Rebels Spot UCI 4, Then Show No Mercy

This Nevada Las Vegas basketball season is far from over, almost everyone feels assured.

But no matter how far the Rebels go in their quest to repeat as NCAA champions, Saturday night was the final time the home fans could see this remarkable Rebel team on the court of the Thomas & Mack Center, and 19,826 came out to bid a roaring farewell to a senior class that includes Larry Johnson, Stacey Augmon and Greg Anthony.

In an arena where indoor fireworks are routine, UNLV officials called this event one with “a little extra flash.” Including the ritual lights-out introduction of the lineups, it lasted 20 minutes, delaying tip-off to 8:25 p.m.

It was, of course, merely a delay of the inevitable, as the top-ranked and defending NCAA champion Rebels won their 36th consecutive game with a 114-86 victory over UC Irvine in front of the second-largest crowd in the history of the arena. It is surpassed only by the crowd of 20,321 that saw UNLV defeat Navy and David Robinson on Dec. 29, 1986.

In a touch of class, UNLV’s fans also gave retiring Irvine Coach Bill Mulligan a standing ovation as he was presented with farewell mementoes by UNLV Coach Jerry Tarkanian. The two have been friends for more than 30 years, since meeting as young men when Tarkanian was coach at Redlands High School, and Mulligan coached Long Beach Poly High.

In a touch of nonchalance--or studied self-assurance, take your pick--UNLV spotted Irvine a four-point lead at the outset. With six seniors, Tarkanian sent all of them out for the opening tip, taking a technical rather than sit a senior down.

While Mulligan smiled agreeably at the sentimental move, Irvine’s Jeff Von Lutzow hit both technical free throws, and Jeff Herdman added a basket on the possession.

It seemed a reasonable risk on Tarkanian’s part: UNLV defeated Irvine by 41 points last month.

Irvine (9-19, 4-11) actually led by five points twice, and the score was tied, 17-17, slightly less than seven minutes into the game.

But then an Augmon dunk was followed by an Anthony dunk off a steal. Augmon followed that with another dunk off an Anthony assist.

That was beginning of the end, and Irvine has seen enough of those UNLV runs to know what it meant.

Johnson added a three-point play in the midst of an 11-2 run, and Irvine quickly was down by nine points.

It was not the most awesome UNLV run of the night. That came in the second half, when UNLV, leading by 17, hit back-to-back-to-back-to-back three-pointers--four in a row, in the middle of a 14-0 run that was only a small part of a 26-3 run.

Irvine went from trailing, 77-52, to trailing, 103-55.

The Anteaters trailed, 60-43, at halftime, as UNLV dunked 11 times in the first 20 minutes alone.

Augmon had five of those, and added a sixth in the second half. He scored 27 points, 23 in the first half, and added seven rebounds and four assists.

Anteater Notes

Washington State Coach Kelvin Sampson said Friday he had not yet been contacted by UC Irvine Athletic Director Tom Ford, who sought and received permission from the school to speak with Sampson about Irvine’s coaching job. Sampson said he will not consider or reject any jobs until after the season. He reportedly is in the midst of renegotiating his contract with Washington State. . . . Ford met with Villanova assistant coach John Olive in Orange County on Thursday, an Irvine source confirmed. Olive, recommended by Villanova Coach Rollie Massimino, reportedly is one of five finalists for the St. Mary’s job, and was in California on a recruiting trip, his office said. . . . UCLA Athletic Director Peter Dalis said he is recommending Irvine assistant Ernie Carr, a former UCLA assistant, and current UCLA assistant Brad Holland for the job.