unlv basketball:
Kruger’s unique staff carries deep K-State roots
For UNLV coaches, casual interest in alma mater’s success takes a back seat as Wildcats visit No. 18 Rebels on Saturday
Kansas State Media Relations
Current UNLV head coach Lon Kruger, right, talks strategy with point guard Steve Henson, a current UNLV aide, during their days together at Kansas State. Kruger played at K-State from 1971-74, was an assistant from 1979-82 and head coach from 1986-90. Henson played point guard for Kruger from 1986-90. The Rebels take on the Wildcats this Saturday at 4 p.m. at the Orleans Arena.
Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2009 | 2:30 a.m.
Accomplishments at K-State
- Lon Kruger: Played at K-State from 1971-74, where he was Big 8 Player of the Year in his final two seasons. Was a graduate assistant for coach Jack Hartman from 1977-78, then an assistant on Hartman's staff from 1979-82. Returned to Manhattan as a head coach from 1986-90. Kruger's No. 12 is retired and hangs in the Bramlage Coliseum rafters.
- Steve Henson: Started all four years at point guard for Kruger from 1986-90. Still holds school records in assists (582), 3-pointers made (240), free throw percentage (.900), steals (190), games played (127), starts (118) and minutes played (4,474).
- Greg Grensing: Was an assistant coach at Kansas State under Kruger from 1986-90, and stayed on as an assistant in the program through the 1993-94 season.
- Mike Shepherd: Was a student manager for Kruger at Kansas State before leaving to work with Kruger at Florida.
Greg Grensing's K-State Memories
- On the last game at Ahearn Fieldhouse in 1988: "I remember being down where the locker room was. It was a 1 o'clock game, and at 11 o'clock, the guys went up to shoot and it was pretty packed. Mitch (Richmond) stood at the top step and said, 'There's no way we lose this game.' Mitch and Steve (Henson), they weren't going to be denied. We're carrying all that tradition, all that history on our shoulders, and there's no way we're losing that game to Missouri. Kansas was a rival, but in all honesty, we didn't like (Missouri) and they didn't like us. With Kansas, it was highly charged, and we wouldn't necessarily trade a win over Kansas for a win over Missouri, but this is the last game, and we damned sure aren't letting (MU coach) Norm Stewart walk out of here and talk about it for the rest of his life how he kicked K-State's (butt) the last day."
- On point guard Steve Henson's ejection from a game: "I was on the road recruiting. We played Oklahoma State, and I called coach (Kruger) and asked how it went. He said, 'Oh, you know, it went well, but of course, Mark Nelson had to play 27 minutes because Steve got thrown out of the game in the first half for fighting a kid from Oklahoma State.' I said, 'What?' He said, 'Oh yeah, gave a little push, shove, next thing you know, they were in the student section going at it.'"
- On the Big 8 tournament in 1988, featuring four of the nation's top teams: "The semifinals was us and Kansas in the late game, and Missouri and Oklahoma were playing in the early game at (Kansas City's) Kemper Arena, and we were just watching that game, getting ready to go, and the electricity — I don't think I've ever been in a building where there was, for four-and-a-half or five hours, just a buzz because of the level of basketball."
The Rebel Room
No games this week? Lets talk rankings ... and K-State
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Ryan Greene, Christine Killimayer and Ray Brewer discuss UNLV's latest ranking, which has the 7-0 Rebels 18th in the AP poll and 17th in the ESPN/USA Today coaches poll. Is Lon Kruger's club the 18th-best team in the country? The crew discusses that, plus takes a look at Kansas State coming up on Saturday at the Orleans Arena.
Related Sun Content
Any given morning after a Kansas State basketball game, chances are the results will be at least a brief topic of discussion in the UNLV men's basketball office.
With four members of coach Lon Kruger's staff having deep ties to the K-State program — including Kruger himself, as an alum, former player and former Wildcats coach — you could even be bold enough to call them fans.
However, they can all readily admit that their casual interest in Frank Martin's club takes a brief hiatus this week, as No. 18 UNLV takes on K-State at 4 p.m. Saturday at the Orleans Arena.
It turns into just another game to tirelessly prepare for.
