Books won’t take tourney wagers

It appears all bets are off for the FIBA Americas Championship.

Locally, sports books have decided not to book the games, not because they didn't want to but because they can't. Because the tournament has a direct tie to the Olympics, and the books have agreed not to accept wagers on Olympic events, there will be no action in Las Vegas.

"This is an Olympic-related event, and we agreed not to book anything Olympics," said Robert Walker, director of race and sports for MGM-Mirage. "If we're not going to book the Olympics, we're not going to book something that leads up to it. That's the reality.

"Would we have liked to booked it? We want to book everything. But I think like the NBA All-Star Game, I don't know that there's that much interest from a betting standpoint. Still, it would be nice to be able to allow people to bet on it if they wanted to, especially since the event is being held in Las Vegas."

• PARKING WOES -- Parking at the Thomas & Mack Center is limited, and it will become a bigger issue Monday when UNLV begins its fall semester.

"If people pay attention to the signs and follow directions, they shouldn't have a problem," Thomas & Mack director Daren Libonati said.

Construction in recent months near the Thomas & Mack has reduced the number of spaces in the lots.

• FAMILIAR FACES -- They might not do commercials like Mike Krzyzewski, but there are other coaches in the tournament who will be familiar to basketball fans. Former Arkansas coach Nolan Richardson is coaching Mexico, which has former UNLV forward Romel Beck on its roster. Leo Rautins, who starred at Syracuse and went on to play in the NBA, is Canada's coach. And former college coach Jim Harrick is an assistant coach with the U.S. Virgin Islands.

• LATE ARRIVALS -- Venezuela's team was cutting it close, not arriving in Las Vegas until Tuesday. The Venezuelans play Team USA at 8 tonight.

"We are beginning a new world competition's cycle," Venezuela coach Nestor Salazar said. "We have our minds on one clear goal, to reach the world championship in Turkey in 2010. We are currently in a renovation process.

"We understand that the tournament in Vegas will not be easy because it only offers two spots in the Olympics. But we are betting on our youngsters, and we will fight and try and reach the world pre-Olympic qualifier at least."