Rider Leads Las Vegas Over Long Beach : College basketball: Swingman has 31 as Rebels extend their home winning streak to 59 games with 95-83 victory.

J.R. Rider apparently loves television.

In an ESPN game on Monday night, the Nevada Las Vegas swingman scored 31 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to lead the 12th-ranked Running’ Rebels to a 95-83 victory over Cal State Long Beach in a Big West Conference game before 13,618 in the Thomas & Mack Center.

“J.R. is J.R.,” UNLV Coach Rollie Massimino said. “He’s an offensive machine as a basketball. But I’m proud of the way we buckled down really well in our defense in the last six minutes.”

Rider’s performance, his third 30-plus showing on television this season, guaranteed that the 49ers would not snap at least one of the Runnin’ Rebels’ streaks. Las Vegas, 15-2 overall and 8-2 in the Big West, has won 59 consecutive games in its arena, longest stretch in the nation.

Las Vegas wasn’t so fortunate in Long Beach in early January when the 49ers (14-6, 6-5) snapped its 29-game winning streak, 101-94, which was also the longest in the nation at the time.

But Monday night, with the cameras rolling, Rider would have no part of that, although the 49ers were difficult to shake, particularly with center Bryon Russell having a field day. The 6-7 forward, who scored a career-high 33 points in the teams’ first meeting, scored 27 Monday night.

Long Beach needed all of them, as its leading scorer, Lucious Harris, continued to slump. Harris, the second leading scorer in the Big West behind Rider, made only one of nine field-goal tries in the first half and finished with 13 points on three-of-16 shooting.

Long Beach, once in first place in the Big West, has lost five of its last seven games.

Las Vegas opened a 72-60 lead with 9:40 to go on a three-point play by Ken Gibson. Dexter Boney had 23 points and eights rebounds, and Evric Gray had 20 points and 12 rebounds for the Rebels.

Chris Tower had 18 points and seven rebounds for Long Beach.

Las Vegas outscored Long Beach 17-12 to open the second half and claim a 58-54 lead.

Russell, with 20 points in the first half, led the 49ers to a 42-41 halftime lead.

Las Vegas grabbed its biggest lead of the first half, 20-15, on baskets by Gray, Boney, and Dedan Thomas.

Then the Rebels’ shooting touch wilted. The Rebels made only one of their next eight shots from the field.

Long Beach, meanwhile, made seven of its next nine field-goal attempts to take a 34-28 lead with 4:24 to go.