Tuesday, March 16, 2004 | 9:48 a.m.
Five months ago, Lon Kruger dropped into the Thomas & Mack Center and Cox Pavilion with the New York Knicks, and he walked away impressed with the UNLV basketball facilities.
Monday morning, he was given the keys to those buildings and offices when Rebels athletic director Mike Hamrick introduced Kruger a day after securing his services as UNLV's new coach.
The buzz, according to a few influential boosters and fervent fans who attended Monday's news conference, about UNLV basketball had returned.
"I hope so," said former Rebels coach Jerry Tarkanian, the architect of the program's national rise in the 1980s and '90s. "I hope it's back. It was so big back then, you couldn't beat it. I think everyone wants the program to come back, and I think it will with Lon.
"I think the most important thing is for everyone to get behind him. It had been divided, and there was so much animosity. A lot of problems. But that started changing with Spoon."
Citing health concerns, Charlie Spoonhour resigned during his third season a month ago. His son, Jay, was named interim coach, and Dr. Carol Harter, UNLV's president, directed Hamrick to conduct a national search.
From the beginning, Hamrick kept hearing Kruger's name from the many administrators and coaches whom he tapped for insight and direction. Most notably, a glowing referral came from Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski.
"I communicated with Krzyzewski on this, and Krzyzewski indicated that it was a no-brainer," Hamrick said. "Every major coach I've talked with, the consensus was, 'If you can get this guy, you need to get him.' "
Hamrick first became aware of Kruger 10 years ago, when Kruger led a woeful Florida program to the Final Four in only four seasons. In that national semifinal game in Charlotte, N.C., Duke defeated the Gators, 70-65.
Hamrick, then the athletic director at Arkansas-Little Rock, was in the Charlotte Coliseum stands. A year later, he became athletic director at East Carolina.
In 1997, Kruger left Florida for Illinois. Through his ties at Illinois State, where he had served as an assistant athletic director from 1984-90, Hamrick continued to keep peripheral tabs on Kruger.
"I had never met Lon Kruger before," Hamrick said. "I've watched his teams over the years, and I knew about him. He's won everywhere he's been. I've called all of those (contacts) at all of those places. I've done my homework."
Kruger, 51, is 318-233 in his 18-year career. He was to the NCAA tournament nine times, with Kansas State, Florida and Illinois.
He did some initial homework at UNLV homework, too, in October. He was an assistant for Knicks coach Don Chaney when that NBA team dropped into town on a preseason West Coast swing.
The Knicks were scheduled to play the Jazz in Utah, but Chaney chose to stay in Las Vegas and practice at the Mack, flying into Salt Lake City for the game but returning to Las Vegas immediately afterward.
After that first practice, Kruger visited Charlie Spoonhour's office and received a cursory tour of the grounds, liking what he saw.
Kruger became as impressed with the hierarchy of the UNLV administration over the past few weeks. Brad Rothermel, a former Rebels athletic director who has known Kruger for 30 years, predicted as much.
"When (Rothermel) called and said that we're a good fit (with UNLV)," Kruger said of him and his wife, Barbara, "that got our attention."
Kruger said he will not divert from the list of recruits that Rebels assistant coach and recruiting coordinator Deane Martin has compiled for months. Kruger will likely hit the recruiting trail today, when a critical six-day contact period begins.
After that, there's a small window of time in which the Rebels can host recruiting trips. The spring signing period is in May, and UNLV has two scholarships available.
Cliff Findlay, an influential booster who owns several area auto dealerships, predicts an imminent return to elite status for UNLV.
"Obviously, next year, we only have two scholarships, then five the next year," Findlay said. "So you won't see Lon Kruger's team until three years from now. But, yeah, I think we'll be back in national prominence.
"We're very fortunate to have him, because he was being recruited by several other schools. He is just a great coach and a great person. He'll be here for the long haul, and he'll do a great job."
Like Tarkanian, who said crowds of 5,000 or 6,000 in recent seasons have been embarrassing, Findlay believes the buzz is back.
"I absolutely agree," Findlay said. "I think we'll be back in the Final Four. That's a (rash) prediction, but in three or four years I think we'll have a good chance to compete on the national level with anybody."
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