Jan. 29, 2007

LAS VEGAS - The UNLV men's basketball team, which is off to its best start in 14 years with an overall record of 18-4, broke into the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Poll Monday.

UNLV, which is tied with Indiana for the final spot in the top 25 rankings, is in the poll for the first time since the final rankings of the 1992-93 season. UNLV was No. 19 in that poll, which was released on March 15, 1993.

"I am really happy for our players and also very happy for our fans," head coach Lon Kruger said. "Our players obviously have worked extremely hard and continue to make progress and our crowds have been outstanding. The students were there early on Saturday and their enthusiasm set the stage for a great night. The fans definitely share in the credit for the recognition that comes with being in the top 25 and our players are excited about that as well."

UNLV had its largest attendance figure in a decade on Saturday night against New Mexico. The Runnin' Rebels won the game 72-76 in overtime in front of 17,056, which was the largest UNLV regular season home crowd since Dec. 27, 1997 against UCLA (17,490).

The Runnin' Rebels, who are in their third year under Kruger, next play at Colorado State on Tuesday. The game will be played at 7 p.m. MST/6 p.m. PST and will be televised live on the mtn. (Cox Digital 334 in Las Vegas).

ESPN/USA Today Top 25 Coaches' Poll (Jan. 29)School (1st Place Votes)    Record  Points1. Florida (26)         19-2    7672. Wisconsin (4)        21-1    7333. North Carolina (1)   19-2    7244. Ohio State       18-3    6685. UCLA             18-2    6486. Kansas       18-3    5957. Pittsburgh       19-3    5798. Texas A&M        17-3    5429. Oregon       19-2    52510. Duke        18-3    48011. Butler          19-2    46912. Memphis         17-3    41513. Nevada, Reno        19-2    40414. Oklahoma State  18-3    38115. Marquette       19-4    31616. Air Force       19-3    30117. Washington State    17-4    24518. Virginia Tech   16-5    23319. Notre Dame          17-4    14720. Alabama         15-5    11921. Clemson         18-4    11622. Arizona         14-6    8523. Texas       15-5    7824. Kentucky        16-5    6825. UNLV            18-4    6225. Indiana         15-5    62

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES: Southern Illinois 54, Virginia Commonwealth 42, Vanderbilt 32, Georgetown 31, Stanford 28, USC 23, West Virginia 20, Michigan State 20, Boston College 12, Winthrop 10, New Mexico State 9, LSU 7, Brigham Young 6, George Washington 6, Texas Tech 4, Villanova 4, Maryland 3, Northern Iowa 2.