Bandits top Trenton in front of big crowd

Zack Hall

Thursday, March 30, 2000 | 10:14 a.m.

There was a buzz in the air Wednesday night when the Las Vegas Silver Bandits took the floor at the Thomas & Mack Center.

Earlier in the day the Bandits announced that former UNLV player Jackie Robinson and his partners had acquired 90 percent of the team, and that ex-Rebel star George Ackles had signed with the team. A crowd of 5,010 -- by far the largest since the Bandits' opening game on November 26 -- were at the arena to welcome them.

The Bandits treated the abnormally large crowd by beating the Trenton Stars 85-76 to push their record to 30-21.

"I think that if we can get the fans out like that and supporting us, this might be a championship team," said Bandits forward Marcus Liberty. "I like to see the fans getting into the game and enjoying it. It pumps us up and that's what we need."

Ackles made his debut with 36.1 seconds left in the first quarter amidst a chorus of cheers. Ackles, who last wore a Rebel uniform in 1991 when Duke upset UNLV in the Final Four, airballed his first shot and then turned the ball over on a baseline drive seconds later.

Ackles did manage to get two rebounds in four minutes of play.

"It's a great feeling," Ackles said. "When I first went out there I had jitters. Just the fact of being here, my old stamping grounds, it's just an overwhelming feeling.

Bandits forward Rocky Walls led all scorers with 23 points and added 19 points for his 30th double-double of the season.

With Las Vegas leading 72-70, Liberty (19 points) hit a one-handed runner in the lane with 2:17 to go. After Stars guard Ray Tutt hit a layup 25 seconds later, Liberty drilled a 3-pointer to give Vegas a 77-72 lead with 1:34 to play.

"I've been playing the four (power forward) or five (center) on this team," said Liberty. "This was one of the first times I've played with J.R. (Henderson) and Rocky on the court. I felt good because small forward is my natural position."

It looked for awhile that Trenton was going to spoil the Bandits' night. The Stars grabbed a double-digit lead in the second period on the strength of guard Ryan Lorthridge's 10 points in the quarter.

The Bandits whittled the deficit in the third and were able to take the lead when Walls hit a layup with 5:59 to play, putting the Bandits up 69-68.