Eddie Owens, UNLV basketball’s forgotten star, finally gets due

By Jesse Granger

Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2016 | 2 a.m.

Tonight, at halftime of UNLV basketball’s matchup with UC Riverside, the team will honor its forgotten star.

High above Jerry Tarkanian Court, eight jerseys sway in the rafters.

Larry Johnson, Sidney Green, Reggie Theus, Glen Gondrezick, Stacey Augmon, Armon Gilliam, Ricky Sobers and Greg Anthony have had their jerseys retired for years.

Eddie Owens scored more points at UNLV than all of them, and tonight the Rebels will finally retire the jersey of the program’s all-time leading scorer.

Owens, who starred at UNLV from 1973-77 under Tarkanian, scored 148 more points than any other Runnin’ Rebel in history — and did it before the invention of the 3-point line.

“I’m thinking about getting a lawyer and looking at the film,” Owens joked. “They owe me about another 500 points.”

Owens, who was UNLV’s second ever All-American, was part of the “Hardway Eight,” Runnin’ Rebels who put the program on the national map by advancing to the school’s first NCAA Final Four.

“It was an honor just to be in that Final Four,” Owens said. “When we knocked off San Francisco with Bill Cartwright and those guys, that’s when I knew we had something.”

UNLV eventually lost 84-83 to North Carolina in the national semifinals, but that tournament started what would become one of the best runs in college basketball history.

“Through their talent, success and style of play, Eddie Owens and the Hardway Eight established Runnin’ Rebel Basketball as a national power,” UNLV Director of Athletics Tina Kunzer-Murphy said in a statement. “The success our program enjoyed during subsequent decades was built upon what Eddie and his teammates achieved. To be the all-time leading scorer in the history of our program is an incredible accomplishment. Eddie means so much to the tradition of Runnin’ Rebel Basketball, and we are proud to honor and pay tribute to him in this way.”

Owens also holds the UNLV record for field goals made with 913, and is top-10 in program history in free throws made (395), career scoring average (18.8 points per game) and single season scoring average (23.4 points per game in 1975-76).

With such a prolific career, it begs the question, why it has taken this long for the school to honor Owens?

“I always wondered why they didn’t show me any love,” Owens said. “I should be up there, statistically. When I found out, I was overwhelmed. I got really excited because it’s been a long time.”

In addition to the jersey retirement ceremony, new art will be installed on the Thomas & Mack Center’s concourse prior to Wednesday’s game recognizing the Hardway Eight and the 1976-77 Runnin’ Rebel team’s accomplishments.

That roster helped put the “Runnin’” in UNLV’s name during Owens’ senior season by setting NCAA records for most points in a season (3,246), most 100-point games (23) and most consecutive 100-point games (12).

“It’s all finally going to come to fruition,” Owens said. “There’s an old saying: The longer the berry stays on the vine the sweeter it is.”

While fans can enjoy the ceremonies, the current UNLV basketball squad is focused on getting its first win of the 2016-17 season.

Following the 76-68 opening-night loss to South Alabama, the Rebels face a UC Riverside team coming off an 81-45 win over Bristol University.

The Highlanders (1-1) finished sixth in the Big West last season with a 14-19 record, and return only three of their top four scorers from a year ago.

Senior guard Malik Thames has led UC Riverside with 14.5 points, five rebounds and three assists per game.

The Rebels will look to improve their shooting, which was 21-of-57 (36.8 percent) against South Alabama.

Christian Jones, who led UNLV with 20 points and 13 rebounds, will battle in the paint with Highlanders’ big man Alex Larsson (6-foot-10) who is averaging eight rebounds per game.

UNLV will need a much better night out of Kris Clyburn, who shot 3-of-12 from the field in the loss.

With more scoring needed from a host of players, perhaps the Rebels can look to their halftime honoree for motivation.

“I’m pulling for them,” Owens said. “I hope this new coach turns things around. It takes a lot of hard work, dedication and all of the above. It doesn’t just come to you. We were the trailblazers and we did it with hard work. You’re not going to win every game but there’s no excuse for not playing hard.”