Emotional day leaves Rebels’ players stunned

Victoria Sun

Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2000 | 10:08 a.m.

UNLV basketball player Trevor Diggs was sitting in class taking a science final Tuesday morning when he first got the news.

A female classmate tapped him on the shoulder and asked him if he had heard that coach Bill Bayno had been fired.

Diggs, stunned at the suggestion, answered "No, what are you talking about?" He then called director of basketball operations Billy Wuczynski to find out what was going on.

After Wuczynski told Diggs there would be a mandatory players and coaches meeting at the Lied Athletic Complex, he knew something was up.

"She was shocked I didn't know, because it was all over the news this morning," Diggs said before practice Tuesday afternoon. "I was shocked because I never, never, never thought coach was going to get fired."

During the noon meeting, it was confirmed that Bayno had been fired as a result of the NCAA sanctions imposed on the school for recruiting violations. The players also learned that assistant Max Good would assume the role of head coach for the remainder of the season.

"It was very emotional," freshman point guard LaFonte Johnson said with a somber expression. "A lot of people were upset and hurt because coach was more like a father to us, you know.

"He helped us with our problems off the court, mentally. So everybody had their mistakes, just as well as players and coaches. So I don't know, it's just sad to see this happen.

"I was crying, a few guys were. I came in under coach Bayno, he's no longer here and we don't have an opportunity to play in the postseason."

The fact that Bayno had been fired seemed to bother the players a lot more than the fact that the NCAA levied severe penalties against the Rebels (3-4), including putting the school on probation for four years and banning the team from postseason play this year (UNLV athletic director Charles Cavagnaro and university president Dr. Carol Harter said they may appeal that sanction).

Some players were clearly angry over the way the situation was handled.

"I think as far as, you know, coming from our athletic director and president, I think it's unfair to coach and us, him being fired like this in the middle of the season," senior Kaspars Kambala said. "I don't think they took any of our feelings or thoughts into consideration and it was a shock.

"This is the last thing I thought that would happen. As far as I'm concerned, I'm just going to go out there and play for my own pride and try to dedicate a few wins for coach Bayno."

The two freshmen on the team, Johnson and Omari Pearson, will probably be affected the most by Bayno's dismissal.

Both said they came to UNLV to play for the 38-year-old coach.

Though Pearson does not anticipate he will request a transfer, Johnson said he will be giving it some thought.

"(I'm) not saying that I'm going to transfer out right now," Johnson said. "But it makes me think about it because it's my future.

"I can't make the university happy, I gotta make myself happy."