Amundson enjoys the thrill of L-o-o-o-o cheer

Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2006 | 7:57 a.m.

Louis Amundson will undoubtedly hear more "L-o-o-o-o" cheers echo from the Thomas & Mack Center rafters Wednesday night when the Rebels host Colorado State.

He wants everyone to know he has been listening.

"Absolutely," Amundson said. "I like it, it's cool. A cool sound."

He first heard the cheers early in his UNLV career. But they weren't for him. Lou Kelly was the recipient. Amundson struggled with injury and inefficiency.

However, as Amundson has developed into arguably the most important Rebels basketball player -- and a major fan favorite, especially to countless kids -- those cheers have become louder and more intense.

"It's pretty cool," he said. "It's amusing to me. It's nice to know that on some plays, where you might not score but you hustle, you get acknowledged for that. That's cool."

When he was removed from last week's victory against Brigham Young with about two minutes remaining, the cheers for Amundson might have hit an all-time crescendo.

"That felt really good," he said. "That was one time I really felt the crowd when I came out. It was a great feeling."

Defensive posture

Defense has keyed Jo'Van Adams' transition from high school star to the rigors of Division-I ball.

"He applies pressure on the ball and he's active away from it," said Rebels coach Lon Kruger. "When you can get a big lift and spark from what you do defensively, that gives you a jump on the offensive end."

Adams said he learns something new about the defensive game every day from Kruger and his staff.

"I've been working hard at it, staying after practice and watching film," Adams said, "and it's really helping me out. How I start out playing defense dictates my offense."

Wink of an eye

Family members started calling Adams "Wink" at an early age, and countless baby pictures, he said, show him with one eye closed.

Jo'Van or Wink, it's the same to him.

"Don't matter," he said. "Everyone's comfortable saying Wink, so I've gotten accustomed to it."

Also noted

* UNLV has won 21 of 28 games against Colorado State, including an 86-77 victory over the Rams last season at the Mack. In that one, Amundson had 13 points and nine rebounds.

* The Rebels play at Utah on Saturday, then return to the Mack for games against Air Force (Jan. 25) and New Mexico (Jan. 28).

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