Friday, March 14, 2003 | 10:30 a.m.
Tournament schedule, scores
Today's women's semifinals
Utah vs. BYU, noon
New Mexico vs. Colorado State, 2:30 p.m.
Note: No TV coverage, but games air on KSHP 1400-AM.
Today's men's semifinals
BYU vs. Colorado State, 6 p.m. KFBT-TV, Ch. 6
Utah vs. UNLV, 9 p.m. ESPN, Ch. 30
Thursday's men's scores
BYU 71, New Mexico 56
Colorado State 74, Wyoming 71
Utah 42, Air Force, 38
UNLV 83, San Diego State 67
UNLV's convincing 83-67 victory against San Diego State on Thursday night in the Mountain West Conference tournament quarterfinals raised one very big question:
Will the 20th time be the charm?
Charlie Spoonhour's fourth-seeded Rebels (20-9) added another key piece to their NCAA tournament at-large bid resume by joining the 20-win club with an easier than expected runaway against Steve Fisher's defending MWC tournament champions. They'll try to make it 21 tonight when they play host to MWC co-champion and No. 1 seed Utah, a 42-38 winner against Air Force, in the semifinals tonight at 9.
"Twenty wins is a key thing," senior guard Jermaine Lewis said. "Most teams that get 20 wins have a chance of getting into the NCAAs. That's what we're playing for now. ... to get into the tournament."
"I wish we would have done it a little sooner but I'll take it whenever I can get it," Spoonhour said. "I think getting 20 wins, when you look at our schedule and you look at the conference we're in, has some meaning. I hope other people percieve it that way, too."
By "other people" Spoonhour no doubt was referring to members of the NCAA tournament selection committee.
Thursday night's nationally televised throttling of a solid San Diego State (15-13) squad that was trying to improve its NIT chances certainly could not have hurt the Rebels in the eyes of any selection committee members who were up late enough to watch it.
The Rebels played one of their best games of the season as point guard Marcus Banks scored 22 points, dished off seven assists and had six steals while the quiet and mild mannered Lewis chipped in with 16 points, six assists and five rebounds in a brilliant two-way performance. And junior forward James Peters had his best game in a UNLV uniform, finishing with a career-high 19 points, including a handful of dunks, and five rebounds.
"They played well collectively as a team and I have to give a lot of credit to Marcus Banks," Aztecs forward Evan Burns said. "He's so quick and so fast. He gets into the interior and he finds those guys and it was hard to retreat."
Banks left the game to a standing ovation and also to chants of "MVP! MVP!"
"Marcus was Marcus tonight," Spoonhour said. "He really did a good job. He knew we wanted to run and we certainly went out and did that."
No one moreso than 6-foot-8 Peters, who finished a number of fastbreaks with powerful dunks much to the delight of the mostly pro-UNLV crowd of 10,921.
Lewis, who hit two 3-pointers in the first 3 1/2 minutes, carved up the Aztecs defense with several laser-like passes under the basket to wide-open Rebels for layups.
"I was out on the wing and guys were running at me full speed," Lewis, who hit 7-of-9 treys in an earlier game at San Diego State, said. "I just happened to look down and saw guys wide open under the basket. I'd rather pass and have a guy get a layup than me shooting a 3. It's a higher percentage shot."
UNLV, which led by nine points, 41-32, at halftime, opened the second half with a 11-3 run and coasted the rest of the way. The Rebels led by as many as 19 points, 82-63, down the stretch.
"That just shows you how good this team can be when we're hitting on all cylinders," Banks said.
"The reality of it is that we got beat by a better team, a very good team," Fisher said. "A team that the last nine games of the MWC season was probably the best team in our league. They showed that again tonight. They are very good."
UNLV has little time to celebrate, however. Tonight it faces a Utah squad which is one of the nation's best on the defensive end of the floor and is playing for a high NCAA tournament seed.
"Well, that's what we wanted," Spoonhour said of facing the Utes. "You're going to have to play through somebody hard in the semis. We've just got to understand now that this game is over and done with and put it to bed and get ready for (tonight)."
Thursday night's victory marked the second consecutive year UNLV has won 20 games. It's the first time since the 1996-97 and 1997-98 seasons that the Rebels have managed to put together back-to-back 20-win campaigns.
"That's one thing you start out each season shooting for ... 20 wins," Spoonhour said. "Actually, 20-plus. Hopefully now we'll go and get the plus."
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