Runnin' Rebels Exit The Big Dance Early

Junior forward and UNLV's team leader put it best “Losing in the first round is a little disappointing,” Willis said. “But overall, we had a good season. We’re definitely going to have our good days ahead of us.”

That is exactly what this Rebels fan and reporter will focus on within the scope of this report.

Yes,surely the 69-66 loss to a very good Northern Iowa team was disappointing and yes there were enough flaws in the Rebels performance that the outcome was anticipated early enough in the game when the Runnin' Rebels jumped out to an eight point lead, despite some very erratic shooting, and couldn't continue the onslaught.

Let's give the Northern Iowa Panthers credit. They played a very smart defensive game which is their signature and when it came down to the last 11 seconds left in a tie game with no time outs remaining, they were able to find an open man 26 feet from the basket and Ali Farokhmanesh, try saying that name five times fast, simply fired away to put the Panthers up by three.

The Rebels then got two tries to tie the game with 4.9 seconds left. After the inbound pass the ball was knocked away from Oscar Bellfield going out of bounds leaving the Rebels with 1.6 seconds left. They were never able to get off the shot when time expired.

So ends the 2009-2010 season for UNLV. This year, just like for the entire Mountain West Conference, was supposed to be a rebuilding year for the Runnin' Rebels. They lost three key Seniors including four year starter and one of the most exciting players I have ever seen to step out on Jerry Tarkanian Court. That of course was Wink Adams who will always be one of my top five Runnin' Rebels of all time.

With Wink gone as well as Joe Darger and Rrene Rougeau this Rebel team was made of of underclassmen and Junior College transfers trying, under the able leadership of Coach Lon Kruger, to blend into a well run machine capable of causing havoc on the defensive side of the ball.

Their overall record of 25-9 speaks volumes of their success. Their two wins over BYU and one over New Mexico as well as defeating Arizona and Louisville ,is a tribute to the fine job Kruger has done. With most UNLV home games being close to sell out crowds at the Thomas and Mack center, Kruger has pumped the life back into this towns love for Jerry Tarkanian's legendary teams.

The future is extremely bright for the Rebels for the 2010-2011 campaign. They bring back their staring five as well as their key players off the bench. This years Freshman class of Anthony Marshall and Justin Hawkins will only get better and they will still be back ups for Tre'Von Willis and Oscar Bellfield.

With a healthy Derrick Jasper back in the lineup and excellent recruiting class plus a couple of red shirts from this year things are definitely looking up for the Rebels' The emergence of Chase Stanback and Matt Shaw along with the stellar play of Tre'Von Willis plus the ever improving Brice Massamba will make the UNLV a force to be reckoned with not only in the Mountain West Conference but also nationally as they continue on their path to return to the elite of Men's College Basketball.

I will continue to cover the two remaining teams from the MWC, BYU and New Mexico throughout the NCAA Tournament and wish them success. Now that the entire country has witnessed the amazing Jimmer Fredette let's hope for a Sweet Sixteen or more from our two remaining teams. This has been a great year for the Mountain West Conference and it will only be getting better in the years to come.

The time has arrived in both Football and Basketball for the Mountain West Conference to be part of the BCS and be recognized nationally as a major conference.

The NCAA vs. UNLV: Conspiracy or Not?

Of course there is but more on that in a little bit.

First off I am not what you call a "Conspiracy Theorist". Well maybe a little bit. Like, sure there wasn't another shooter on the grassy knoll. Like, Amelia Earhart really lost her way. Like all the disappearances in the Bermuda Triangle can be explained. Like Elvis is really dead. Now that one I know is not true. Here in Vegas I see Elvis at least three to four times a day, sometimes even in two places at once.

You tell me what dead person could do that. Oh and by the way here's two more I'll let you in on but don't spread the word or I might be found just outside of town in an area called The Valley of Fire. Tupac's alive for sure plus sports players never bet on games and know that Jeb Bush had nothing to do with the results of the 2000 election results in Florida. Duh, the guy with most votes lost.

With the 2010 NCAA Tournament on the verge of sending sports fans everywhere into March Madness my 20 year old nagging conspiracy that the powers that be in the NCAA land continues it's life long vengeance against the University of Nevada Las Vegas.

This body of old, decrepit individuals really can hold a grudge. Geez!

