March 11, 2007

LAS VEGAS - Third-year head coach Lon Kruger will become the fifth man in college basketball history to take four different schools to the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship when his UNLV team opens play on Friday vs. Georgia Tech.

Kruger will be making his 10th career trip to the Big Dance and holds an all-time record of 11-9. He was 4-4 in the NCAA event while coaching his alma mater Kansas State; 4-2 at Florida, which included a trip to the 1994 Final Four; and 3-3 in four seasons at Illinois before he left to become head coach of the NBA's Atlanta Hawks in 2000.

With his Runnin' Rebel squad earning an automatic bid to this year's tournament, Kruger joins Rick Pitino, Eddie Sutton, Jim Harrick and Lefty Driesell in the exclusive club.

ALL-TIME COACHES LEADING FOUR TEAMS TO NCAA TOURNAMENT
Lefty Driesell  Davidson, Maryland, James Madison, Georgia StateJim Harrick     Pepperdine, UCLA, Rhode Island, GeorgiaLon Kruger      Kansas State, Florida, Illinois, UNLVRick Pitino     Boston, Providence, Kentucky, LouisvilleEddie Sutton    Creighton, Arkansas, Kentucky, Oklahoma State