LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Though the Lady Rebels’ path to a four-peat came to an end after losing to San Diego State in the Mountain West Semifinals, their loss does not take away from their historic run.
"We didn't get it done, doesn't take away from our great season, doesn't mean we're not going to play, we are playing in postseason, I couldn't tell you what tournament yet, but we are playing,” Lady Rebels Head Coach Lindy La Rocque said.
UNLV will play in a postseason tournament, however, they made a case for themselves to get a bid in the NCAA Tournament after their 71-59 loss on Tuesday night.
WATCH: Lady Rebels at the Mountain West semifinals
“I think we deserve it, plain and simple," La Rocque said. "Statistically, metrics, wins, losses, whatever you want to say I think it all matters. I think you have to look at a full body of work, and actually use everything, not just pick and choose whatever you want to justify whatever your end answer is going to be. I think at this point we’ve been there [NCAA Tournament] three times, we deserve the benefit of the doubt, frankly we’ve established some credibility that we should be able to rely on in this situation."
This season, the Lady Rebs became the first program in school history to win four straight regular-season conference titles. La Rocque also won her third Mountain West Coach of the Year award and Meadow Roland earned the conference’s Freshman of the Year honor.
WATCH: Lady Rebels' coach Linda La Rocque talks about loss on Tuesday night
While the Aztecs are the first team since 2020-21 to beat UNLV twice in a season, they think the Rebs should still get a shot in the Big Dance.
“Lindy’s done everything that she can, she has strengthened their schedule, they’ve gone out and played some really tough teams, they’ve beat some good teams, they’ve dominated this league, so I think they deserve to be in the NCAA,” Aztecs Head Coach Stacie Terry-Hutson said.
According to ESPN, it is unlikely that UNLV will get a bid, but they are listed as a top team to have a slightly higher chance than others.
ESPN's selection show is this Sunday at 5 p.m.
