UNLV men favored to win — sort of

Steve Addy

Wednesday, March 8, 2000 | 10:27 a.m.

This week's Mountain West basketball tournament is suffering an identity crisis, and not merely because the winner isn't guaranteed a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

On the eve of the three-day event at the Thomas & Mack Center, the eight MWC coaches can't seem to decide if it will be an anything-goes derby or a walkover for top-seeded UNLV on its home court.

In one breath, the coaches trumpet the depth and competitiveness of the conference, saying that six teams have a bona fide chance to win the MWC's first postseason soiree. The song goes, does anyone really want to play sturdy Colorado State (No. 4), Wyoming (5) or BYU (6) at the moment? At least CSU and Wyoming have to face each other at 6 p.m. Thursday, and it should be a doozie.

But in the next breath, the coaches acknowledge that the co-champion Rebels have an inherent advantage by playing at home, an edge that will be difficult for the seven other teams to neutralize.

Though none of the coaches calls it an unfair advantage, and UNLV coach Bill Bayno claims the benefits of home cooking are overstated, the Rebels go into the Thursday-Saturday tournament as clear favorites. They won their last six MWC home games, beat every team except sixth-seeded Brigham Young and cooled off third-seeded New Mexico in last Saturday's regular-season finale.

That success, piled atop their homecourt advantage, has most coaches plugging the Rebels.

"It's going to be a wide-open tournament and anybody has a chance to win it, but there is no question that being on their home floor gives Vegas a great advantage," Air Force coach Reggie Minton said.

"Even though we're confident we can win there, I think there is a pretty significant advantage for a team that's playing at home," said BYU coach Steve Cleveland, whose Cougars put the only blemish on UNLV's home record, nipping the Rebels 77-75 on Jan. 10 in the Mountain West opener.

Utah coach Rick Majerus doesn't like the conference tournament in the first place, believing it negates the importance of the regular season, and he is just as opposed to the tournament being held in another contestant's home arena.

"I would much rather being playing at the Huntsman Center (at Utah)," Majerus said. "It is a neutral site for everyone except Las Vegas, for whom it's a terrific advantage. For them, it is not a tournament, it's a series of home games.

"It is an advantage not only because of the home court, but because they can go to class, stay on a regular schedule and function within their daily routine."

Bayno downplays the importance of playing at home.

"It isn't that big," he said. "It only helps if we play hard and together. That will help us more than the home crowd, because it won't be a typical crowd. Utah and New Mexico have brought 4,000 or 5,000 fans in the past, and there will also be a lot of neutral fans."

In the bigger picture, the Rebels (20-7) and Utah (21-7) will be using the tournament to make a last-minute impression on the NCAA Tournament selection committee. Because there's no automatic bid for the new conference, Saturday's champion is promised nothing more than a shiny trophy.

UNLV is hoping that winning the tournament would make its case, but it would have to overcome a middling RPI ranking (50th) and poorly regarded schedule (144th). The Utes seemed to have a bid wrapped up three weeks ago, but lost their last four road games to fall out of the top-25 polls and help UNLV gain half of the regular-season title at 10-4.

With MWC commissioner Craig Thompson chairing the NCAA selection committee, the coaches are not hesitating to plead their case in advance of what happens at the Thomas & Mack. Many tournament projections have only one MWC team in the 64-team NCAA field, but that's an unpopular notion in these parts this week.

"Without a doubt, I think we should get at least two teams," Bayno said. "With the parity we have had in the league, if a team with 17 or 18 wins the tournament, then I think we should get three."

File that one under wishful thinking, but others think that this week's winner ought to receive an "automatic" invitation, barring a major upset by low seeds Air Force or San Diego State.

"If you can go through this and win three games in a row on the road, then I've got to believe the tournament committee is going to say that team belongs," Cleveland said.

Colorado State coach Ritchie McKay said, "I don't think the tournament committee will penalize anybody just because we don't have an automatic bid. If we were to win, that would mean we have won eight out of our last 10 games, and we would have to get past UNLV to get there.

"But Vegas certainly has a step ahead of everyone else in terms of getting a bid."

Now the Rebels have to make sure no one speeds past them on their home track.