Thursday, Sept. 9, 1999 | 10:35 a.m.
One of these days, Lou Kelly's going to find out whether or not he graduated from junior college. And once he does, UNLV can start planning to utilize the 6-foot-5 wing forward.
That day will likely be Dec. 15 when the Rebels play Austin Peay. Regardless of whether or not Kelly earned his associate in arts degree from San Bernardino Valley College, he missed the cutoff to enroll in fall classes at UNLV. Therefore, he's ineligible to play at the start of the season.
Coach Bill Bayno confirmed that Kelly's status is relegated to after the fall term. As for whether or not Kelly passed his biology class required to graduate, Bayno said he was waiting to hear.
"Until his paperwork comes in and it's official, I really can't comment," he said, referring to the fact that Kelly remains a prospective student-athlete. "I expect it to be here in the next week or so."
Despite rumors circulating in Southern California that he is having second thoughts on his decision, Kelly remains adamant that he wants to play for the Rebels. His mother informed Bayno of that fact Tuesday.
As for who gets Kelly's minutes to start the season, junior Donovan Stewart probably has the inside track, though sophomore Chris Richardson figures to get a long look-see and newcomers Dalron Johnson and Danny Brotherson will likely get an opportunity to earn some time at small forward.
And while UNLV waits for Kelly, it will have to wait a little longer than expected for former Cimarron-Memorial star Marcus Banks. The 6-2 guard has enrolled at Dixie College in St. George, Utah, and will play JC ball this season.
Plans call for Banks, a non-qualifier academically, to enroll at UNLV for the 2000-2001 season, redshirt that year, and still have three years' eligibility remaining.
Banks could have redshirted this year, but he would have lost a year's eligibility because he didn't meet the NCAA's academic eligibility requirements. By going to a JC, then enrolling at UNLV, he'll still have three years of Division I while gaining some experience on the court at Dixie.
The departure of Banks to JC means at least three members of this year's recruiting class are not going to be Rebels. Oscar Garcia, who signed last November but failed to qualify academically, opted to turn pro and is playing in Europe. Former Fresno City College guard Mike Garrett was unable to earn his JC degree and was also ineligible to play.
* NCAA PROBE UPDATE: According to UNLV athletic director Charlie Cavagnaro, any talk of sanctions by the NCAA for the basketball program are very premature. Cavagnaro confirmed Wednesday that the preliminary inquiry is still in process and may extend for another five months. "We haven't received any notification that it was over," he said of the preliminary probe which officially began last March. Any letter of official inquiry, which would list violations ascertained from the result of the preliminary inquiry, would not be served until late spring, or a couple of months after the preliminary phase has been wrapped up. And until UNLV knows what violations it allegedly has committed, it's impossible to know what the potential sanctions will be. "I think there's still a ways to go before we reach that point, if we ever get to that point," he said.
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