But with the Wildcats coming to town, it offers up an opportunity to look at a coaching staff which, in today's world of constant turnover in the profession, is truly unique.
Consider it a study in old-fashioned Midwestern family values and loyalty.
"To me, it's always about trusting people that you're working with every day," Kruger said. "Knowing that they're motivated for the right reasons, and to go out and be self-motivated to get the job done."
Plain and simple, he's gotten the job done at UNLV, creating a citywide buzz with his team's 7-0 start. That shouldn't come as much of a surprise, as he's had similar success at each of his five collegiate stops.
And for the better part of the last 20 years, he's done so surrounded by a similar group which was formed during the K-State days.
Quick trip down memory lane ...
• Greg Grensing, a Council Grove, Kan., native, joined Kruger in 1984 as an assistant coach at Texas Pan-American. He had played at Independence (Kan.) Community College for coach Dan Wall from 1975-77. One of Kruger's assistants, at the time Grensing went to work for him, was Wall's brother. Grensing would head to K-State as an assistant under Kruger in 1986 and stayed through 1994. Following a stint at Creighton from 1994-05, he joined Kruger in Las Vegas.
• Steve Henson's first coaching gig was as an assistant on Kruger's Illinois staff in 1999, but the two went way further back than that. Henson, out of McPherson, Kan., started at point guard for Kruger all four seasons the duo was together at Kansas State from 1986-90. He went on to a successful pro career both in the NBA and overseas and has found coaching stability at UNLV.
• Mike Shepherd was attending Allen County (Kan.) Community College. Neil Crane was the school's head basketball coach and was in touch with Kruger and Grensing regarding Shepherd coming up to work for the program when he transferred to K-State for his junior year. After working for Kruger as a student manager, he joined him on his staff at Florida in 1990. While Kruger was coaching the NBA's Atlanta Hawks, Shepherd, who competed in high school against Kruger's younger siblings while growing up in Burlingame, Kan., joined the organization as a scout. He eventually came to UNLV and continues to be Kruger's right-hand man on the bench.
"I was never fathoming the possibility that 23 years later, I'd still be working with and involved with (Kruger) this many years," said Shepherd, who is the program's director of basketball operations. "I think it's really good, and it obviously speaks about how much we all feel about coach Kruger. I feel like we talk about a family atmosphere all the time, and I know that we try to make that be as much reality as possible.
"Staff cohesiveness is one of the keys to a successful program."
The group currently in place came together during a heyday of sorts for K-State hoops.
Kruger averaged 20.3 wins per season in Manhattan, Kan., with his finest campaign coming in 1987-88. K-State went 25-9 in college basketball's most loaded conference — the Big 8, which included national-title-game opponents Kansas and Oklahoma — advancing to the Elite Eight in the NCAA tournament.
Taking the same job at Florida, Kruger left Kansas State in 1990 and would make four more coaching stops, both in college and in the NBA, before landing in Las Vegas in 2005.
"It was just a case of maybe branching out, going in other directions at that point," Kruger said. "Our kids were at an age where it felt like the move would have been positive for everyone involved.
"Obviously, you always have feelings for people when you leave. As far as regretting the decision? No."
Even though everyone Kruger now is surrounded by at UNLV has gone on their own path for at least a bit since those days in Kansas, many came back, making up a staff that is special in the bond it has across the board.
The coaches and their families have created one large family. And when UNLV players talk about the family atmosphere within the program — which they bring up regularly — it's easy to detect exactly where it comes from.
"It's all a reflection of coach Kruger," Grensing said. "It truly is a direct reflection of what kind of person he is. That's why we're all here, why we love to do what we do. It's because he has such a perspective, has treated us and our families so well, and it's just been a pleasure."
Added Henson: "I think we all recognize how unusual it is, and how special it is. I think we all look forward to coming to work every day. I think it's all because of the tone coach Kruger sets. It's a positive atmosphere, we enjoy working for him and there's a lot of familiarity. Some coaches like to have some turnover, but we feel we're all on the same page this way."
While stability's been a key for UNLV in finding success following more than a decade of nonexistence on the national college-basketball radar, a bit of turnover helped Kansas State get back on the map.
