NCAA West Regional Final at Denver : UNLV’s Speed Takes On Seton Hall’s Strength

Jerry Tarkanian’s “skinniest team in America” spent Thursday night beating Arizona, the team many regarded as the best in America.

Now, Nevada Las Vegas--with only one senior on its roster--takes its thin front line against Seton Hall in the West Regional final today for a spot in the National Collegiate Athletic Assn. tournament’s Final Four.

If the Arizona game was a battle between the best in the West, this one shapes up as a struggle between the brawn of Seton Hall and the speed of UNLV.

Seton Hall, true to the tradition of the Big East, averages 223 pounds across the front line, and Ramon Ramos, the 6-foot 9-inch center, tips the scales at 250.

UNLV’s front line averages only 199 pounds, and none of the players is shorter than 6-7.

One of UNLV’s thin men is David Butler, a 6-10, 200-pound center who, rather than talk to recruiters when he was at San Jacinto Junior College in Texas, simply had “UNLV” cut into his hair.

“Coaches would come in and want to talk to me,” Butler said. “But once they saw UNLV on my head, they backed off.”

Butler believes Seton Hall’s lack of speed could help UNLV.

“Their inside guys are pretty good,” he said. “But I don’t feel they run the court real well. A couple of times, they weren’t getting back.”

Tarkanian, sitting nearby, sensed bulletin-board material, and cautioned Butler.

“Better be careful,” he said.

“I am being careful,” Butler said. “I watched the game closely.”

Besides Butler, UNLV’s front line is made up of Moses Scurry, 6-7 and 205; Stacey Augmon, 6-7 and 192, and substitute George Ackles, 6-10 and 200.

Scurry is the closest thing the Rebels have to a bruiser. But what he lacks in size, he makes up for in intimidation, opening his mouth wide for a ferocious shout with every rebound he pulls down.

Seton Hall, struggling to overcome an underdog label despite being the third-seeded team, counters with Ramos, Daryll Walker at 6-8 and 215, Andrew Gaze at 6-7 and 205, and substitute Frantz Volcy at 6-8 and 220.

Tarkanian concedes the weight difference, but that’s about all.

“I think they are a little stronger,” he said. “I think we’re quicker. I don’t think they’re tougher.”

Seton Hall has an interior defense that drew the compliments of Indiana Coach Bob Knight after the Pirates eliminated the Hoosiers Thursday.

Seton Hall Coach P.J. Carlesimo, like Tarkanian, is looking to the interior game.

“They’re a little bigger and might be a tad quicker,” he said. “We’re more physical. Hopefully, our people will hold them inside.”

The improvement of UNLV’s inside game has coincided with the Rebels’ late-season run.

After beginning the season with only three returning players--guard Stacey Cvijanovich, Clint Rossum and Augmon--the Rebels struggled a little early.

“We were 15-6 at one time, and I was wondering if we’d win 20 games,” Tarkanian said.

UNLV lost only one more game the rest of the way, to Louisiana State, and has a 29-7 record.

Butler, in particular, has been important in the run, and is averaging 18 points a game during the tournament, compared to 15 overall.

Despite Seton Hall’s 29-6 record, which includes three losses to Syracuse, there are those who are trying to pin the Cinderella label on Seton Hall, the second-place team in the Big East.

“I think they’ll start to understand once we get to Seattle,” Walker said.

Carlesimo said of his players: “They’re good, and they know they’re good.”

As for the Rebels, any doubts about themselves were dispelled in the 68-67 victory over Arizona, narrow as it was.

“Going into (Thursday night’s) game, I thought Arizona was the best team in the country,” Tarkanian said. “I thought they had a good shot at winning the whole thing. Seton Hall is a good team, but I don’t think they’re as good as Arizona was.”

West Regional Notes

Sean Elliott finished his career at Arizona with 735 points this season and 2,555 in all. . . . UNLV Coach Jerry Tarkanian picked Arizona, Oklahoma, North Carolina and Indiana to win in Thursday’s semifinals. All four lost. . . . Tarkanian thought it so unlikely that the Rebels could beat Arizona that he told his wife, Lois, that if the teams played 10 times, UNLV would win once.