MWC bouncing back?

Wednesday, Oct. 12, 2005 | 7:11 a.m.

Mountain West Conference Commissioner Craig Thompson left Las Vegas Tuesday intent on announcing by Thursday that the league's men's basketball tournament will move back to Las Vegas in 2007.

A three-year contract with the Pepsi Center in Denver will expire after next spring's tournament, after it was staged at the Thomas & Mack Center from 2000 to 2003.

Thompson needs a majority of "yes" votes from the nine conference presidents to make the move. He said he has at least five for what would be a new four-year deal in Las Vegas.

UNLV President Carol Harter said she has already voted "yes" and that Las Vegas has missed the tournament.

"I think so, absolutely," she said. "We've missed the money that came along with it and the fan enthusiasm for it."

The average annual attendance in Las Vegas was 11,396. The average crowd in Denver increased from 8,322 two years ago to 8,973 last spring.

"Denver wasn't a failed experiment," Thompson said. "I just think Las Vegas is a true destination for the league."

Sophomore sensation

If Lon Kruger's track record holds, the UNLV basketball program will improve in his second season.

That happened in each of his four previous collegiate stints, at Pan American (which won six more games in his second season than his first), Kansas State (five more victories), Florida (eight more) and Illinois (one more).

The Rebels, who ended 2004-05 at 17-14 with a defeat at South Carolina in the second round of the NIT, officially start practice at 7 p.m. Friday at Cox Pavilion.

"It was one of those transition years," Kruger said of his rookie season in Las Vegas. "I'm really encouraged about the potential fan interest. They love their basketball and want to see us get back to the national scene. It's been a while."

Kruger is almost entirely responsible for the UNLV roster. Of the 16 players on the current roster, only junior guard Michael Umeh and senior forward Louis Amundson weren't recruited by Kruger.

That happened in barely more than a year when UNLV was taken off probation and the 5/8 rule -- in which coaches were limited to a maximum of five scholarships in one year and eight over a two-year span -- was eliminated.

Both situations hampered former coach Charlie Spoonhour, whose 60 victories over three seasons might, under those circumstances, be viewed as an excellent achievement.

"Any time someone takes over, it's a situation where there hasn't been a level of success that people want," Kruger said. "Then, when it takes off, it takes off because of players. That's the case pretty much across the board."

Free throws

* Kruger reported that freshman guard Jo'Van "Wink" Adams (leg) and junior guard Wendell White (foot) have fully recovered from broken bones and are running full speed in individual workouts. White isn't eligible to play until after the fall semester, but he can practice with teammates.

* As Umeh predicted, most of the team remained in town during the off-season. "Most everyone was here, at one time or another, and I think they really benefited from that," Kruger said.

* Fans and students are invited to the practice at 11 a.m. Oct. 22 at the Thomas & Mack Center. UNLV's football team hosts Utah that afternoon.

* Key dates: Exhibitions, Nov. 8 (Washburn) and Nov. 11 (Bryant); season opener, Nov. 18 (Long Beach State); Jerry Tarkanian court dedication, Nov. 26 (UNR).

Rob Miech can be reached at 259-4087 or at miech@lasvegassun.com