Columnist Ron Kantowski: UNLV acts if it has something to hide

Thursday, March 25, 1999 | 11:49 a.m.

Ron Kantowski's notes column appears Tuesday and Thursday. Reach him at ron@lasvegassun.com or 259-4088.

When someone is accused of doing something wrong or suspicious, that someone usually tries to clear his name by providing proof or other information to the contrary.

It's human nature. For instance, when my wife accuses me of returning the toilet seat to its upright position, I blame it on the dog.

The UNLV basketball coaching staff, on the other hand, just barks a lot.

Sun basketball beat writer Steve Carp heard from most of the UNLV staff earlier this week when Sun columnist Dean Juipe relayed what independent sources have told us and what we've seen with our own eyes -- Rebel basketball star Shawn Marion tooling around town in a nice car(s).

First of all, their beef was with the wrong guy. Secondly, the Sun column didn't accuse Marion or anybody else of any wrongdoing. It merely suggested that Marion's car(s) could have been acquired in any number of ways. Including legitimate ones.

All UNLV had/has to do to take the heat off Marion would be to make his auto records public. It's called a pro-active approach. Nip it in the bud. But when the Sun asked UNLV athletic director Charlie Cavagnaro for a list of the players' cars, he cited the Buckley Amendment, which protects a student's right to privacy.

Coaches and administrators hide behind the Buckley Amendment like Steve Alford used to disappear behind one of Steve Eyl's screens during Indiana's glory days.

So without evidence to the contrary, what is the media and the public expected to think, when a star athlete is spotted retrieving a bazillion-dollar, all-terrain vehicle from the valet attendant on the night before a major prize fight at a major Las Vegas resort?

Or when the NCAA sends its "A" team of cops to investigate the men's basketball program?

Last week, it was Toody and Muldoon asking the questions during an informal inquiry. This next time, it'll be Eliot Ness and the Untouchables. Or George Peppard and Mr. T.

Forgive us for being cynical. But it's not just us. And it's just not you. It's not like the notion of Division I players driving fancy cars is a concept more foreign than a two-handed chest pass.

When Sports Illustrated's Rick Reilly writes, as he did in his take on the NCAA Tournament this week, that the Wisconsin and New Mexico players were losers for "clearly not earning their free Pathfinders" in lopsided defeats, it certainly gives "driving to the hoop" a whole 'nother meaning.

NFL IN LV? NO SIR: Sir Hilary Michael Milko, one of 1,104 Las Vegas mayoral candidates, sent out a press release this week stating that he would like to bring an NFL preseason football game to the Las Vegas Motor Speedway. The chances of that happening are only slightly greater than Las Vegan Shruti Misra buying the Minnesota Vikings -- even if Milko does become, as his stationery already proclaims, "the mayor of Las Vegas."

"I think it's far too premature right now for us to discuss, publicly, hosting any type of football game at Las Vegas Motor Speedway," LVMS general manager Chris Powell said. "I am disappointed that anyone involved with the effort has chosen to use Las Vegas Motor Speedway in public discussions about a proposed game.

"Other than a get-to-know-you session that I did not even attend, there is absolutely no agreement between Mr. Milko and Las Vegas Motor Speedway."

The NFL's denial was just as tacit. "I've never heard of that," NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said.

AROUND THE HORN: The Holyfield-Lewis rematch should go to London. It would be a knockout (maybe even literally) there. But it would be surprising to see one of Las Vegas' big resorts bid on the fight, given that the first one, were it not for the bogus decision, would have been remembered as a boring bout, if at all. ... If Greedy Daniels leaves the UNLV basketball program, TCU would be a good fit. He would be a more effective player running-and-gunning for Billy Tubbs instead of trying to temper his game to fit in here. ... The folks up north didn't show a whole lot of imagination when naming their divisions under the NIAA high school realignment plan. So far, they are known as League I and League II. Sounds like the main characters in a Dr. Seuss novel. And why does one of the northern leagues have five schools and the other one seven? ... The movie "Pleasantville" could have been about Rosa Guzman, the longtime receptionist for UNLV's sports information department. She's among the most personable people I know.