Heading into the 2006-07 season, following years spent in the cellar of the Big 12 Conference, Kansas State made a bold move in hiring former Cincinnati coach Bob Huggins. His name recognition and tough style helped a dormant program gain some respect. K-State officials even reached out to Kruger, asking for his input, during their search.
After just one year, Huggins left to take over at his alma mater, West Virginia. But with the program then in the hands of Frank Martin, a former Huggins aide, things fell into place.
It started by landing one of the nation's top recruits — current Miami Heat forward Michael Beasley — and that, plus a trip to the 2008 NCAA tournament, opened a pipeline of talent from the Washington, D.C., area. The Wildcats have also built around transfers — such as starting guard Denis Clemente from Miami and forward Curtis Kelly from UConn — and by tapping into Martin's contacts in Florida from his days as a high school coach.
On top of that, Martin has surprised some in his first head coaching position by getting his teams to play such a tough, physical, defensive-minded brand of ball.
"He's gotten some real talented kids to buy in and do that," Grensing said. "Coach Huggins was there just long enough to make an impact more as a personality, but Franks' got a program going. They have an identity, and with his and their staff's networking and credibility in certain spots in the country, they're going to continue to get players year-in and year-out."
All of that adds up to UNLV's toughest test this season, according to Kruger. The Wildcats come in at 8-1 following a 71-56 victory at home over Xavier on Tuesday night.
And a group of admitted K-State followers will be anything but that.
At least not again until next week.
"You probably kind of want to win a little more because of all that association and all the people associated with K-State that you know," said Grensing, whose mom, wife and stepson are all KSU grads. "You love your program, and you want your program to show on that particular night that they were a little bit better."
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nice article Ryan.
Is anybody around there at the Sun even helping you out? The UNLV fans are used to 2 or more articles a day so your co-workers need to step up and help you out!!
thanks for filling in for Miech. you are doing well at this point..just others haven't done a thing..
K-State dumped on Xavier last night by 15. From what I read they dominated the paint with tough physical inside play and thier guards stroked it from the outside. This is going to be a real tough game for the Rebels. We are going to need a much better effort then they displayed against Zona & the Broncs to win this one.
Bragging rights for whoever wins. You know those phone calls "back home" will be filled with lines starting like "how about that basketball game?"
Great article Ryan. Loved the old pics.
Thanks for the kind words, fellas. The more I look into it and talk to my buddies back in Kansas, I'm completely buying into what Kruger says about this being UNLV's toughest test yet ... One of my friends, who happens to cover KU, but has seen K-State play a ton, described them best ...
"They're not hugely talented (but still talented), but they will chew your face off."
i watched the xavier game last night... they are a solid team but the game was not a blow out. xavier shot 29% from the field and 63% from the line. even with those horrible numbers they were still within 8 points with 8 or 9 mins to go. although i think k state will be a very tough game for us, if they play like they did last night they will be sent home with their tail between their legs.
i was far more impressed with their game against washington state. they do play tough defense but one thing i did notice is xavier and washington state both had one go to guy for k state to guard... when they play us they will have to guard everyone on the floor. the more i think about this game the more i think it is a W for us.
i like the black and white pictures of kevin kruger. Never knew he coached at kansas state. :) i hope this game mentality isn't like "the cousins are coming over to the house to play some hoops"... we dont need to be soft.. we need to treat this game like thugs are breaking in our house to steal our lunch money.
I actually hope we play like we did in the Zona game. Hard nosed defense, shut down their very speedy point guards, and enough offense to win the game.
KState's guards are very quick like the Wildcat guards. However, after the 14 minute mark in the AZ game their guards did nothing. The vast maroity of their points came from the foul line after many questionable blocking fouls. If we can replicate what we did against their guards defensively, I will be happy.
If we still lose after a great defensive effort, then we should have lost.
I look for KState to come out running, however, if we play solid defense KState seems to be a little bit sloppy and we will force plenty of turnovers like we did against Louisville. That should translate into a lot of opportunities to score.
I am a little nervous about this game, but nothing like I was in the Arizona game. I know I sould like a briken record, but if I know if we play solid d everything else will fall into place.
