COLLEGE BASKETBALL : This Looks Like the Real Goodby

Even after Tuesday night’s gala farewell, when Las Vegas paid its respects to Jerry Tarkanian with a 30-minute floor show of sorts at the Thomas & Mack Center, followed by a bash at one of the casino hotels, followed by another party at a local restaurant, the question remained: Is he leaving, or what?

If you watched Tarkanian during the emotional postgame ceremony, you saw a man who seemed to have accepted the inevitable--that is, rescinded resignation or no rescinded resignation, the UNLV administration doesn’t want him back.

You can always tell when Tarkanian is this close to tears. He starts sipping water from a cup and Tuesday evening, as he listened to the testimonials and witnessed the outpouring of affection, Tarkanian must have drained the container in record time.

But for all the tears, all the compliments paid to Rebel fans, all the appearances of someone leaving, Tarkanian never actually said he was hanging up his white towel. In fact, he made a special effort to remain vague about his future.

Privately, however, Tarkanian has made it clear that he has coached his last game at UNLV, perhaps even his last college game. Considering the circumstances, he has suggested, the NBA might be his next stop. And if not that, maybe a consulting job with Nike, or a career as a television color analyst, or--and he is serious about this--as a member of the University of Nevada System Board of Regents.

As for the possibility of a lawsuit, one that would ask the courts to reinstate him as UNLV coach--who knows? If Tarkanian is telling the truth about never coaching at Vegas again, then a lawsuit can accomplish only two things: 1) Force the university to release sensitive information concerning its efforts to monitor the UNLV basketball program. By doing so, Tarkanian might learn whether the school’s administration was responsible for leaking information and allegations about his program; 2) Achieve some sort of “scorched earth” policy. The thinking here might be: “They hit us. Let’s hit back.”

So there remains, at least in legal terms, a chance Tarkanian could still return to UNLV. Don’t count on it, though. In fact, Tarkanian has openly discussed other career options, including his potential candidacy as a Board of Regents member.

“Everybody laughs when I say that, but I’m serious,” Tarkanian said.

Television work remains a possibility. After all, good friend and former UC Irvine Coach Bill Mulligan got a job as a part-time broadcaster, so why not Tarkanian?

A job at Nike isn’t out of the question. The shoe company hired Eddie Sutton after he left Kentucky in semi-disgrace. Sutton cleaned up his act, was hired a year later by Oklahoma State and has energized that program. Who’s to say Tarkanian might not be able to do the same?

And the NBA? Right now, the most-heard rumor has Tarkanian going to the San Antonio Spurs. It wouldn’t be the first time Tarkanian has been linked to an NBA job. In 1977, Tarkanian said he accepted the Laker job, but then changed his mind. In 1980, he had another chance at the Lakers, but also declined the offer.

But that was years ago. Despite the lengthy NBA season and the job insecurity, Tarkanian might be more receptive these days. There is also one other thing to consider.

“In the pros, you don’t have the NCAA haunting you,” he said.

Tarkanian--Part II: More reading between the lines. . . .

If Tarkanian is serious about keeping his job, then why does he keep outlining the qualifications of his successor, whomever that might be?

After partying until 2:30 Wednesday morning, Tarkanian met with reporters about eight hours later at a hotel coffee shop. It was there that Tarkanian pondered the list of possible candidates--Connecticut’s Jim Calhoun, Tulane’s Perry Clark, Utah’s Rick Majerus, Ohio State’s Randy Ayers, Kansas’ Roy Williams and Stanford’s Mike Montgomery (and we’ll add another name we’ve heard: Terry Holland, the former Virginia coach)--and highlighted the do’s and don’ts of coaching at UNLV.

--Do use an up-tempo offense.

--Don’t forget glitz.

About two weeks ago, before he rescinded his resignation, Tarkanian was even more specific.

“It’s going to take a tough guy mentally,” he said. “This town is a funny town, you gotta win. Everybody says it’s a basketball town, but it’s only good if you win. If you don’t win, they don’t come to the games. They’ll disappear in a hurry on you. So the guy is going to have to win.

“(The new coach is) going to have to be able to handle criticism,” he said, “because everything in this town centers around Rebel basketball. But he’s got to win, that’s the first thing. You have to produce a good team and they don’t care about excuses, either.”

Tarkanian has lobbied hard for UNLV assistant Tim Grgurich, but it won’t matter. Athletic Director Jim Weaver is determined to find a successful, high-profile, established head coach with little or no hint of scandal.

Said Tarkanian: “They’re not going to get a big-time coach here unless they’re paying more than they’re paying me.”

Tarkanian made a bundle, but word is that money won’t be a problem in the hiring of a new coach. Weaver told USA Today that he would like to hire a new coach before the Final Four, which begins April 4. As an added incentive, he said that for every year’s probation UNLV might receive from the NCAA, the school would extend the coach’s contract by the same number.

