UCLA transfer Carlino will take official visit to UNLV this week

By Ryan Greene

Published Monday, Dec. 13, 2010 | 2:15 a.m.

Updated Monday, Dec. 13, 2010 | 10:30 a.m.

On Monday morning, not long after UNLV's compliance office received a scholarship release form from UCLA granting permission to speak with Matt Carlino, the transferring guard's father, Mark, confirmed to the Sun that his son will take an official visit to UNLV this week.

No dates have been set in stone, but the visit will more than likely take place from Tuesday to Thursday, meaning that the 6-foot-2, 175-pound Scottsdale, Ariz., native will be in attendance for the Rebels' Wednesday night game at the Thomas & Mack Center against UC Santa Barbara.

Carlino just announced on Friday that he would be looking for a new home for the spring semester and beyond.

After not playing in the Bruins' first seven games of the season, Carlino, who spent his third and final year of high school at Bloomington (Ind.) South High, was quick to start the search for his next destination.

It is believed that Carlino is looking to make a decision in the next week or two. Following UCLA coach Ben Howland's attempt to convert him to a shooting guard, he's looking for a suitor who will allow him to compete for time at the point.

Roughly 24 hours after leaving UCLA, the 6-foot-2, 175-pound guard was in Salt Lake City as part of an unofficial visit to BYU. He was at EnergySolutions Arena on Saturday night to watch the undefeated Cougars pick apart Arizona, 87-65, then headed back home to the Phoenix suburbs on Sunday.

He's scheduled to visit Butler next weekend.

Ironically, Carlino was originally scheduled to visit UNLV back in April on his way home from an official campus visit to UCLA. Instead, though, he committed to Howland on the trip and Lon Kruger & Co. were left hanging.

Carlino was once committed to Indiana mid-way through his prep career, and then made the move to Bloomington following his sophomore season. In his one season at Bloomington South, Carlino, who combines excellent athleticism with a soft, sharp shooting touch, averaged 13.4 points, 5.9 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game. He led the team to a 25-1 record and a 4A state regional finals appearance.

He did not get on the floor for the Bruins, and wherever he enrolls in school this spring, Carlino would be able to suit up at the end of the fall semester in 2011 as a redshirt freshman, having 3.5 years of eligibility left..

UNLV coach Lon Kruger and his staff has a nice situation to present, too.

After missing out on a handful of targeted prep point guards in the class of 2011, Carlino could fill that void. Current starter Oscar Bellfield will graduate following the 2011-12 season, and the staff has long been on the hunt for his eventual successor.

To boot, UNLV has been a landing spot for two other recent UCLA defectors — junior forward Chace Stanback and redshirting sophomore forward Mike Moser. The 6-foot-8 Stanback is the Rebels' leading scorer (13.9 ppg), while Moser, who is a mirror image of Stanback in both terms of both stature and skills, will have three years of eligibility remaining starting next season. Both spent one year at UCLA under Howland.

For more on this story as it develops, stay tuned to lasvegassun.com/rebels.