Rebels still have shot at Mountain West crown

Steve Addy

Thursday, Feb. 8, 2001 | 10:31 a.m.

In the time it took Dalron Johnson's magical shot to glide through the net at Wyoming, the Rebels' season changed from upheaval to uplifted.

Suddenly, they aren't such long shots to repeat as Mountain West regular-season champions, believe it or not.

While many UNLV fans (and administrators) are already focusing on next season and beyond -- hello, Mr. Pitino -- the Rebels still have a decent chance to achieve the only team goal the NCAA hasn't taken from them.

Despite their inconsistency and brief in-fighting, the Rebels are 4-3 midway through the MWC season and only a game behind first-place Wyoming in the loss column (6-2), though they're tied for fourth place.

Five days ago, UNLV was emotionally bruised by its 25-point loss at Colorado State. Now, bursting with confidence after Monday's 80-78 victory at Wyoming on Johnson's last-second 3-pointer, the Rebels are wondering quite seriously, "Why not us?"

"Realistically, we're sitting in a good position right now," Danny Brotherson said Wednesday as the Rebels began preparing for Saturday's noon home game against BYU.

"We're one (game) out in the loss column, and that is the one that matters. We've got a good shot. We honestly believe we can win the league. That is our whole thing now -- to prove we should be the No. 1 seed if we can get (eligible) for the conference tournament."

That hope hinges on the slim possibility the NCAA will overturn the postseason ban against the Rebels. That appeal was heard Wednesday in Chicago, and though UNLV officials said the NCAA committee was receptive, it has routinely rejected appeals over the years.

Even if the Rebels' season must end March 3 against New Mexico, they intend to use that as motivation. If they have to sit out the MWC tournament, they would prefer to do so as the banned regular-season champions.

"If we win the league, it would be weird if we weren't in the tournament," senior center Sylvester Dotson said. "If we can win the rest of our games, we can win the league."

Coach Max Good said, "The big X-factor is the appeal. That would really buoy our spirits if we win that. But even if we don't, I hope our guys develop a bunker mentality and say they're going to win (the league) in spite of that.

"Beating Wyoming put us right back in the race. We got a huge win over a team that was solidly in first place. And who knows what will happen from now on."

Though the schedule isn't in the same order, the Rebels are following a path similar to last season when they shared the regular-season championship with Utah at 10-4.

Like last season, UNLV has been swept at Utah and BYU and split the Colorado State-Wyoming trip. At home, UNLV has beaten Air Force, New Mexico and San Diego State, just like last season.

Also, though the top five MWC teams are separated by only 1 1/2 games, the Rebels' remaining schedule is the most favorable of the contenders. They have home games against Colorado State, Utah, Wyoming and BYU, and beat all except the latter at the Thomas & Mack last season. On the road, they have New Mexico, Air Force and SDSU; they won all three last year.

Such year-to-year comparisons might seem a stretch, but in the Rebels' case, their rotation is largely the same as last season. Point guard Mark Dickel's steady hand has been missed, but six of UNLV's top 10 players were prime contributors to last season's title run.

Also, winning the way they did Monday was the perfect way for the Rebels to get ready for the second go-round through the league. They are clearly happier than they've been all season and playing together better.

"The Wyoming game really helped our confidence," Brotherson said. "That was the most the guys on the bench have been into a game all season. That is going to carry over. We're at home now, and it couldn't be a better time for us to be playing BYU and Utah."

Among the teams ahead of UNLV, Wyoming has the easiest schedule, with three at home and three on the road, but the Cowboys still must visit BYU and UNLV. BYU (5-2) has five road games left and Utah (5-3) four. Colorado State, which shares fourth place with UNLV at 4-3, has five.