Even Kruger said, "If we play like we did these last 2 games we will lose against K-State and our guys know that". I heard Kruger say that Monday during a radio interview. I knew we would beat L-Ville, I knew we would beat Zona, & Santa Clara before the games even had been played but I don't feel that way about this game. To me this is the place for a trap game after 2 tough road wins. From here on out every game the Rebels play they are going to get the other teams best effort. I think UNLV wins this game but if they were to play below their previous effort so far I wont be surprised, this is a tricky game. After this game I wont feel so nervous because they will continue on or go on another run to the start of conference play.
Bottom line is they gotta get those shooting %s up. Not gonna fly going into any high level game shooting so poorly.
.....and when is Killimayer going to dust off her old ibook from college and start throwing some articles up. Rebels are top 25 and they cut coverage ..... ryan you have to be swamped.
If they don't hit the boards, they will get blown out. And I agree about the shooting percentages- the 3's have to be over 30%.
Christine actually has a great video piece coming later this week on UNLV's 3-headed center, as the big men get set for a HUGE challenge against K-State's interior size and athleticism ... and please keep in mind, she's producing ALL of our sports videos, not just UNLV. We'll still have video coverage from home games and several road contests.
Ryan:
Any word on Buckley? The Prep School he was going to attend, The Patterson School, was closed. Any info would be great.
Guys,
I'll definitely get working on a Buckley update and have one coming soon.
Buckley - 6'10 & 2 bills definately a work in progress.
Fortunately they do not need Buckley to be a major contributor right away unless we have an injury or defection. With Massamba and Shaw returning, Lopez off red shirt and Quintrell off transfer we should be even deeper than this year without Buckley. Hopefully he does have the upside that the coaches speak about. Starting to get nervous about the K State game. If we can win this and clip St. Marys in Hawaii we could very well be deep in the rankings come conference time. Having some margin for error would be great for a change. Runnin' Rebels!
Hey BetOnBlack..
yes Buckley is 215 (that was put in a year ago so it could have changed) but he is also an 83 overall (many considered him a huge steal) and is very athletic for a big man and can run the floor. He can run the floor, block shots and has hands. Just needs work on his post moves and other skills.
Good thing is, he has time! So I am fine with him coming in..don't get me wrong I'd kill to have CJ AND DP, but lets be realistic here..
Buckley can be a work in progress and that is fine. By his junior year he should be a very solid contributor. The staff really knows how to develop big men (Amundson, Anthony, Santee has improved a lot, Massamba has gotten better, Lopez is gaining confidence). Many ppl were wondering who the hell Joel Anthony was coming in, now look where he is!
What is the deal with trying to get tickets to the UNLV vs K-State game? I was trying to buy tickets and was told by the ticket office at the Orleans that the hotel has a block on all of the tickets and they may release some soon so I should check back periodically? What's the deal??
(IMO) Kruger should put all of his eggs in one basket for CJ & Polee and only go after them. We really don't need Buckley with QT, Massamba, Shaw, & Lopez. Please stop recruiting guys that look like they have lived in the Sudanese desert eating bugs their whole lives. Do people eat anymore?
Lopez looks like a human praying mantis.
Dude that is a ridiculous comment. His recruits have been good. He has put UNLV back on the map.
If you aren't satisfied with it, why don't you coach? I'm sure you could do sooo much better and make CJ and DP just go crazy to play for you
Please keep up the good work Ryan!!Got the best Rebel content out there!~
I think if we took that "all our eggs in one basket" approach we wouldn't be nearly as deep this year and, consequently, not in a position to realistically go after recruits like CJ and Polee.
yea BetOnBlack is just having a bad day and complaining about everything when he is in no position to do so.
The team is 7-0 and he would have never have guessed that..
LET KRUGER DO THE COACHING. If you coached we'd be worse than the football team.
Rose you don't know what your talking about. We can shoot under 30% from the 3's and get out rebounded and still win this game. This will be K-St's toughest test of the year so far. I don't think K st. is ready for this game. I'm not scrrrrd at all. Rebs by double digits and if St's not carefull their gonna get ran out of town. With Kruger having a week to prepare for this game that Pullen kid is gonna get shut down. We're the more athlitic team and as far as chewing faces i'll take the rebs in that catagory (in any game we play this year). So everybody just relax and get ready to get loud!!! We got this!!! Refuse to loose!!!
