Early exit for Saint-Jean?

Steve Carp

Tuesday, March 4, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

Is tonight Olivier Saint-Jean's collegiate swan song?

The Western Athletic Conference's leading scorer will try to have history repeat itself in the Thomas & Mack Center as San Jose State goes against New Mexico in the WAC Tournament.

The 8:30 p.m. contest wraps up the first day of the 14th annual men's tourney which has UNLV meeting Rice, Texas Christian playing Wyoming and Colorado State taking on Southern Methodist.

"I don't know yet," Saint-Jean said Monday of a plan to leave college early and turn pro. "I have to talk to my mother and my future wife. This is not a decision you rush into.

"But yes, I've been thinking about it. I'd be lying if I said I didn't think about it. But you have to weigh everything. There's still at least one game left to play, so I don't want to rush into it."

Coach Stan Morrison also has been thinking about life without his 23.8 points-per-game scoring machine. And he admits this could be it, if the 22-6 Lobos eliminate the Spartans.

"It's a very strong possibility it may be his last game," Morrison said. "If it's right, he should go and I'll be the first to congratulate him."

It has been a tough two years for Saint-Jean. The Spartans had to go all out just to get to the WAC Tournament, nipping San Diego State 65-63 Thursday to clinch the sixth and final Pacific Division berth.

A year ago, San Jose State needed a similar surge to make it into the Big West Tournament. But once the Spartans made it, they never looked back. SJS ran the table to earn the school's first NCAA Tournament berth since 1980, losing to eventual national champion Kentucky in the first round.

Saint-Jean said the experience of last year should help the team against a talented New Mexico team, which is licking its wounds after getting drilled 78-58 at Utah in its regular-season finale Saturday.

"You know the effort's going to be there," he said.

But how much the Spartans have in the tank is a matter of conjecture. The team didn't arrive in Las Vegas until the wee hours Monday after its flight from Honolulu was delayed due to mechanical problems and some of the team's luggage didn't make it.

New Mexico also needs tonight's game badly. The Lobos, who are the defending tournament champions, are playing for a high seed in the NCAAs. The further they go this week, the better their chances of getting a good spot on Selection Sunday.

But they have to put Saturday's loss to Utah in the rearview mirror and be prepared to shut down Saint-Jean.

"We were pretty upset with ourselves," said UNM guard Clayton Shields of the 20-point loss to Utah. "We know we're a better team than that. But we can't worry about the past. We've got to be ready to play San Jose."

Hoop du jour

* HOST NO HELP: If you think UNLV has a huge edge because the tournament is being played at the Thomas & Mack, guess again. In the 13 previous WAC tournaments, only three schools have won the title on their home floor. Texas-El Paso did it in 1984 and 1990 and New Mexico prevailed last year at The Pit. ... If you're looking for an upset, chances are pretty good someone will get knocked off early. In 106 previous tournament games, the lower seed has posted an upset 34 times. That's 31 percent. Only in 1992 did form hold up and the higher seed prevail in every game.

* MASCOT VISIT: Mascots from WAC schools will visit Sunrise Children's Hospital at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday as a tournament tradition continues. The program, now in its fifth year, will have the mascots visit patients and distribute gifts. The teddy bears being distributed Wednesday were donated by the UNLV Alumni Association.