Friday, Sept. 5, 2008 | 5:26 p.m.
In what might be an overwhelming trend, UNLV’s basketball team is considered one of the top 25 programs in the nation in a preseason annual.
Athlon Sports has the Rebels rated 24th in its preseason publication that will be available Tuesday.
The magazine, typically one of the earliest to hit bookstores and newsstands, also tabs UNLV as an NCAA tournament team in March.
The Rebels advanced to the Sweet 16 two seasons ago, losing to Oregon to finish 30-7. They beat Kent State in the first round last spring then lost to eventual national-champion Kansas, finishing 27-8.
Led by senior guard Wink Adams, and fellow seniors Rene Rougeau, Joe Darger and Mo Rutledge, the Rebels will be considered a favorite to win the Mountain West Conference in 2008-09.
Point guard Tre’Von Willis is among a premier group of new Rebels that also swayed Athlon, which put Adams on its first-team, all-Mountain West list.
At 57-15, UNLV has the second-best record (UCLA is tops) among Western teams the past two seasons. The Rebels have won their past 15 games at the Thomas & Mack Center, the 11th-longest active streak in the country.
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