Tarkanian runs gamut of emotion

Steve Carp

Tuesday, Feb. 18, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

He was right. This wasn't going to be easy for Jerry Tarkanian.

From the moment he stepped into the Thomas & Mack Center Monday night, the former UNLV coach battled the emotional mixer that was churning inside him. That his struggling Fresno State Bulldogs lost to UNLV 78-64 didn't ease his burden. It merely made an already hellish day an even a longer evening.

"I'm very drained emotionally right now," Tarkanian said outside the losers' locker room. "I'm just so frustrated. We can't shoot and we can't rebound, so how the s--- do you expect to win?"

Getting outrebounded 61-44 and shooting 34 percent from the floor (14 percent from long distance) will guarantee you go home a loser. And Tark's not used to losing. Not like this.

"We've had that problem all year on the road," he said. "I just feel bad we didn't play better."

Trying to relax courtside prior to the game, it was evident Tark wasn't succeeding. A seemingly endless procession of well-wishers came by to see him on the bench near the tunnel entrance, a strange sight itself. He smiled and accepted their greetings. But he was struggling to hold it together. Even longtime friend Susan Molasky's presence next to him wasn't soothing.

"I'm all right," he said half-heartedly, hoping the minutes to tipoff would turn into seconds rather than the hours they seemed to be.

And as tipoff approached, many of Tarkanian's longtime Las Vegas friends arrived and took their places of honor behind the FSU bench. Freddie Glusman, Mike Toney, Chuck Thompson, Larry DuBoef -- Tark's "inner circle." All were on hand for their friend. And of course, Tarkanian's family was there to back him and his team.

Eventually, it was time to play. His players were roundly booed, but when Tarkanian was introduced, the 18,024 rose as one and gave him a thunderous 30-second standing ovation. Current UNLV coach Bill Bayno came over to shake hands as did UNLV president Carol Harter as the cheers rained down on the 66-year-old coaching legend.

It was a touching tribute to the man who built Rebel basketball. And he appreciated it.

"That was the best," he said of the warm welcome back. "It brought tears ... that was great."

Bayno said: "That's the way it's supposed to be. He's a legend and the crowd was great. They treated him with the respect he deserves."

Still, there was the matter of trying to win a very important basketball game. And as the first half wore on, Tarkanian grew increasingly frustrated with his team's failure to rebound and take good shots.

"We can't get a f------ rebound," he said during a stoppage in play midway through the first half. And because of that, UNLV led 36-28 at halftime as the Rebels had a 36-22 edge on the boards.

But UNLV couldn't separate itself from Fresno State. Trailing by as many as 12, Fresno State pulled within one with just less than six minutes to go. And when Tark sprung a half-court trap on UNLV and the Rebels turned it over, the Bulldogs tried to seize the opportunity to come all the way back.

However, one was as close as they would get. The Bulldogs' shooting betrayed them once again and UNLV made enough shots down the stretch to prevail and probably relegate Fresno State to the NIT, barring the Bulldogs winning the WAC tournament in two weeks.

"I'm not even thinking about that," Tarkanian said of the postseason prospects. "We've got four games left. We'll play the best we can and see what happens."

And even though he came up short Monday, Tark was glad to put this behind.

"It was a strange day," he said. "I love Las Vegas and the fans were just super. I just wish we played better.

"I thought our guys tried hard. But it was a great win for UNLV and a great win for Bayno."

But it was a tough night for Tarkanian. And as the UNLV students celebrated on the floor of the arena his success had been the impetus behind building, he made his way back to the locker room, his head bowed, his emotional bank account reading zero, a solitary figure finishing what had been a long and arduous day at the scene of some of his greatest triumphs.