Thanks, runrebs.
As for all the talk on Cory, Polee and Buckley, I think Kruger's proven several times already that he can do big things with guys who come in as 'under the radar' types, i.e. Rougeau, Anthony, etc. Would Cory be an incredible get? Absolutely. But I don't think the potential of an athletic 6-foot-11 big man should just be tossed by the wayside just because he might not contribute from day one.
very good point on Buckley Ryan.
He should be given time. And I am sure that he will redshirt his freshman year and have time to develop. He will play with some real talented bigs in QT, Los, Massamba, Shaw. So he will be prepared in practice.
@rebfan11,
What the hell are you talking about busta? Who is complaining about the talent level of the recruits, show me where I said that? No bad day here, I was the 1st on this site to say that the rebs could and might go undefeated, go back and look it up sucka!! No where on here has anyone questioned Krugers coaching ability, show me where I did that? All I've done is prop up the rebs this whole year. What Buckley & Lopez aren't poster boys for malnutrition? All I said was that those cats are beyond skinny and your panties got all twisted inside your beaver. C'mon you gotta bring it better then that. Let all the hatin begin!!!
rebelsfan11.... you kill me with your ultra long posts...i know you CARE about the rebels... but between here and rivals.. you kinda prove you are pretty new to basketball. Just simmer a bit and enjoy the ride my fried.
Calling players on the basketball team that us fans support "guys that look like they have lived in the Sudanese desert eating bugs their whole lives" is pretty unneeded. I'm here to talk basketball and won't be starting anything unless someone says stuff about the players that isn't deserved. Lopez got sick in France and lost 40 lbs over the summer. That isn't his fault and he is redshirting so he can gain it all back. Damn.
not new to basketball, can talk about UNLV basketball of the last couple years with anybody (still young). Been around basketball all my life, not new at all.
Calling the plays "guys that look like they have lived in the Sudanese desert eating bugs their whole lives" seems pretty new.
Maybe you 2 are the same person? hmm.
No double posters here - rebfan lighten up, you wouldn't have a lasted a minute in my hood growing up. I will own everything I write and say I dont need anybodys help!
ok ok back to rebels please
fkg, i come here to talk Rebels.
I dont like when people start going off on the players and coaches for things they couldn't do any better than them!!
Soo..what do you think about Santee lately? Hes playing a lot better than expected. He will be key to a W Saturday
Drop Buckley, because we CAN get both CJ and Polee.
Look up, everybody...do you see it? Just 7 to 8 teenie weenie spots from the TOP 10. It came up from behind really fast, but we are HERE people.
That's why you can't get tix to the game, Tony. We're #17 in the nation..
Teams have identities and this teams MO will not be rebounding or shooting but that is ok! As long as we stay cometative in those areas (30% from 3 and rebounding deficit less than double didgits) the steals and lack of turnovers will give us the extra possessions to win ball games. There are not many, if any, teams that do everything well. Embrace what we are and hope they work on the areas we are lacking! Bottom line is we are undefeated and will only get better as the season goes on with 5 of our top 8 players not playing D1 basketball last year.
Santee looks like a horse..w/ that stone face of his (NAILS), I think his 15-20 minutes every game will be consistently strong...for those that don't know the top 10 tastes so sweet and when we get done with K State and our hawaii trip it's gonna be candy canes for Xmas!!!!
Hell YEA!!!
the WEBER STATE game will be PACKED because we are a top 15 team at that time (I hope). Last year, the SUU (basically Weber St) game was emmmptttyy compared to other games.
I bet that game fills up, no matter the opponent!
CJ and DP are seriously looking at UNLV, we all hope.
Getting one would be great, but both?? THAT would be a dream come true. Merry Christmas for me, if they both commit then I do not need ANYTHING for Christmas, just my Rebels!!!!
Grayback gets it, rebfan is just duuuhhh? I will say this then I'm done with you - You have no idea who I am, what I have done, where I have been and balled, or what kind of baller I still am, nice try though!!
Santee has been a lot better, L-Ville game the best of his career. This will be the last tough test until we play the pasty boys from Provo.
