Findlay rolls to 15-0; Rudd liked visit to UNLV

By Rob Miech

Thursday, Jan. 8, 2009 | 9:04 p.m.

Findlay College Prep hasn’t lost a basketball game to a Las Vegas opponent in its three seasons, and coach Mike Peck didn’t want to break that trend Thursday night.

Before playing Eldorado, Peck reminded his Pilots about that streak.

“He said, ‘If they beat us, it makes their season,’ ” said Texas-bound Findlay guard Avery Bradley.

“But we always play with a bull’s-eye on our back anyway,” said Pilots junior point guard Cory Joseph.

The Pilots continued rolling, beating the Sun Devils, 90-48, to improve to 15-0. They are ranked second in USA Today’s prestigious national Super 25 poll.

Victor Rudd, the 6-foot-7 versatile and powerful forward who made an unofficial visit to UNLV’s practice Wednesday with Peck and assistant coach Todd Simon, led everyone with 19 points.

Bradley scored 15 and center Carlos Lopez, who will play at UNLV next fall, added 13.

Marcus Moreland led Eldorado (12-5) with 18 points.

“I’m glad they asked us to play,” said Sun Devils coach Mike Uzan. “It gave our guys an eye-opener about playing at this level. We learned some lessons.”

Eldorado had a 4-2 lead when Rudd scored an easy one, Joseph sliced inside for another layup and Bradley converted a fastbreak jam that started Findlay’s onslaught.

Bradley sank a jumper and Illinois-bound guard D.J. Richardson hit a 3-pointer to give Findlay a 27-13 edge after one quarter.

Rudd, who had 17 points in the first half, took a hard spill near the end of the second quarter when he slipped on a wet spot on the court just as he was about to throw down a dunk.

But he said it was nothing, that he fell on his right hand and that stabilized his fall. Although he scored only two points in the second half, he didn't favor his right side at all.

Rudd said his visit to UNLV went well, that he met with Rebels coach Lon Kruger and his staff, and he liked what they all said.

“I like UNLV a lot,” Rudd said. “I like their recruiting class and the fact that there will only be one senior when I get there, so there should be a lot of minutes.

“And Chace Stanback is a great player. I’ve seen him play a lot. Oscar Bellfield, too, and I’ve seen them play against each other a lot.”

Rudd is from the San Fernando Valley area north of Los Angeles. Stanback played at Los Angeles Fairfax High, and Bellfield played at Westchester in Los Angeles.

Rudd said he will make an official visit to UNLV on Jan. 17, when it plays host to Wyoming. He said he will also make official visits to Arizona and Marquette. Rebels assistant coaches Lew Hill and Steve Henson watched Rudd play Thursday.

UNLV’s key recruiter might be Lopez. He’d love to play with Rudd in college but said, ultimately, it’s going to be Rudd’s choice and he’ll remain Lopez's friend wherever Rudd goes.

“No question, for me it would be nice,” Lopez said. “I love how he plays. He shares the ball. He feeds the post. He plays hard defensively. He doesn’t play soft. He makes you play better.”

The victory gave Peck a 47-1 record as Findlay’s coach.

Cliff Findlay, the automobile magnate and former UNLV center who founded the Pilots’ basketball program, has been telling friends lately that Peck is the John Wooden of Las Vegas.

Peck blushed a bit at that comparison.

He said he does sense sometimes that Las Vegas-area schools tend to want to test themselves a bit more than usual against Findlay, which is affiliated with the Henderson International School.

Another local prep team will get a shot at a first win over Findlay on Saturday afternoon, when the Pilots play at Canyon Springs.