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For Cowboys, all but the winning
Posted: Wednesday January 26, 2000 07:22 PM
By Phil Miller, Special to CNNSI.com If it's possible to have a "successful" 0-2 road trip, or an "encouraging" three-game losing streak, Wyoming has managed it. The Cowboys own a 1-3 record in the Mountain West after being swept in a trip to BYU and Utah, but they made it clear they have not given up on this season. Nobody could have blamed them for a letdown during the conference schedule. Wyoming is playing without all-conference center Ugo Udezue, who had knee surgery last month. It was a devastating blow for the Cowboys, who pictured themselves in a two-team fight with Utah for the first Mountain West title. Now, that championship likely will belong to the Utes, but the Cowboys gave Utah a nasty scare last week. Wyoming came within eight points, 69-61, of snapping Utah's winning streak in the Huntsman Center, a run that, at 47 games, is now the nation's longest. The Cowboys trailed only 63-61 with 2:40 to go but couldn't score again. Still, Utah Coach Rick Majerus was impressed. Even without Udezue, "they play some tough defense in the middle," Majerus said. "They made it difficult for us." Same thing in their previous two games, both against Mountain West contenders -- a 77-71 home loss to Colorado State and an 87-78 setback at BYU. Wyoming is doing everything right but win. "It's not easy to hold it together when you lose the guy who's on [the cover of] your media guide, but in some ways, it has made us stronger," said second-year coach Steve McClain. "We have a lot of senior leadership in there, and [sophomore forward] Josh Davis has done a nice job of adjusting to a new role while Ugo is gone." The Cowboys have changed their style to an up-tempo attack, spreading shots around and trying to draw interior defenders out to the perimeter, where Davis has displayed a nice touch for a 6-foot-8 big man. The loss at Utah was the first time Wyoming had been held below 70 points all year. Davis, forward LaDarion Jones and guard Anthony Blakes, each of whom ranks in the conference's top 15 scorers, give Wyoming a good offensive nucleus with varying styles. Davis (13.7 points per game) is a big man who can shoot, Jones (11.8) a post-up man with plenty of moves, and Blakes (13.9) a guard who can penetrate. They also like to shoot the three; Wyoming has taken 390 treys already, making 143, both on course to break the school record.
Give us your tired, your poorBYU is turning into the Island of College Castoffs. For the second time in three weeks, the Cougars have accepted a transfer from one of college basketball's elite programs. That's not so unusual, perhaps, except for the fact that neither player has more than one semester of eligibility remaining. Nate Knight, a 6-8 junior center who appeared in nine games for Kentucky this season, was granted a release from his scholarship after realizing how little playing time he would see with the Wildcats. The Sandy, Utah, native then enrolled at BYU, where he will walk on and become eligible in late December for one semester -- a 21-game career. Knight, whose brother Travis played at UConn and is now with the Los Angeles Lakers, joins guard Trent Whiting as a one-semester Cougar. Whiting left Utah three weeks ago to walk on at BYU, but because he is transferring within the Mountain West Conference, he will forfeit one of his two remaining seasons of eligibility. Knight has only one year left, because he played one season at Oregon State before serving a Mormon Church mission, then transferred to Utah Valley State College for a season, to Kentucky for part of a season, and now to BYU. "It's an unusual situation -- actually, both of them are unusual -- and we probably would never do it again," said BYU Coach Steve Cleveland. "But we talked it over as a staff, and we discussed it with our players, and we decided the plusses far outweigh the minuses, especially since no scholarships are involved." Cleveland doesn't know what role Knight will play, but the Cougars will likely need his experience next season. Several young interior players will join BYU next year, but only returnees Mekeli Wesley and Eric Nielsen will have played in Division I. "We looked at the needs of our program, and depth up front will be a big one next year," said Cleveland. "Even for one semester, he can help."
Vegas letdownThe buildup to Lou Kelly's debut was about as drawn out as the buildup to the last Star Wars movie. Your call on which was the bigger dud.Kelly, a 6-5 forward whom UNLV fans have long expected to energize their offense, finally became eligible after a protracted battle with junior-college bureaucracy. But his Runnin' Rebel career was halted just 20 minutes, four points and three rebounds into it. Kelly broke his right foot in practice two days before his UNLV debut, tried to play anyway, and ended up in a cast. He was relieved to learn the foot would not require surgery, but it's now unlikely that Kelly can contribute much this season. Worse, the injury will cost him a season of eligibility, since he cannot receive a medical redshirt. This is the third season of his five-year NCAA "clock," even though he played only one season at Los Angeles City College, so he will be a junior next season. Kelly will continue electric-stimulation treatments on the foot with hopes of returning around March 1. "I really feel for Lou," UNLV coach Bill Bayno said. "He's been through so much, and I know he's frustrated. But he's a tough kid, and he can still help us."
Worth notingThe NCAA Management Council has taken the first step toward awarding the Mountain West an automatic invitation to the NCAA Basketball Tournament, and other collegiate championships. The council passed on a proposed rule change that would redefine a "new" conference to the organization's board of directors meeting in April. The current rule requires new conferences to wait five years before being considered for an automatic bid; the change would allow leagues like the Mountain West, whose members have been together for decades, to bypass that requirement. ... San Diego State is about to lose one of the most identifiable figures in its program. Bruce Binkowski, who has been the P.A. announcer at every Aztec home football and basketball game since 1980, is giving up the job to become executive director of the Holiday Bowl. Binkowski is also the voice of Quaalcom Stadium; he has announced every Chargers game since 1977 and every Padres game since 1986. ... Retired NBA star Charles Barkley, in Las Vegas on a gambling vacation, visited a UNLV practice last week.Phil Miller covers the Mountain West for the Salt Lake City Tribune. Check back every Wednesday for his latest CNNSI.com Insider.
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