Aug. 1, 2001

LAS VEGAS - The UNLV men's basketball program is under new leadership entering the 2001-02 season.

Longtime successful coach Charlie Spoonhour was named the 12th head coach in the history of the program on March 29, 2001.

Spoonhour comes to the desert two years removed from retirement after serving seven seasons as head coach at Saint Louis University. He has a 16-year NCAA Division I career head-coaching record of 319-171 and enjoys the fact that he is now coaching the Runnin' Rebels.

There were multiple factors involved in the decision to head up the UNLV program for Spoonhour, but one in particular stood out.

"The main thing is because the job is in Las Vegas," Spoonhour said. "This is a place that I had planned to live when my coaching was done. I can say without much reservation that this is the only job I considered coming out of retirement for because it is a combination of where I want to live and working with, and for, people that I really enjoy. There is great opportunity here."

Spoonhour has a track record of turning opportunity into success. At Saint Louis, he qualified for the postseason four times with three trips to the NCAA Tournament and one NIT bid. Prior to that he led Southwest Missouri State to five NCAA Tournament appearances and two NIT bids in his nine years at the school shortly after SMSU went Division I.

"As a coach, you always look for chances to be successful," Spoonhour said. "That chance is here. All you have to do is look at what people have done here in the past."

The past is something that the new coaching staff has embraced in their short time on campus. "I remember the teams that have been here before," Spoonhour said. "Not just the national championship team, but the overall perception of UNLV and how hard they always played. They played so well and no one enjoyed playing against them and the fans had such great enthusiasm."

Spoonhour is not making any promises on how his first year at the Thomas & Mack Center will go, but he does have an idea of what the mindset should be. "I want the team to play as close as they can up to their capabilities. I also want them to understand the concept of working to get better all the way through the year and usually if you do those things, play together and understand roles, you are going to have some success."

One of the constants that Spoonhour has had in each of his teams through his 31 years as a head coach has been a solid defense. "Defense is where we will start and if our players are going to be on the floor they are obviously going to have to work on the defensive end of the court. We hope our defense will be exciting for the fans and I know people in Las Vegas appreciate a great defensive effort.

"We will also have some players that have the ability to score some points, but it remains to be seen who will step up and how they will do. But that is the fun of all of this."

FRONTCOURT

The Runnin' Rebels first look on the offensive end will most likely be to 6-9 junior forward Dalron Johnson. Johnson who returns for his third season as a Rebel, averaged 12.3 points and 7.6 rebounds last year while blocking 58 shots, which ranks seventh in UNLV history for most blocks in a season. He ranked second in the Mountain West Conference in blocks and was fourth in rebounding.

"Dalron is very talented," Spoonhour said. "Our mission as coaches is to show him how to use all his skill and to make him someone that we can rely upon. This year we expect Dalron to be the man that we go through, so I hope that he has a really good year."

Complementing Johnson down low will be 6-10 junior forward/center Jamal Holden who comes from Westark College in Fort Smith, Ark. He averaged 11 points and 6 rebounds, while shooting 62 percent from the field last year. His team was 30-4 and finished fifth at the National Junior College Tournament.

"Jamal will be our big guy this year," Spoonhour said. "He had a great year last year, but the numbers probably don't show the contribution he made because of the way the inside guys were rotated. He has the capability to go in and play off the block and he also has athleticism. He can handle the basketball and go out and face the goal as well. He has been well coached and has a chance to really step up and help us."

Other returners for the Rebels in the frontcourt are Chris Richardson, Omari Pearson and Noel Bloom.

Richardson, a 6-6 senior forward, returns for his fourth season in a Rebel uniform. Last year he appeared in 22 games and averaged 4.7 points and 3.5 rebounds.

"Chris will probably be an undersized interior player for us," Spoonhour said. "That is not his fault, it's just that we don't have a lot of size this year. We are asking him to go in and use his athleticism and quickness to do some things from 15 feet and in. I really like his attitude. From the first day we started workouts he has been first in line everyday and I am hopeful that continues."

Pearson, a 6-8 sophomore forward, returns for his second season at UNLV. Last year he appeared in 12 games and averaged 4.7 minutes per contest.

