Rebels to entertain Pac-10’s Arizona State in NIT opener

Steve Addy

Monday, March 11, 2002 | 9:15 a.m.

Next up -- Men NIT first round

After running out of miracles, but not moxie, the Rebels vow to continue the postseason with the same grit that fueled their performance in the Mountain West tournament.

The stinging disappointment of losing Saturday's MWC title game and missing an NCAA Tournament bid was tempered Sunday by UNLV's selection to the 40-team National Invitation Tournament. The Rebels (20-10) will host Arizona State (14-14) in the first round Tuesday at 8 p.m.

Considering the heartbreaking nature of their 78-75 loss to San Diego State, capping a tournament full of dramatic finishes, the Rebels were surprisingly chipper about making the NIT. Though mildly annoyed that MWC members Wyoming and Utah were selected for NCAA at-large berths, UNLV isn't treating its NIT relegation as penance for coming up short.

"We'll play just as hard in the NIT as we would have in the (NCAA)," Dalron Johnson said. "It's still basketball. You still compete, whether it's pickup ball or you're playing for the national championship. We just love playing the game."

"People never expected us to get this far in the first place," Marcus Banks said. "We proved everybody wrong. They had us picked fifth or sixth in our league, but we got to the championship game."

To coach Charlie Spoonhour, who scouted Juco players in Kansas on Sunday, the bid represents a reward for his team's six-week surge that produced 12 wins in 15 games.

"I'd love to be in the NCAA Tournament -- don't get me wrong," he said. "But I don't see making the NIT as anything but a positive. I have had a wonderful experience in the NIT. I'm an NIT fan."

Immediately after Saturday's loss, in which UNLV cut a 15-point deficit to one in the last five minutes, Spoonhour made sure his players weren't ready to cash out the season. Many of them had stayed on the court to watch San Diego State celebrate, as if burning the image into their memories for future recall.

"Everyone said, 'Hey, let's play.' There wasn't one guy who said no, which is unusual," he said. "I told them I'd just as soon keep on playing, no matter if it's the NIT, the NCAA or the NAIA.

"Before people say the NIT isn't for the top teams, just check the records of the teams that play in it. We'll see as many good teams as we can stand."

The Rebels will host an Arizona State team that dropped nine of its last 13 games, though its last five losses were to ranked teams. ASU has Pac-10 wins over NCAA qualifiers Oregon, Arizona and UCLA, but lost to Arizona 73-56 in its conference tournament opener.

Coached by Rob Evans, the Sun Devils are led by 6-9 senior center Chad Prewitt, who finished sixth in the Pac-10 in scoring (18.9) and rebounding (7.3) and made the 10-player all-conference team.

If the Rebels win their opener, they will play the winner of Wednesday's game between South Carolina (18-14) and host Virginia (17-11). That second-rounder would be next Monday or Tuesday at a campus site to be determined.

UNLV's NIT appearance is its sixth overall and first since a 1999 loss at Nebraska in the first round. Spoonhour has coached in three NITs -- two at Southwest Missouri State and one at Saint Louis -- and has a 2-3 record.

The Rebels were joined in the NIT by BYU (17-11) and New Mexico (16-13), wrapping up a terrific weekend for the MWC. The league captured three NCAA men's berths and four women's bids, including UNLV.