Oregon vs. UNLV Preview
ST. LOUIS (AP) -UNLV has the touching father-son story. Oregon the diminutive point guard who hits the big-time shots.
But stuck out West and out of the spotlight, both teams hope their low profile will help them make a lot of noise in the coming days.
``When you get to this level, you have some quote-unquote bigger name teams that have been there before,'' said Oregon coach Ernie Kent, whose third-seeded Ducks play seventh-seed UNLV in Friday's Midwest Region semifinal. ``A lot of media attention goes that way. That's kind of OK for us right now.''
The storyline of UNLV coach Lon Kruger and son Kevin is the perfect match to ``One Shining Moment'' - how the younger Kruger took advantage a now off-the-books NCAA rule that allowed him to transfer from Arizona State and play for his father this season.
But just dare the casual observer to name one of Kruger's running mates.
After all, this isn't exactly Jerry Tarkanian's colorful bunch, when Larry Johnson, Stacey Augmon and Greg Anthony were lighting up college basketball like the Vegas strip in the late 1980s and early '90s.
Truth is, seventh-seeded UNLV was picked to finish in the bottom of half of the Mountain West Conference and didn't break into the national rankings until early March. The Runnin' Rebels have been little more than an afterthought for the past 15 years, the program collapsing under the weight of NCAA investigations and making just two NCAA tournament appearances since 1991 - both first-round exits.
``We were picked in our conference to finish sixth, so we take that and use it as motivation and go out and play our hardest and prove something,'' UNLV guard Curtis Terry said. ``Our coaches preach that to us. Every night out we have to play like we have something to prove. And we've done that so far.''
Kent, who played for Oregon in the 1970s, understands about having something to prove.
After becoming a trendy pick to win the Pac-10 title last season, the Ducks stumbled to a 15-18 record. Suddenly, the 2002 Pac-10 coach of the year was fielding questions his future at his alma mater.
Oregon quietly opened this season with 13 straight wins, but it wasn't until it made a run through a diluted Pac-10 tournament - avoiding UCLA and Washington State - that Kent's team finally made a dent in the national consciousness.
``The thing that I've enjoyed about this club is they've been through so much adversity and they were picked on so much,'' Kent said, ``and here they've become men. They've been through a lot.''
Even at the Edward Jones Dome, with defending national champion Florida shacking up in a locker room next door, the Ducks are getting overlooked. Cameras and autograph-seekers followed the Gators' every move on Thursday, while Oregon guard Tajuan Porter slipped away down a service tunnel.
``A lot of that stuff, that publicity, will get to your head,'' said the 5-6 freshman, who hit four 3-pointers to lead Oregon past Winthrop in the second round. ``You start to forget about what you need to do. You feel like you got it made already. That keeps us humble, keeps us working hard, keeps us hungry.''
Even beyond their low profile, the two teams are remarkably similar, said Oregon's Aaron Brooks. Guards will be all over the court, often as many as eight at a time. Neither team starts a player over 6-9.
But the Ducks prefer to run and stretch the court and are content to camp outside the 3-point line. They've thrown up 852 3-pointers this season, making a Pac-10 and school record 329.
``If they get a run-out, they'll take it. If they need to slow it down and run a set, they will,'' Kevin Kruger said. ``That's very similar to kind of what we do. We kind of pick and choose when to run.''
But figure the Runnin' Rebels to slow this one to a brisk jog.
``A lot of people expect this game to be up in the high 70s, 80s, possibly even 90s,'' Kruger said. ``That's the one thing we want to do, control the tempo and dictate pace and make them play our game instead of conforming to theirs. Because if we do that we're probably going to lose.''
It won't be easy to slow the game down, with several Runnin' Rebels slowed by nagging injuries.
Guard Wink Adams is recovering from a bruised tailbone he got in Sunday's 74-68 upset of second-seeded Wisconsin. Kevin Kruger was hobbling around with an ice pack on a bruised ankle after Thursday's practice. Wendell White is nursing a bruised set of ribs.
All are expected to play.
``We have a lot of respect for Pac-10 teams,'' Lon Kruger said. ``Tournament time is an opportunity to play other good teams from very good conferences. And I don't think guys need motivation at this point.''