"Omari has a great work ethic and he does all the things we ask plus more," Spoonhour said. "Even though his body lends itself to being more of a "four" position, we will probably use him in the "five" spot because of our size limitations. Omari can hit an open shot and he will compete on the boards, which is something we will need."

Bloom, a 6-7 senior forward, returns for his second season. He saw action in one game last year. "Noel has been a guy who has worked very hard in all of our workouts," Spoonhour said. "He does what you ask of him and he goes in and tries to make people better. That is the type of person that you want in your basketball program."

Louis Amundson is the final frontcourt player in the Rebel rotation. Amundson, a 6-7 freshman forward, comes to the program from Monarch High School in Louisville, Colo. Last year he averaged 18 points, 9 rebounds, 3.1 blocks and 1.7 steals as his team finished 19-3 and made the sweet sixteen of the state tournament. He was named Front Range League MVP and second team all-state.

"Louis will play out of position for us this year," Spoonhour said. "That is not his fault but we need him on the inside. He is a good shooter and last year was his first playing with his back to the basket and he did a great job. He has grown physically in the last year and his game has improved as well. He has a chance to be a very good player."

BACKCOURT

With a team that is a little on the small side, Spoonhour will rely heavily on his guard play and should not have trouble finding playing time for everyone.

Those that will share the duties at the point guard will be Jevon Banks, Marcus Banks, Vince Booker and Lafonte Johnson.

Jevon Banks (no relation to Marcus), a 6-foot senior guard, returns for his second season with UNLV. Banks appeared in 13 games last year but his action was limited after he was forced to miss seven games because of an ankle injury.

"Jevon is someone who can help us because he works so hard," Spoonhour said. "He is a senior and he's played at Texas Tech, which means he has experience. He has ability and can contribute to our team."

Marcus Banks, a 6-1 junior guard, comes to this Rebel program from another Rebel program - Dixie College in St. George, Utah. Last year he was named player of the year for region 18 and was a first team NJCAA All-American. He was also selected as one of 10 players for the team that represented the United States at the 2001 COPABA (Confederation of Pan American Basketball Associations) Tournament of the Americas. The team competed in mid-August in Neuquen, Argentina. He is a local product who attended high school at Las Vegas' Cimarron-Memorial.

"I have seen Marcus play more than anyone on our squad because he was in the junior college tournament and played against my son Jay's team in the semifinals," Spoonhour said. "I like everything about him. I especially like his approach the game, his strength and his quickness. He has a chance to be a special player."

Booker, a 6-1 senior guard, returns for his fourth year with the team. He is a walk-on that earned a starting job last year. He started 17 of 23 games and averaged 3.8 points.

"Vince is the type of guy that any coach wants," Spoonhour said. "He is smart, works hard and the fact that he turned himself from a non-scholarship player into a starter last year shows that he has dreams and vision. He will find a way to help himself and help our team."

Johnson, a 5-10 sophomore guard, returns for his second season at UNLV. Last year he appeared in all 29 of UNLV's games and averaged 4.4 points.

"I really like Lafonte's approach to the game," Spoonhour said. "He has played on great teams and I think he could be a really good player. He can really shoot the basketball and he does things the way coaches like."

At the "two" and "three" positions, UNLV has Lou Kelly, Lamar Bigby, Ernest Turner and, depending on how rehab goes, Jermaine Lewis. Kelly and Bigby could also see some time at small forward.

Kelly, a 6-5 senior guard/forward, returns for his third season at UNLV. Last year he appeared in 18 games and averaged 6.5 points and 2.2 rebounds. He missed the season's first eight games after fracturing a bone in his foot.

"Lou has been somewhat of a mystery because of his injuries," Spoonhour said. "He hasn't had a season since he has been here where he has been healthy the whole year. He is someone that has some size and can do things on the inside and on the outside, which is what we need from him."

Bigby, a 6-4 junior guard, comes to UNLV from Schoolcraft College in Livonia, Mich. He took a year off from basketball last season as he went to San Francisco City College. In his last year at Schoolcraft, he averaged 17.5 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists per game as the team won the league championship and reached the state championship game. He was first team All-Eastern Conference, all-state and all-region.