Newsflash Ryan; no one watches those videos with the annoying sound tracks. Good old fashioned well written articles are what people of all ages enjoy.
lol this is funny. BetOnBlack is telling 11 to calm down yet he is going off on how 11 wouldn't last in his hood, doesn't know who he is, what kind of baller he is etc. We all need to calm down, where on the same team dudes..lol... cyber beef a brewing?
Anyway k-state looked tough last night against Xavier. If we match there toughness and bring our own with added edge (much like we did against L'Ville and UofA) and mix in some good shot selection and rebounding then this will be a great battle. A closely contested game with UNLV winning by 3 based on crowd.
LOL @ the baller in the hood. You're killin me, haha.
Go Reeebelz! Whoever said we could get blown out if we don't rebound doesn't know ish about this team. Ya, we definitely need to pick it up on the glass but we ain't getting blown out either way. Rebels by 8 after KSU gets some garbage buckets at the end to get it to single digits.
I cant last in his hood and he is suuuuch a ballller. I could dog him in some hoopin and I'm half his age!
Who cares, grow up...
I like how at the beginning of the season there were about 10 of us posting, and now the comments are coming 60 an article. I'm glad there is a buzz in this town finally!
Let the internet bad boys tough it out, it makes the day go by faster. fkg just needs to start up the interwebz talk again to complete the circle. LOL
Nice article! I watched the K-State game last night. They looked pretty intense, defensively. They may be the best defensive team we've seen all year. Xavier couldn't get a good look offensively, which is why their shooting numbers were so bad. Also, they fought and clawed for every rebound. If we want to win this game, we're going to have to play the best game of the season so far. It seems like they have a pretty deep bench, too. We might be in trouble if we allow them to develop any sort of rhythm offensively.
have noticed a looottt more comments...
a year ago it was lucky to get 10 comments...
...success brings "fans" I guess..
Either one of guys weren't here a month ago let alone a year. One of Miech's stories on UK last year had 160 odd replies.
Yes I remember that article. But if I recall they were mostly UKKK trolls posting. Now there's actually some major traffic from real Rebel fans.
BTW I periodically go back and read that article just to laugh my azz off at Lenny's one-liners to the hicks lol
yeah there were a few stories last year that got a lot of replies, but some didn't.
I have been lurking on this site for over a year, but got an account about 2-3 months ago.
The key to a win against KSU is the rebels playing well in both halves. The have looked like Dr. Jekel and Mrs. Hyde in the first and second halves so far this year. Accept against HC but they were a cream puff. If we can put together a complete game we will be very tough to beat all year. I think Chace is going to break out in terms of scoring he seems to be getting his confidence slowly but surely.
Don't forget Rebel Fans Corey Joseph will be playing after at the Orleans against BG. We should show our support and show him how much the fans want CJ at UNLV. I am concerned about his real interest in UNLV due to the fact he is taking his official visit the same day he is playing in the same arena. coincidence i dont think so. So lets all stay and show him some true rebel love. I am personally going to make a sign saying we want CJ in LV.
Those of you who watched the KSU game saw KSU playing one of their worst games of the year thus far and we still won. Our two top scoring guards had their worst efforts of the season. I think KSU will smother UNLV and it won't be very close. Good luck but get ready for a somber drive home rebs fans. GO CATS!! EMAW Baby!!
yo cowdung your top little guards are gonna get manhandled...sorry buddy but it's back to the drawing board after this game. Hope you guys have a good year though...
LMAO... cowdung? Real classy! Hope all your fans aren't as astute as yourself. Good luck cause you will need it. We have more depth, better athletes and more skilled height. Not to mention we get our best center back for this game. KSU wins in a landslide.
Hey Rebels fans!
Excellent article on Coach Kruger and staff. I am a big fan!
I actually competed against Steve Henson back in junior high and high school. He was an amazing player, and could have been a great decathlete.
As far as K-State, it all starts with defense and rebounding with this team. We have guards that can score, but this year, our wings and bigs are beginning to step up. We don't have a Michael Beasely or Bill Walker, but we are long, athletic and quick.
