Monday, March 17, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
Throughout this turnaround 1996-97 basketball season, Bill Bayno has had to coach emotion virtually every game, trying to get the most from his inexperienced UNLV squad.
Not tonight. At least he hopes he won't have to.
With Hawaii at the Thomas & Mack Center for a second-round National Invitation Tournament game at 7:30 and the fact the Rainbows have two hotly contested and controversial wins over the Rebels, Bayno's team should be fired up.
"If they're not, I'll be real disappointed," he said. "They know how good Hawaii is. They've beaten us twice. And being in the position to where we can get one step closer to New York, emotion shouldn't be a problem."
And there's added incentive for UNLV. Win or lose, the 21-9 Rebels will be playing their final home game of the season tonight. Should UNLV win, it will play the winner of tonight's Pittsburgh-Arkansas game. If Arkansas wins, the game will be Wednesday night at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville. If Pitt wins, the quarterfinal contest will be Thursday at Fitzgerald Field House.
For the five UNLV seniors, tonight can be dubbed "Senior Night II." But a lot more is riding on this game than the first Senior Night Feb. 22 against Texas Christian. Lose tonight and their collective collegiate careers are over. Win, and their dreams of playing in the NIT Final Four at Madison Square Garden come another step closer.
"I really haven't given it that much thought," said senior guard Damian Smith, the only Rebel with postseason experience prior to this year's NIT. "I'm just thinking about winning this game.
"But hopefully we can keep this thing going. We owe Hawaii one after they took two from us."
Senior forward Warren Rosegreen said a big crowd tonight would be a nice tribute to the entire team, not just the seniors. School officials are hoping for 11,000-12,000.
"That's going to be exciting," he said. "Hopefully, we'll get a lot of people out to see the seniors off.
"After the season ended last year, we were back in the gym a couple of weeks later. The goal this year is to be one of two teams with a last victory."
That means winning tonight against a Hawaii squad that has managed to survive the loss of 7-foot-2 center Seth Sundberg, who has been out since mid-February with a ruptured spleen. Hawaii also has been playing shorthanded due to the suspensions of reserve guard Aaron Curry and forward Kelvin Anderson. Both were disciplined last month for violation of the school's student-conduct code book.
The Rainbows bring a 21-7 record into tonight's game as the backcourt tandem of Anthony Carter and Alika Smith continues to shoulder most of the burden.
Carter -- the WAC's Pacific Division Player of the Year -- is averaging 19 points, Smith 18. They combined for 42 points in Hawaii's 71-61 come-from-behind win against Oregon in the first round of the NIT Wednesday.
And if UNLV doesn't keep the duo in check, the Rainbows could ring up the hat trick.
"I thought we did a pretty good job on Carter in Hawaii," Bayno said. "We've got to make sure he doesn't get going and we've got to do a better job on Smith."
Look for Sunshine Smith to take Carter and Mark Dickel, Kevin James and Damian Smith to all get a piece of Alika Smith.
Without Sundberg, Hawaii has resorted to playing a lot of zone defense, especially against teams with a big man. Look for the Rainbows to play a 1-2-2 tonight and try to sag on UNLV's 6-11 Keon Clark. Clark is coming off a 23-point, 12-rebound, 4-blocked shot effort against Memphis and Bayno wants him to be active early.
"I thought about starting him against Memphis but I was afraid he'd pick up a foul the first possession," Bayno said. "We'll probably keep the same rotation."
Which means Tony Lane will start and Clark will come off the bench early.
But no matter who's on the floor, Bayno expects them to play hard and with emotion.
"We're in a good frame of mind," he said. "I think the seniors have carried us with their intensity and emotion.
"It's their team. They're going to carry this season with them for the rest of their lives."
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