Tarkanian--Part III:

A suggestion to Tarkanian: If he really wants to coach college basketball again, forget the threatened lawsuit against UNLV. For once, he should walk away from a fight, especially one not worth winning.

Yes, the actions of the UNLV administration have sometimes been juvenile, if not shameful. To secretly place a video camera in a gymnasium air conditioning duct--as ordered by UNLV counsel Brad Booke--is something out of “Revenge of the Nerds.” In this sense, the UNLV hierarchy is to blame for many of the recent problems.

And yes, this is an administration paranoid in its own right and in need of some tough self-examination.

But Tarkanian isn’t without fault. If the NCAA levies sanctions against UNLV--as it is expected to do eventually--it would mark the third time a Tarkanian program has been penalized for rules violations. And the pursuit of the truth, as Tarkanian so desperately seeks, works both ways.

For example, why would Tarkanian ever recruit the troubled Lloyd Daniels in the first place? And if education is such a high priority, why allow J.R. Rider, a talented player who regards academics as an afterthought, to continue to mock the system?

Tarkanian has said repeatedly that he loves UNLV. If that’s true, then perhaps it would be best to depart gracefully. It would be better for UNLV and better for any prospective athletic director or university president interested in hiring Tarkanian, one of the best coaches in the business.

“I think the time has come for me to leave here,” Tarkanian said two weeks ago.

It was true then. It is truer now.

It has been a dreadful 10 days for the Wisconsin Green Bay team.

First, redshirt sophomore guard Tory Smith was charged with three counts of delivery of cocaine and one count of conspiracy to deliver cocaine. On Tuesday, additional charges of armed robbery were added.

Add to that the saga of Chris Yates, a fifth-year senior, who was recently charged with three counts of armed robbery.

Then, Wisconsin announced it was interested in contacting Green Bay Coach Dick Bennett about its soon-to-be-vacant position, currently occupied by Steve Yoder.

And then . . . starting off-guard John Martinez tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee during Monday night’s game against Valparaiso. He is out for the rest of the regular season and presumably, considering Green Bay’s 24-3 record, the conference and NCAA tournament.

To help ease the pain of recent events, guard Tony Bennett came to the rescue. Against Valparaiso, the coach’s son led the Phoenix to a 69-25 victory.

The list of accomplishments:

--Bennett outscored Valparaiso, 30-25.

--He made 10 of 19 field-goal attempts. Valparaiso made eight of 43.

--He made four of eight three-pointers. Valparaiso made two of 14.

--He had two blocked shots. Valparaiso had none.

--He scored 20 points in the second half. Valparaiso scored nine.

During the same game, Green Bay fans displayed signs that read, “Oh, no, Dick don’t go.” The same signs included a picture of Bucky Badger, the Wisconsin mascot, with a circle and a line drawn through it.

If Notre Dame does somehow squeeze into the NCAA tournament with 15 or 16 wins, the Irish can thank Coach John MacLeod and power forward LaPhonso Ellis. Ellis, one of the great underachievers, has been the key player in Notre Dame’s unexpected run. “He is really enjoying himself,” MacLeod said of Ellis. “It’s great to see what he’s done. He’s really coming into his own. His self-esteem is really high at this point.” . . . Last year Ohio State staggered into the NCAA tournament, losing its final two regular-season games. This year, Ohio State enters the final two weeks of the season fresher and more dangerous. “What we’ve tried to do is change our routine,” said Ayers. “We’re not spending as much time on the floor as we have in the past. We’re trying to keep our legs fresh.” In 1991, Ayers said he might have been guilty of working his team too hard at season’s end. . . . Michigan Coach Steve Fisher junked his all-freshman starting lineup against Ohio State. He replaced Jimmy King and Ray Jackson with Eric Riley and James Voskuil. It didn’t work; Michigan lost. . . . Utah’s Majerus on the UNLV job: “My posture is, I’ll listen to anyone. My gawd, I’d listen to Chapman College. All I ever try to do is listen, but I’m not out seeking a job. I’m very happy where I am.” Majerus did say there was one advantage (other than money) to UNLV not found at Utah. “The reason I’d be interested in Vegas is the opportunity to get better players,” he said.

Top 10

As selected by staff writer Gene Wojciechowski

No. Team Record 1. Duke 24-2 2. Indiana 22-4 3. Ohio State 20-5 4. Arkansas 23-6 5. Arizona 22-4 6. Kansas 22-4 7. USC 20-4 8. UCLA 21-4 9. UNLV 26-2 10. Missouri 20-6

Waiting list: Kentucky (22-6), Michigan State (18-6), Florida State (19-8), St. John’s (18-8), Oklahoma (19-7)