Nov. 30, 2009

LAS VEGAS - The UNLV men's basketball team is ranked in both the Associated Press and USA TODAY/ESPN Coaches' polls this week following the Runnin' Rebels' impressive 76-71 victory over then-No. 16 Louisville at the Thomas & Mack Center on Saturday.

UNLV, which never trailed the Cardinals and led by as many as 19 points in moving to 5-0 on the season, is No. 24 in the AP poll and No. 21 in the coaches' poll, which were released Monday.

The Runnin' Rebels were last in the rankings at the close of their Sweet 16 run in 2007, when they were No. 19 in the final AP poll and No. 14 in the final coaches' poll. This week's rankings also mark the first time that the Runnin' Rebels have been in the national polls in the month of November since the 1992-93 season, when that squad spent the entire year in the top 25.

Head coach Lon Kruger's team plays its first road game of the season on Wednesday, traveling to play Arizona at 6:00 p.m. (PT) in a game that will be televised by FSN Arizona (Cox Digital Cable 332/DirecTV 686/DISH Network 415). The matchup with the Wildcats will be the fourth in four years between the two regional rivals. UNLV will then play at Santa Clara on Dec. 5 before returning to Las Vegas to play Kansas State at the Orleans Arena on Dec. 12. Tickets are still available for that game by calling (702) 284-7777 or by going to OrleansArena.com.

Associated Press Top 25

Rank    Team (1st Place Votes)  Record  Pts1.  Kansas (63)         5-0     1,6232.  Texas (1)       5-0     1,5083.  Villanova       6-0     1,4424.  Purdue          5-0     1,3895.  Kentucky        6-0     1,3336.  Duke            6-0     1,3167.  West Virginia       5-0     1,2388.  Syracuse (1)        6-0     1,1839.  Michigan State      5-1     1,10910.     North Carolina      6-1     96111.     Tennessee       5-1     93612.     Washington      5-0     89313.     Florida         6-0     77714.     Connecticut         4-1     74215.     Ohio St.        5-1     70216.     Georgetown      4-0     58817.     Gonzaga         5-1     49118.     Clemson         6-1     42619.     Texas A&M       5-1     28420.     Louisville      4-1     25221.     Florida State       6-1     21922.     Cincinnati      4-1     20523.     Butler          4-2     20024.  UNLV            5-0     19125.     Portland        5-1     120

USA TODAY/ESPN Coaches Top 25

Rank    Team (1st Place Votes)  Record  Pts1.        Kansas (30)       5-0     7742.    Texas         5-0     7303.    Villanova         6-0     6854.    Kentucky      6-0     6465.    Duke (1)      6-0     6426.    Purdue        5-0     6327.    Syracuse      6-0     5878.    West Virginia     5-0     5869.    Michigan State    5-1     53210.       Washington        5-0     45811.       North Carolina    6-1     45212.       Tennessee         5-1     40313.       Connecticut       4-1     35614.       Georgetown        4-0     31615.       Ohio State        5-1     30916.       Gonzaga       5-1     27017.       Florida       6-0     24418.       Louisville        4-1     15619.       Clemson       6-1     14220.       Butler        4-2 13221.    UNLV          5-0 10122.       Texas A&M         5-1     9323.       Georgia Tech      4-1     9224.       Cincinnati        4-1     8225.       California        4-2     75