UNLV on verge of signing top prospect

Steve Carp

Wednesday, April 14, 1999 | 10:14 a.m.

As UNLV was on the verge of signing one of its top recruits to a national letter of intent, another player on Bill Bayno's wish list apparently has decided to head to the Midwest.

It appears Lou Kelly is coming to Las Vegas while Danny Walker looks to be en route to Nebraska.

Kelly's mind is made up. All he had to do was convince his mother Tuesday and have her sign the letter. His father and uncle already have given their blessing to the 6-5 star swingman from San Bernardino Valley (Calif.) Community College to sign with the Rebels.

Bayno said he could not comment on whether Kelly was in the fold. But he said the recruitment of Kelly and the rest of UNLV's potential class of 1999 continues to go well.

"So far, so good," Bayno said. "I think things are very encouraging. We've just got to close it out."

Kelly still has to earn his A.A. degree to be eligible in the fall. If not, he can finish in the fall and be eligible in mid-December.

His letter, which has to be signed by both parents since Kelly is under 21, may not arrive at UNLV until the end of the week. But if he does follow through on his verbal commitment and sign, UNLV will be getting a high-profile player who can play multiple positions and take much of the scoring burden off Shawn Marion.

Kelly averaged just under 26 points, just over seven rebounds and four blocks for San Bernardino. He is considered one of the top JC prospects in the nation by several scouting services and likely would slide right into UNLV's starting lineup at either the wing forward or off-guard spot.

While Kelly was getting ready to commit to UNLV, published reports out of Nebraska had Danny Walker signing with the Cornhuskers instead of the Rebels or Texas, which also was in hot pursuit of the 6-foot-1 guard from Compton (Calif.) College.

The Lincoln Journal Star reported Tuesday that Walker signed his letter with Nebraska Monday after taking visits to UNLV (last weekend) and Texas.

Meanwhile, Jason Kapono, the 6-8 forward from Artesia High in Lakewood, Calif., still is considering the Rebels, contrary to reports he had dropped UNLV from his short list, which includes Missouri, Arizona and Utah.

"They're still in it," Kapono's father, Joe, said Tuesday. "Jason talked to Coach Bayno last week and he's still interested."

The elder Kapono did say the ongoing NCAA investigation of the program is a concern.

"It's every player's dream to play in the NCAA Tournament," he said. "Obviously, if they (the Rebels) were not allowed to play, it would have an impact on Jason's decision. But nobody knows what's going to happen and Jason is taking everything into consideration."

Kapono said his son is expected to make his decision known sometime late next week.

And while the Rebels wait to see what Kapono does, plans are set for Howard Smith, a 6-1, 180-pound point guard from Killeen (Texas) High, to visit next weekend.

Jeremy McNeil, the 6-9 forward from Sam Houston High in San Antonio who was Smith's teammate on the Texas Blue Chip AAU Summer League team, also is scheduled to visit next week.

Wayland White, a 6-6 forward from Iowa Western Community College, may also visit UNLV.