In the ultimate David vs Goliath matchup, the University of La Verne basketball squad travels to Las Vegas to take on Division I heavyweight UNLV on Thursday night at Orleans Arena in a 7:00 pm tip-off.
Though the challenge for the Leopards is truly daunting, head coach Rich Reed says his team is excited about the opportunity to face a nationally-ranked Division I opponent. "Every player in our program understands we have the unique opportunity to showcase our University and our program on the national stage," he said. "Who wouldn't be excited about that?"
The Runnin' Rebels current home arena, the 18,000 seat Thomas & Mack Center, is being occupied due to the National Finals Rodeo, thus moving the La Verne-UNLV contest to Orleans Arena, which seats 7,500. UNLV played three games at Orleans Arena last season which included a 90-80 upset of then-No. 1 North Carolina (Nov. 26, 2011).
Under head coach Dave Rice, the Runnin' Rebels (7-1) have won five straight games and are currently ranked No. 17 in the USA Today Coaches Poll and No. 20 in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll. Last season, the squad finished 26-9 and earned a bid to the 2012 NCAA Tournament.
UNLV will feature 6-8 freshman forward Anthony Bennett, a 2012 McDonald's All-America who was recently named Mountain West Conference Player of the Week after averaging 21.5 points and 9.5 rebounds in his last two games.
Reed said the opportunity to face UNLV came about from a friendship through Coach Rice and a goal to add a Division I opponent on the 2012-13 schedule. "Coach Rice is truly one of the great coaches and people in our profession," said Reed. "His brother Grant (head coach at Bishop Gorman High School) and I played AAU ball growing up together, so life is about connections. They had an open date and with Thomas & Mack not avaliable, we were thankful to get the game."
Thursday's meeting between La Verne and UNLV will be the first between the schools in 47 years. The squads played a home-and-home in 1962 and 1964 and last met in 1965.
"Our players know this is a once and a lifetime opportunity but at the same time, our senior class has competed against Division I competition every year," Reed said. "My expectations for this game are not different than they are for every game. I want to see our players execute our game plan no matter who we are playing."
BROADCASTING: On the web, the game will be streamed live on UNLV TV. The game can be seen in the Las Vegas area on VegasTV (KTUD-TV)/UNLV-TV. On the radio, the pregame show can be heard on ESPN Radio 1100 AM/98.9 FM in Las Vegas.
