UNLV’s Tarkanian to Visit Antelope Valley

Jerry Tarkanian, Nevada Las Vegas basketball coach, will return to the Antelope Valley today for a visit, more than three decades after he coached the 1958 Antelope Valley High basketball team to a 4-9 record.

It was his only season at the school and his only losing season as a coach, but now he has plenty of reasons to return.

Antelope Valley College, the local junior college, has been nicknamed UNAV because of its ties to Tarkanian and the UNLV basketball program.

Tarkanian will attend the college’s basketball class/practice from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and likely will have a Shark’s eye on 6-foot-5 sophomore swingman J. R. Rider.

Newton Chelette, Antelope Valley’s basketball coach, is a former Tarkanian assistant, and Chelette sent his star player, former Taft High standout Dedan Thomas, to UNLV this season.

Tarkanian’s son George was hired last month as a political science teacher at Antelope Valley College.