COLLEGE BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT : PCAA : Engelstad Starts Irvine Off Right in Upset of Las Vegas

Perhaps it should have been clear when Wayne Engelstad scored seven points in the first minute of the game that Friday was to be a special night for UC Irvine.

For the Anteaters, it only got better and they ended Nevada Las Vegas’ long and noted dominance of the Pacific Coast Athletic Assn. tournament with a 74-70 upset of the seventh-ranked Rebels in a semifinal game at the Forum.

That Irvine once trailed UNLV by 47 points in a January loss seemed unfathomable Friday night.

This Irvine team needed an upset victory over Cal State Long Beach just to meet UNLV in the semifinals.

“I’m elated. What can I say? I’m so delighted,” UC Irvine Coach Bill Mulligan said.

By the end, it was obvious that this one was not to be for UNLV. With the Rebels trailing by four points with 31 seconds left, Gerald Paddio launched a three-point attempt that was no more than a long-range air-ball, and Karl James lost the handle on his own desperation attempt, tossing the ball harmlessly into the air above him.

Irvine had a six-point lead with 1:15 remaining after Mike Hess hit two free throws.

But Paddio’s three-pointer with 1:04 left cut the lead to 70-67.

Irvine’s Mike Labat made two free throws, and UNLV’s Karl James made one of two, making it 72-68. But Paddio hit another long-range jumper with 36 seconds left, again with Kevin Floyd in his face.

That shot first appeared to be a three-pointer, which would have cut the lead to 72-71. But officials ruled it a two-point basket.

Mike Hess, who was fouled by Clint Rossum with 31 seconds left, made both ends of a one-and-one, making it 74-40.

Irvine (16-13) will play Utah State for the PCAA tournament title today at 2 p.m. The Aggies (20-9) beat UC Santa Barbara, 73-66, in the other semifinal.

Engelstad’s first minute was a marvel.

Four seconds into the game, he was fouled by Karl James and made both free throws. With 27 seconds elapsed, he hit a three-pointer, giving Irvine a 5-0 lead. And with 54 seconds gone, he drove and banked in a short shot. Seven points, and still six seconds to spare in the first minute of the game.

“I couldn’t believe it,” Engelstad said. He finished with 30 points.

Hess, Irvine’s point guard, scored 16 points, including 9 of 11 free throws, and committed just 2 turnovers in more than 39 minutes.

Engelstad didn’t seem the great believer in his team the day before, when he promised to shave his head as several teammates had already done, should Irvine make it to the final.

After the victory over UNLV, he toned down the comment.

“Not like those other fools on my team,” he said. “I’ll get the flat top.”

UNLV had never been shut out of the final in the six years it has been in the conference. The Rebels have failed to win the tournament only once, losing to Fresno State in the 1984 championship game.

UNLV (27-5) did not have a hard time with Irvine during the regular season this year.

The first time the teams met, at UNLV’s Thomas & Mack Center, the Rebels were coming off a stunning upset loss to UC Santa Barbara, and they turned their fury toward Irvine in a 103-68 blowout.

The second game may have lacked that sort of intensity, but it was just as one-sided: UNLV 99, Irvine 77.

Irvine’s string of embarrassing losses went back even further. Although the Anteaters swept the Rebels in the two 1986 regular-season games, they had lost the four since then by an average of 27.5 points.

No wonder UNLV could muster so little enthusiasm.

“Our kids came down here with the idea that they were going to play Long Beach,” Tarkanian said. “We beat Irvine by 20 points or more both times. It was very difficult for me to convince them how tough it was going to be. They found out.”

For Irvine, the motivation was the possibility of making the NCAA tournament.

“We have one more shot at the NCAAs,” Mulligan said. “I told them we’re not going to go to the NIT. Our record’s not good enough.”

Already, the Anteaters are looking ahead to the prospect of earning an NCAA bid.

“This is the biggest win ever, because this one’s in the tournament,” Engelstad said. “This one might make people think of us as a Cinderella team, which is perfect for us, getting the fans we normally get.”

For UNLV, which seems assured of an at-large bid, the loss gives time to pause.

“We’re taking two days off,” Tarkanian said. “This may be the best thing to happen to us. It’ll be the first time since Christmas.”