Rebels, Tar Heels to meet in '99

James Taylor won't be the only person in town with Carolina on his mind when the legendary crooner warbles his hit song tonight at the MGM Grand. UNLV basketball coach Bill Bayno might be humming along.

The Rebels will be headed to Tobacco Country in 1999 to meet juggernaut North Carolina in the Food Lion MVP Classic at Charlotte on Dec. 3-4.

It will be the first meeting between the schools since the 1985 Great Alaska Shootout and only the third-ever meeting between the Rebels and Tar Heels.

South Carolina is rumored to be the other opponent for the Rebels. A spokesman for Raycom Communications, which puts together the annual field, confirmed the UNLV-North Carolina matchup, but said the other two spots have not been finalized.

Bayno said games like UNLV-North Carolina should get players and fans alike excited.

"To be invited to play one of the top programs in the country is an honor," Bayno said. "We want to play four, five what I call 'big exposure' games every year where we're on national TV and this is a great opportunity to go up against one of the showcase, perennial top-10 teams."

The financial guarantee isn't bad either. UNLV will be paid $75,000 to play two games at the Charlotte Coliseum.

UNLV has a 12-9 record against Atlantic Coast Conference foes, with North Carolina the lone ACC team the Rebels have failed to beat. The Tar Heels have won both games -- the first being the memorable 1977 Final Four semifinal in Atlanta, 84-83, and the '85 Alaska Shootout championship game in Anchorage, 65-60.

Although the 1998-99 schedule is still being finalized, 1999-2000 is shaping up to be a very good slate.

Besides the trip to Carolina, the Rebels will travel to Cincinnati, host Seton Hall and Southern Cal and play Texas in the Las Vegas Shootout. The Rebels also are looking to extend the UCLA series and possibly renew a series with Arizona.

Meanwhile, work continues on this year's schedule. Georgetown has come up with a couple of dates, but neither are what Bayno was hoping for.

Instead of playing in early January, the Hoyas are willing to play UNLV on Sunday, Nov. 29, at the Thomas & Mack Center or Nov. 30 at the MCI Center in downtown Washington D.C.

If UNLV agrees to one of the November dates, it will create a 12-day gap in the schedule. The Rebels would play Southern Utah Dec. 28 and would not play again until the WAC opener Jan. 9 against Air Force.

UNLV may opt to play the Hoyas on the road during Thanksgiving weekend (UNLV meets Kansas Nov. 27 in Springfield, Mass.), and hold Georgetown to a firm home date for 1999-2000.

"Right now, I don't know what we're going to do," Bayno said.

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