Las Vegas' Gaines, foe garner plenty of interest from coaches

As expected, college coaches came out en masse to see Las Vegas' Kevin Gaines at the Big Time Tournament on Wednesday. The result of his club's opening game and the player who dominated, though, were something of a surprise.

Gaines' Mad Moves squad, an independent team coached by local resident Mitch Mitchell, fell to Omaha Godfather's Pizza 85-64 at Cimarron-Memorial High School.

And while Gaines -- widely considered the area's top prospect -- showed flashes of brilliance en route to his game-high 32 points, it was Omaha guard Tom Cockle who ultimately found himself surrounded by Division I coaches after the game.

Cockle got it done on the offensive end, draining a pair of 3-pointers to help his team build a big first-half lead and scoring several key second-half buckets to help Omaha stay ahead.

But it was Cockle's work on the defensive end, where he spearheaded a team effort designed to stop the Clark High School point guard, that pushed his club over the top.

"We respected (Gaines)," Cockles said. "He's a great athlete, and it was a big challenge going against him. In Nebraska, you don't have a lot of players like that."

Gaines' club will try to pick up its first win today against California's BWBA III at 2:20 p.m. at Cimarron-Memorial. Omaha will play the fourth team in the bracket -- Illinois Fire -- at 3:40 p.m., also at Cimarron.

Heat Scorches Nets

After trailing by as many as 19 points in its opener against South Dakota's Northern Stars, the Las Vegas Heat stormed back in the second half for a 77-70 win at Cimarron.

Eldorado center James Bayless (16 points) and Cimarron guard Marcos Banks (17 points) keyed a 45-22 run after halftime to propel the locals before a large crowd that featured the likes of Purdue's Gene Keady and Kentucky's Tubby Smith.

Banks, who sat out last season for the Spartans, recently was mentioned as a player to watch by prep talent scout Bob Gibbons.

And Bayless, who earned co-MVP honors in the Sunrise Division last winter, may have opened some eyes with tough low-post play on Wednesday.

"This is the biggest opportunity for (Las Vegas players)," said Bayless, who didn't participate in last year's Big Time Tournament. "It's very exciting."

* TIDBITS: Event organizers were sent scrambling when a player on the New Orleans Jazz shattered a backboard in Las Vegas High School's auxiliary gymnasium during a 1 p.m. contest against Missouri's Gateway Basketball Club 16. With some help from Von Tobel Middle School principal Ed Montoya, the day's remaining games were moved to that facility, with only an hour delay in between. Play will resume this morning in both Las Vegas High gymnasiums as scheduled this morning. ... Freshman-to-be Martin Iti, the 15-year-old cousin of former UNLV player Warren Rosegreen, joined Al La Rocque's Las Vegas Stars for his second game Wednesday night. In the morning, Iti played with Mad Moves. ... Durango senior-to-be Jason Burns, who withdrew from the Las Vegas school late last spring to attend summer school at Mount Zion Christian Academy in North Carolina (the same school that produced NBA player Tracy McGrady) is reportedly considering returning to town this fall. Burns is here this week playing for the Florida Flash II, a team comprised of Mount Zion athletes. he scored 12 points in his club's 105-72 win over Bridgeport Invasion (Conn.) Wednesday. ... New York Knicks forward Marcus Camby, who has some free time on his hands during NBA's lockout, was spotted taking in some of the action at Las Vegas High. Camby played for UNLV head coach Bill Bayno when Bayno was an assistant coach at the University of Massachusetts.

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