A couple of names to watch for:
1. Wally Judge, PF - Mc AA
2. Martavious Irving - freshman that has been playing well and getting minutes.
3. Jordan Henriquez-Roberts - 7ft freshman that spent a year in prep school. Surprising hand-eye coordination and touch.
4. Jamar Samuels - athletic sophmore that is coming into his own...just wish he could shoot FTs.
5. Dominique Sutton - our defensive stopper who is also starting to score the ball better.
6. Rodney McGruder - talented freshman who has been up and down so far.
7. Nick Russel - same as McGruder
The key guys are Jacob Pullen, Denis Clemente and Curtis Kelly, but the key for K-State is for the other guys to contribute.
Here is to a good game and good luck after Saturday.
PS. living in Albuquerque I hear how the UNM Lobos are gunning for your Rebels! Steve Alford is doing a good job.
Yeah cowdung don't worry i'm the only astute one. I'm glad your running your mouth and like to have fun cuzz we like to run too and were gonna run you right outta that cute "lil" gym along with that cute "lil" team of yours...like I said, goodluck on the season. You loose this one sorry :(
As for Auditcat..Thats good stuff, thanks for the heads up...And the Lobos in the pit are gonna be near impossible to beat... Good luck Sat.
Cobell, you are dead wrong in having more depth in Kst, UNLV has the most depth in the nation at the moment. I saw the Xavier game, and it was quite good, but I thought your guys looked a little slow comparatively. However, I'll give you more height and will probably out rebound us, but we have a suffocating defense.
This will def. be a good game, and I'll be cheering along. Good luck to both teams, may the best team win!
Good luck 'rebs... I'll just let our play do the talking from here on. EMAW
Great reporting and good write-up for the local Mid-west family loving, play hard, goodwill justice mindset. You have accomplished a write-up that all readers will love who read the sports page just as they like Irish whiskey and Irish pubs.
Really feel sad about this,too. We sorta kinda settled the tall grass praire states and moved into the short grass prairie states and have been in Cloud County Community College's goodwill justice for the past 125 years where, when the snow as knee deep to a flagpole, neighbors helped neighbors dig out and those fools who travelled throgh the Mid-west during winter and were caught in blizzards were given a hotel room for free along with their skinny runny nose brats and free breakfast and sent on their way that is if "she" would start in the -26 degree weather.
"'We are going to run you out of the gym,' and 'we are going to work you guys on the glass,' or my personal favorite (not mentioned above but still I see it a lot) 'We need to focus on this game, let's not get ahead of ourselves!'" Are any of us on either basketball team? It doesn't matter which game we focus on, nor do we have an effect on how the team will play except during game time when we are tearing the roof off! I go to all of the home games, sit in the student section (class of '03) and root for the Rebels like crazy, but I don't run anyone out of the gym (except maybe a mouthy BYU fan). I stand next to my seat, enjoy a beer and cheer. You guys are crazy!
FKG, for crap sakes learn how to spell. Loose is different than lose. Here I'll use it in a sentence. UNLV is going to lose on Saturday. OR Las Vegas is full of loose women. There you go buddy. You clearly know nothing about our team. We are more physical and more athletic than you. We literally just beat people into submission. You'll see. I'll come back on Sunday to see how you're holding up. Peace. EMAW!!!!
Hey Cowbell, Astute fans you have there in KS huh?
for crap sakes...lol...(nerd alert)..You certain KSU fans are so cute, hope you have fun while your in town...good luck saturday nite.
man i cant wait.... game will be a great time. not going to talk too much trash towards kstate... seem like a good bunch compared to reno... byu... kentucky fans even. BUT... behave yourself when you come into other peoples message boards... dont want to rile up some of our new noob rebel fans.
Awwwwwwwwww...
Every Man a Wildcat. That is so cute. Here kitty kitty.
Maybe we should have something like EMARR. Naw! to silly.
All jokes aside KSU is a good team and this game could go either way. Good luck!
Don't worry unlvrunrebs!! We are the angriest fans in America so we know about riled up fans. And fkg is doing a good job of angrying us up. Not something I would suggest he would want to do. On a serious note, my mom went to high school with Lon (Silver Lake High School) so I wish you guys all the luck after Saturday.
@164 better check your own fans...but its all just for fun anyways so lets have a great game..good luck K st.
fkg319, your mom is loose, but the rebels will LOSE!
Good game 'rebs... Best wishes with the rest of your season. EMAW!!!!!