UNLV is intent on erasing last year’s NCAA Tournament first-round loss when the 11th-seeded Lady Rebels play sixth-seeded Michigan on Friday in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
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Athletic director Desiree Reed-Francois fired men’s basketball coach Marvin Menzies after his third season Friday, bringing an end to a tenure that began with the culmination of one of the darkest points in program history.
A forgettable start to his final college season hung in the air before an announced crowd of 5,107 at T-Mobile Arena, but when Noah Robotham’s fallaway 3-pointer fell, the Rebels had a 92-90 overtime victory over Brigham Young.
He wasn’t a guy who made headlines. He might have eaten at McDonald’s, but never wore an All-American jersey with a patch of the golden arches on it. He never played a second of varsity ball in high school.
I’m not sure on whose name the Ferris wheel will ultimately stop as UNLV’s next basketball coach, but the circus ride needs to be followed by a thorough, honest evaluation of the search process and those who directed the program to this point.
It wasn’t perfect. Far from it. But for a team that suited up six players on Friday who hadn’t competed in a regular-season Division I game, UNLV did more good than bad.
UNLV’s basketball team might over the next 24 hours be given the opportunity to continue a season that has delivered more disappointments than not, but the Rebels should deny any and all such inquiries.
How teams react on the road each season often differs more than a teenager’s mood. It’s easier to win away from home in the NHL, NFL, Major League Baseball and even some sketchy Argentine soccer leagues than it is college basketball.