UNLV Flies by Idaho St. in High-Altitude Game

Nevada Las Vegas, No. 1 in the country, had just defeated Idaho State in a first-round game of the NCAA West Regional Thursday at the Special Events Center here. The score was 95-70, and it was an outcome as predictable as the snow on the nearby Wasatch Mountains this time of year.

So what could the winning coach say? What could he talk about? Thin air, of course.

“The altitude is a bigger problem than any team here because of the way we play,” said Jerry Tarkanian, avoiding belaboring any aspect of the rout.

He was referring to his Rebels’ normally relentless up-tempo game. So to compensate for the 4,800-foot altitude, Tarkanian went to his bench often, using 12 players.

Idaho State Coach Jim Boutin was thankful for the small favor. Small because the Vegas reserves are seemingly as talented as the starters.

In any event, Tarkanian’s team, now 34-1 overall, figures to be challenged more extensively in Saturday’s second-round game against Kansas State.

The Wildcats beat Georgia in overtime, 82-79.

There is usually a major upset or two in early rounds of the NCAA tournament, but even Boutin couldn’t fantasize his Bengals from Pocatello, Ida., into a shocker that major.

“Maybe just a shade, but not much,” said Boutin of the upset fantasy. “I tried not to let myself think specifically about the game.”

Just as well.

For one thing, Idaho State was No. 16 in the 16-team West Regional; Vegas, of course, was No. 1. The Bengals also came here with a 15-15 record, reaching .500 and getting the tournament bid only by winning the Big Sky tournament. They were only 5-9 in league play.

Give the Bengals credit, though. They kept up with the Rebels for the first four or five minutes of the game, staying alive on some three-point baskets.

Then, UNLV’s superior talent, quickness and depth took its toll. The Rebels led at halftime, 46-27, boosted their lead to 29 points in the second half and really didn’t pour it on the Big Sky team despite the final 25-point spread.

Freddie Banks, UNLV guard and three-point shot specialist, led all scorers with 23 points. He made 7 of 13 from three-point range.

The Bengals made 15 turnovers in the first half and Boutin said that’s usually his team’s average for a game.

Boutin talked about the character of his team, how the final score was respectable, all things considered. Then, he paused and said: “They (Nevada Las Vegas) look a bit better in person than they do on TV.”

Boutin said that he wanted to control the tempo against the Rebels, who then dictated the tempo.

“Like hundreds of coaches before me, you talk about (tempo) but they put so much pressure on you that you can’t do it,” he said.

Idaho State is also smaller in stature and bulk than UNLV.

Toros Yetenekian, the Bengals’ 6-8 senior center, who formerly played for Glendale College, seemed awe-struck by Armon Gilliam, the Rebels’ 6-9, 230-pound power forward.

“He’s the strongest player I’ve ever played against,” Yetenekian said.

Tarkanian said that Gilliam is the best power forward in UNLV’s history, even though he added that Gilliam hadn’t played very well Thursday. He had 8 rebounds and 12 points in 26 minutes.

Notes It has been 10 years since Idaho State upset UCLA in a West Regional game at Provo, Utah, but the people in Pocatello haven’t forgotten it. “If you went to Pocatello right now and went into every professor’s office on the ISU campus who is interested in athletics, you could see a plaque that has ‘UCLA Defeat’ on it and it has pictures of the team that did it,” said Coach Jim Boutin. . . . Las Vegas Coach Jerry Tarkanian said he expects a tough game from Kansas State because of the way the Big Eight team crashes the boards. “We haven’t been a good rebounding team all year,” he said. Armon Gilliam didn’t seem to be concerned about the Wildcats, saying, “We’ll hurt ‘em if we press them. I don’t know if they can handle the pressure.” . . . Saturday’s game begins at 11:25 a.m. PST.