Tarkanian excited about Hall of Fame induction

A UNLV Athletic Hall of Fame without Jerry Tarkanian?

Impossible, you say.

But no need to fret. The man who spawned 19 successful basketball seasons in the desert, four Final Four teams and a national championship in 1990 will receive his due tonight, as Tarkanian heads a standout group of inductees to the school's shrine.

Joining Tark in the 8 p.m. ceremonies at the Moyer Student Union will be former Rebel standout Armon Gilliam, the entire 1986-87 team which went to the Final Four in New Orleans, long-time athletic director Brad Rothermel, football star Elbert "Ickey" Woods, soccer great Robbie Ryerson, tennis star Scott Warner and longtime UNLV supporter and former Clark County District Attorney Rex Bell.

"I'm looking forward to it," Tarkanian said from Fresno, where he is preparing for his fourth season as coach at his alma mater, Fresno State.

"I never get into the individual stuff. It's nice. But I never get excited for myself. I've been through so much. But having Brad there and Armon and the '86-87 team there. That's very exciting to me."

Tarkanian's inclusion comes on his first round of eligibility. He left UNLV in 1992 after compiling a 509-105 record and an .829 winning percentage. His teams averaged 30 wins over his final 11 seasons.

His shining moment remains April 2, 1990, when the Rebels won the national championship at McNichols Arena in Denver, walloping Duke 103-73. It is the largest margin of victory in an NCAA championship game.

"You never forget something like that," he said.

Tonight's induction ceremonies won't top it. But it figures to be memorable in its own right. Tarkanian said it will be an honor to share the spotlight with Rothermel, who guided the school through an unparalleled run of success during his tenure as athletic director from 1981-90.

"Brad was absolutely the best," Tarkanian said. "Everything was so good when he was there. The department was happy. We were in the black (financially). Every sport flourished every year.

"For me, Brad was a friend from the day he got there. He had no ego whatsoever. He was so happy just to see everyone else do well. He never wanted any of the credit."

Tarkanian also is glad to be sharing the stage with Gilliam, one of the great Rebels. Gilliam, a member of that 1986-87 Final Four team, is the school's No. 6 scoring leader with 1,855 points. He averaged 17.3 points during his three years at UNLV and is fifth in career rebounding with 890 boards.

"Armon has always been a great friend of UNLV," Tarkanian said of Gilliam, who has played 11 NBA seasons and is a current member of the Milwaukee Bucks. "He's the closest thing to a self-made player we had.

"Armon had ability, but it was his hard work that got him where he is. He just kept working and working at getting better. The nice thing about Armon is he never forgot the people who helped him."

Gilliam and that '86-87 squad posted an impressive 37-2 record, went undefeated in winning the Big West and beat some very good teams en route to the Final Four at the Louisiana Superdome.

That team won the preseason NIT in New York, beating Arizona and Oklahoma to get to Madison Square Garden, then defeating Temple 78-76 and a feisty Western Kentucky squad in double overtime to take the championship.

"I remember us getting off to a great start that year," Tark said of the team that included stars everywhere, including Mark Wade at point guard, Freddie Banks at the off-guard, Gilliam at power forward, Jarvis Basnight at center and Gerald Paddio at small forward. "We had talent and depth at every position."

Gilliam averaged 23 points as a senior on that team, which had just one blemish on its record before the Final Four, a tough 89-88 loss at Oklahoma in mid-January.

"I remember beating some very good teams that year," Tarkanian said. "We beat Arizona and Oklahoma. We stopped Memphis State's 45-game home winning streak. Temple had a great team that year. Navy had David Robinson.

"There was so much talent on that team. We had a great point guard in Mark Wade. We had Freddie shooting the 3-pointers. Paddio was a streak scorer. Jarvis had a very good season."

Tarkanian believed that team was good enough to win it all. But in the semifinals, the Rebels met up with an Indiana team that refused to give in. Despite a record 10 3-pointers from Banks, UNLV fell short, 97-93.

"I still feel bad about the Indiana game," Tarkanian said.

"I don't think we had our usual intensity. And when Mark got into foul trouble, I had to take him off (Steve) Alford and we had trouble shutting him down."

Indiana went on to beat Syracuse for the national championship. But Tarkanian will always have fond memories of his '87 Final Four squad.

"It was a great team that had great role players," he said. "There was so much talent."

Many of those players will be on hand tonight for the ceremonies. And Tarkanian is glad for that.

"I'm looking forward to seeing the guys," he said. "I think it's going to be a wonderful evening."

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