UNR’s Johnson says NIT game about toughness

Monday, March 17, 2003 | 6:45 a.m.

RENO, Nev. AP) - Nevada Coach Trent Johnson said Texas Tech is the perfect test for an improving Wolf Pack team making its first NIT appearance in six years.

"I guess the bottom line for me is you always want to emphasize to the kids they should play with toughness. What better measuring stick?" Johnson said.

Nevada plays Bob Knight's Red Raiders at Lubbuck at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday in the middle game of an ESPN-televised tripleheader sandwiched between the Ohio State-Georgia Tech game at 4 p.m. and Hawaii-UNLV at 9 p.m.

Nevada and Hawaii were the only two Western Athletic Conference teams picked for the NIT field.

Johnson doesn't see the game as a matchup between him and Knight.

"Everybody asked me about matching wits with him. That won't happen," Johnson told the Reno Gazette-Journal "He probably wins more games in three years than I win in 10 years."

Texas Tech (18 (12)- played Texas and Oklahoma - two of the NCAA tournaments No. 1 seeds - in its last two games. The Red Raiders shocked Texas, 92-81, in the Big 12 Tournament quarterfinals at Dallas then lost to Oklahoma 67-60 in overtime in the semifinals Saturday.

"We have to play Big 12 member) Kansas next year," Johnson said. "We might as well get ready this year. Just to compete, its great."

Nevada (18 (13)- is making its third appearance in NIT play after going 1-1 in both 1979 and 1997. Including NCAA tournament appearances in 1984 and 1985, Nevada is making its fifth appearance in the Division I postseason beyond conference tournaments. The Pack is 2-0 in NIT road games and 0-2 at home.

Nevada gets a second chance this season after losing to Tulsa, 75-64, in the WAC Tournament championship Saturday. That game could have been a season-ender for the Wolf Pack if they had been overlooked by the NIT, as they were when it was 17-13 last season.

"I'm really happy for the kids, especially the seniors," Johnson said. "We were one game short of the NIT last year. We were one game short of the NCAA this year. I was hoping it would work out this way."

Information from: Reno Gazette-Journal