 halfway through the half on another Davidson 3-pointer. Tainamo answered right back with a three of his own.

With four minutes left, Allen and Agbim added a pair of threes to give the Brown and Gold a 61–59 advantage. Nevada would take its last lead of the game with just a minute and a half left when a jumper put the team up 63–61, but Agbim responded immediately with a 3-pointer that put Wyoming in the lead for good.