"Lamar is a skilled perimeter player with some size," Spoonhour said. "He had a year off and how quickly he will come back to the form he had in junior college or high school remains to be seen, but he has the skill level that gives him a possibility to play. He also has a chance to be a really good defender. The whole thing hinges on how quickly he gets back to playing mentality."

Turner, a 6-2 freshman guard, comes to UNLV from Sterling High School in Summerdale, N.J. Last year he averaged 28 points and 7 rebounds per game as the team won the league championship. He was named first team all-state, All-South Jersey and All-Camden County.

"Ernest is a strong guard and comes from a good basketball program," Spoonhour said. "He can shoot the basketball and finds a way to score. He wants to win and is a real team player."

Lewis, a 6-4 senior guard, returns for his second season at UNLV. After appearing in 26 games last year and averaging 9.3 points and 3.2 rebounds he tore his right ACL. He missed the season's last two games and had surgery this offseason and will miss at least the first part of this upcoming year.

"Jermaine has a very strong work ethic," Spoonhour said. "He is coming off a bad knee, so if he is healthy he will really help us. He is a senior who can score and rebound. If he isn't able to play this year, we will rehab him and he will play a year from now. Because of the type of person that he is he has a chance to get himself back into playing shape this year."

Two late additions to this year's team at the guard spot are Jon Knoche and Demetrius Hunter.

Knoche is a 5-9 junior who joins the Runnin' Rebels from Vincennes University in Indiana. He averaged 5 points, 4.5 assists and 2 rebounds per game last year.

"John is a good, tough kid who knows how to play the game well," Spoonhour said. "He is very smart and understands team concepts and role playing."

Hunter is a 6-2 junior transfer from Georgetown, where he played for the last two years. He will have to sit out the 2001-02 season because of NCAA transfer rules. Hunter attended Las Vegas' Cheyenne High School before heading east.

Last year with the Hoyas, Hunter averaged 9.2 points per game and started all 33 games on the team that advanced to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen with a 25-8 record.

"We are really excited that Demetrius has chosen to come back home," Spoonhour said. "He has had two years of Big East basketball and has obviously gained a good understanding of the game. His athletic ability will be exciting for all of us. We are looking forward to working with him this year and for him to be able to play next year."

One of the things that has impressed Spoonhour about this group of student-athletes is the quality of their character. "I think Bill Bayno and his staff did a great job of bringing quality players, not only as athletes, but as people, too. The kids that are coming back have been great about doing things in the correct manner and by that I mean with their schoolwork, about being on time for workouts, etc. Those are the things as a coach you appreciate and I have been impressed with the quality of kids that we have."

SCHEDULE

UNLV will open at home against Wisconsin, which is one of four NCAA Tournament teams from a year ago that will appear on this year's schedule.

"To a basketball fan our schedule is very attractive because of the name recognition of some of the schools," Spoonhour said. "Opening with Wisconsin will be tough because of the type of basketball team that they have historically had. They usually play very hard and do not allow you to do the things that you would like to do."

Notable road non-conference match-ups on UNLV's schedule consist of games at Cincinnati, at Washington and at Alabama-Birmingham in the Arby's Hardwood Classic.

"Having games on the road early with Cincinnati and Washington is tough any way you look at it," Spoonhour said. "There are people in Las Vegas that aren't familiar with Alabama-Birmingham, but having been in the league with them at Saint Louis, I am very aware of how well coached they are and how talented they are."

Notable home non-conference games are against Texas in the Las Vegas Showdown and DePaul in the middle of the conference season.

"Playing Texas in the Showdown is tough as well," Spoonhour said. "Rick Barnes has done such a good job with that program and last year they won 25 games. DePaul is going to be very talented again this year and they could be picked to win Conference USA."

Throw in the Mountain West Conference schedule and overall it is a difficult mix of teams.

"I have great respect for the coaches and the schools in this league," Spoonhour said. "From top to bottom the coaches have all built solid programs and can recruit very good players."