Lets go back a little more than a generation ago. If you think of the City of Las Vegas to be "Sin City" now try to imagine when the town was run by the Mob, known in some circles as the Cosa Nostra, the Mafia, the Godfathers, that thing of ours, and my favorite, the Little Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. Hell our current Mayor, Oscar("I was not a mob lawyer")Goodman was THE mob lawyer for Meyer Lansky and Bugsy Seigal. No he wasn't but it sounds good, doesn't it?

The last thing the NCAA old farts wanted to see were the criminals in waiting, those UNLV students to become a perennial power and dominate the Little Sisters of the Poor on the hardwood.

Remember in the 90's when the University of Miami ruled the College Football world and when they played Notre Dame it was billed as the Catholics vs.the Convicts. The press loved it but the NCAA called in the special opts unit of the CIA to find some dirt to discredit the Hurricanes.

They tried to do the same thing to the Runnin' Rebels. They were coached at that time by one of the most beloved and well liked men to ever coach a group of players. Jerry Tarkanian was given the moniker "Tark The Shark", not because he could coach a hell of a basketball game but because his teams were winners and the NCAA just couldn't have that. Tark took his team to three Final Fours and won it all 20 years ago this month by destroying the Dukies by a mere 30 points in the most lopsided decisive win in a final championship game in NCAA basketball history.

For years the NCAA went after Tarkanian in the worst way. He was accused of recruitment violations, payoffs to players, and other scandalous activities. Nothing to this day has ever been proven about UNLV and the so called infractions and they have never been sanctioned by that sanctimonious, holy institution called the NCAA.

It,like most conspiracies never end. Over the past six years that Lon Kruger has taken over the coaching duties the Rebels have put themselves back in the national spotlight by having 20+ game win seasons and making it to the big dance, along with this years bid, three appearances in the last four years.

Keep in mind for their previous two appearances UNLV won the Mountain West Conference Tournament earning the automatic bid that comes with that victory. This year they made to the final game of the Mountain West Tournament only to lose at home to NCAA tourney bound San Diego State.

So what then is the conspiracy you say? OK, here it is. In 2007 the Rebels upset it's first two opponents and found themselves in the Sweet Sixteen for the first time since 1991. If some Georgia Tech demon possessed player whose name escapes me for the moment hit about 25 three pointers the Rebels could have easily found itself in the Elite Eight or even the Final Four.

The 2008 team was better still but the NCAA had a plan that surely couldn't fail. If you think top rated Kansas is a great team today and will surely be playing this year in Indianapolis, I'm telling you the 2008 version was even better and when they cut down the nets in the final it was certainly no surprise for me.

You know what the "Death Seed" is in the NCAA tournament. It's not 15 or 16. They are expected to be one and done and that has held fast with very few exceptions over the years. In fact in case you didn't know, a 16 has never defeated a Number 1 seed ever in this tournament. It's the 8 or 9 seed that has the coaches leaving lambs blood on the lockers doors after they've won their opener only to have to face certain defeat less than two days later.

Now you know how the Christians felt like going into the arena against the Lions and I don't mean the Detroit Lions either. Back to my conspiracy. I could make a very respectable argument in 2008 that UNLV was a far better team than an 8 seed. They had a better record than most of the six and seven seeds, a higher RPI, with wins over top 25 and top 50 teams and they won a tournament championship already. So what did the NCAA Selection Committee do? They put them in the same bracket as Kansas and waited for the slaughter to begin.

The Rebels to their credit played them pretty evenly through the first half but with Kansas playing it's game so close to home they could hitch a ride and be back on campus by nightfall the Jayhawks pulled away to a relatively easy victory. They then went on to win the National Championship.

So here we are. It's 2010 and UNLV with 5 wins against ranked teams this year gets an invite to the big dance. Yea!. They are once again placed in the Midwest Region. They are given an 8 seed again despite yadie yadie yada, and if they should win against another ranked team this year, Northern Iowa, who has about as much to complain at their 9 seed with 28 wins and a championship in the Missouri Valley Conference plus winning their conference tournament as well, the Rebels if they should come out and be victorious in this opener on Thursday,guess who they have to get by to advance?

If you said the overall number one seeded team in the tournament,the Kansas Jayhawks, you'd win a Kewpie doll,I'd prefer a naked Barbie, and be the winner of the "Conspiracy Tournament".

No Rebels fans, the NCAA will never forgive the Runnin' Rebels, Jerry Tarkanian, Grandmama Larry Johnson, and the fine students and faculty at UNLV. It's a conspiracy,I tell you,a conspiracy.