THE ELEVATOR

Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2005 | 8:35 a.m.

Who's headed toward the penthouse on the local sports scene -- and who's getting the shaft:

GOING UP

Regina Miller: The UNLV women's basketball coach bagged her 200th career victory over the weekend. Not too shabby given she's only beginning her eighth year here (14th overall) and the Lady Rebels won a grand total of four, four and four games in the three years before she got here. Somebody needs to get this woman a contract extension.

Brigham Young fans: What happens in Provo, Utah, goes on the road. Thanks to rabid Cougars supporters both in Utah and Southern Nevada, the Las Vegas Bowl is a sellout for the first time in its checkered attendance history. So BYU fans, this 7-Up is for you.

New Mexico sports: The Lobos' men's soccer team made it all the way to the NCAA championship game before falling 1-0 to Maryland while the New Mexico women's basketball team already has beaten two Top 25 opponents (Texas and Minnesota). If the Lobos aren't careful, they're going to bring the Mountain West and its little stepbrother (Mountain Pacific Sports Federation) some credibility.

GOING DOWN

Mark Philippi: I've seen this big and likable guy drag a Winnebago across the finish line to become the "World's Strongest Man," but he apparently couldn't drag enough UNLV football players into the weight room. So he's now bench-pressing a pink slip after being fired as Rebels strength coach.

Mountain West men's basketball: It's not even Christmas and the MWC already has disappeared from the Top 25 poll. Not a single MWC team is ranked. Not a single MWC team received a single vote. Forget about busting a bracket. MWC teams should first concentrate on busting 15 wins against opponents you've heard of.

The NCAA: Carthage College was on the NCAA's hit list for having a politically incorrect nickname until it agreed to change its moniker from "Redmen" to "Red Men." Meanwhile, fans of the Canadian Football League's Saskatchewan Roughriders (one word) and old Ottawa Rough Riders (two words) exchanged high-fives.

Ron Kantowski can be reached at 259-4088 or at ron@lasvegassun.com.

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