Titans Try, but Can’t Stack the Deck Against Sleepwalking Rebels

Titan Gym, not exactly one of college basketball’s renowned pits, always takes on a different look when Nevada Las Vegas comes to town. The Cal State Fullerton fans turn out in force, and the atmosphere is worthy of a Big East showdown on network television.

The TV audience for UNLV’s 62-51 victory Saturday wasn’t a national one (the game was aired on a local station), and there were only 3,824 in the facility. But there were fans who had painted their bodies blue and orange, a lot of people throwing play money at the Rebel bench and a few signs that read, “Remember Feb. 24, 1983.”

UNLV Coach Jerry Tarkanian hasn’t forgotten when the Titans upset his top-ranked Rebels and ended their 23-game winning streak. And that’s probably why he said, “I’m delighted anytime we win on the road,” after Las Vegas sleepwalked to Saturday’s Pacific Coast Athletic Assn. victory.

Fullerton had the crazy fans, the home-court advantage and the momentum of a big victory Thursday night over rival UC Irvine. But, as Coach George McQuarn is quick to point out, that’s not nearly enough for the Titans to beat the 10th-ranked Rebels these days.

“Against Vegas, we’ve got to make every free throw, get every loose ball, really play a perfect game--and then it would probably come down to one play,” he said.

“I saw the film of them play North Carolina. They played well enough to win (UNLV lost, 65-60) and North Carolina is No. 1. From a coaching standpoint and a talent standpoint, they have as much of a chance of winning the national title as anyone.”

Fullerton (3-4 in conference, 10-9 overall) used the deliberate offense it has employed in every game since injuries sidelined Kevin Henderson and Richard Morton and fell behind the somewhat lethargic Rebels by 10 at halftime.

The Titans also used a triangle-and-two defense (three players in a zone underneath and two playing man-to-man) in an attempt to slow UNLV’s Freddie Banks and Anthony Jones.

“I’m no fan of gimmick defenses,” McQuarn said, “but those two are their best players and I wanted somebody on each of them man-to-man for 40 minutes. At least it made them think instead of play instinctively, and that took away their running game.”

Las Vegas (7-0, 17-2) doesn’t have to run to win anymore, though. In fact, the Rebels have enough talent this season to stand around and beat teams like Cal State Fullerton. At least they did Saturday.

“Fullerton wasn’t even looking to shoot in the first half,” Tarkanian said. “They were just hoping we’d make a mistake and they’d get a layup. We pressured them early, and did a pretty good job, but then we got up by six or eight and we decided not to chase them.

“With Henderson and Morton out, they’re not a very good outside shooting team. Our zone wasn’t very active but we stayed in it anyway.”

The Rebels were content to match half-court offenses. And why not? When you’re matching the jumpers of Jones and Banks against Kerry Boagni (who made just 3 of 15 field-goal attempts) and Alexander Hamilton (3 of 10), who wouldn’t?

The Titans put together a pair of mini-rallies in the second half and cut UNLV’s lead to eight points on four occasions and then to seven with two minutes remaining on a soaring fast-break dunk by 6-foot 7-inch sophomore Henry Turner. The Titans started fouling, and the Rebels sank 10 straight in the last two minutes, including six by Richard Robinson, a 54% free-throw shooter.

“They’ve got the darndest jumpers that I’ve ever seen anywhere,” Tarkanian said, possibly thinking some of Turner’s four spectacular jams had to be by more than one player.

Turner led the Titans in scoring (15) and rebounding (8).

“We played hard, but it just wasn’t enough to win,” he said. “All the stuffs and jams don’t mean anything if you don’t win, though.”

There was a time when the Rebels wouldn’t win if their score was in the low 60s. That time, according to Tarkanian and Co., is gone.

“We’ve been labeled the Runnin’ Rebels--the Rebels of ‘77, but we can slow it down and win, too,” said Jones, who finished with 14 points and a team-leading 6 rebounds. “When the game dictates a slow pace, we can play that way, too.”

Banks, who led UNLV with 20 points, said the Rebels still like to run. The difference is they no longer have to.

“Everybody else is more concerned with our fast break than we are,” he said, smiling.

Right now, McQuarn is more concerned about getting his team back to full strength--and at full speed--in time for the PCAA tournament.

He’ll let Tarkanian worry about getting his team to peak in time for that “other” postseason tournament.