UNLV to tap Spoonhour

Steve Addy

Thursday, March 29, 2001 | 11:21 a.m.

Just when it seemed no one wanted to be UNLV's next basketball coach, the Rebels have found a candidate willing to come out of retirement: Charlie Spoonhour.

Spoonhour, 61, who retired from Saint Louis University two years ago after a solid 16-year Division I head coaching career, will be named the Rebels' coach today, UNLV sources said. A press conference has been called for 2 p.m. today.

Two university sources with knowledge of the coaching search said the job was offered to Spoonhour and he accepted. Details were being worked out on a three-year contract that would likely pay Spoonhour about $400,000 a year.

Spoonhour is in Las Vegas, but did not return multiple calls seeking comment, and UNLV athletic director Charlie Cavagnaro also didn't return a message.

Spoonhour has a 319-171 record in Division I, having coached Southwest Missouri State to five NCAA Tournament appearances from 1983-92 and Saint Louis to three from 1992-99. He also has an extensive junior college coaching resume.

By hiring Spoonhour to replace interim coach Max Good, UNLV is ending a coaching search that began in January when former Boston Celtics coach Rick Pitino expressed interest in the job. He spent two months in negotiations with UNLV and key boosters, but rejected an offer March 6.

UNLV also approached coaches including Utah's Rick Majerus, Purdue's Gene Keady, Pitt's Ben Howland and TCU's Billy Tubbs, but they either didn't want the job, weren't allowed to interview or had contract buyouts that were too pricey for UNLV.

Spoonhour interviewed with Cavagnaro and UNLV president Dr. Carol Harter last Wednesday.

Aside from his strong coaching reputation, Spoonhour brings a clean record in following NCAA rules and a folksy nature that made him popular with fans, players and fellow coaches at his previous posts.

Spoonhour's respect for the rules was vital to his hiring, considering that UNLV is on probation through December 2004 and has a long-standing national reputation as an outlaw program.