Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, March 11, 1991 TAG: 9103110130
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: KANSAS CITY, MO. LENGTH: Medium
The top-ranked Runnin' Rebels are slated to play Georgetown, one of a record-tying seven teams from the Big East, in the second round of the NCAA tournament. The 64-team field and pairings were announced Sunday.
"People have been asking me all week who I feared the most, and Georgetown was one of the two I feared," said UNLV coach Jerry Tarkanian, whose team enters the tournament with a 41-game winning streak. "Georgetown is a dangerous team."
Before the matchup is set, both teams must win their first-round games Friday at the West Regional in Tucson, Ariz. Top-seeded UNLV (30-0) plays 16th-seeded Montana (23-7) and eighth-seeded Georgetown (18-12) meets No. 9 Vanderbilt (17-12).
Last week, Georgetown was considered a borderline NCAA tournament team. But the Hoyas clinched a berth by making it all the way to the Big East tournament final, where they lost to Seton Hall on Sunday.
"A few days ago we were on the bubble and today we're the eighth seed in the West," said Georgetown coach John Thompson. "It's interesting we go from not going [to the tournament] to eighth seed by winning two basketball games."
Ohio State, which shared the Big Ten title with Indiana, got the top seed in the Midwest despite losing its last two games, to Purdue and Iowa. The other No. 1 seeds are North Carolina in the East and Arkansas in the Southeast.
Ohio State coach Randy Ayers was surprised that his team got a top seed.
"We didn't think we'd get it after the week we had," Ayers said. "We feel the [selection] committee rewarded us for our consistency earlier in the season."
All the top seeds play their opening games on Friday.
Ohio State (25-3) meets Towson State (19-10) at Dayton, Ohio. North Carolina (25-5), which beat Duke to win the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament, opens against Northeastern (22-10) at Syracuse, N.Y., and Arkansas (31-3), which topped Texas for the Southwest Conference championship, meets Georgia State (16-14) in Atlanta.
The seven Big East schools in the tournament ties the record set by the Big Ten last year. The conference will be represented by Georgetown, Seton Hall, Villanova, St. John's, Connecticut, Pittsburgh and Syracuse. The only Big East teams that didn't make it were Providence (17-12) and Boston College (11-19).
"We were hopeful of eight, but I thought eight would be a hard swallow," Big East commissioner Mike Tranghese said. "I know Providence is one of the best 64 teams. The thing that hurt them was that four of their wins were against teams ranked No. 240 or lower."
Six ACC schools made the 64-team field, while the Big Ten and Southeastern Conference each placed five teams.
Fifteen teams with 20 or more victories were left out of the tournament. They include Fordham (24-7), Siena (23-9), Southwest Missouri State (21-11), Furman (20-8) and Middle Tennessee State (21-9).
Missouri (20-10), Kentucky (22-6) and Illinois (21-10) were ineligible because they're on NCAA probation.
UNLV originally was barred from the tournament for recruiting violations, but the NCAA reversed its decision in September after the school appealed. Under the ruling, the Runnin' Rebels will be ineligible for the tournament next season.
The Rebels are an overwhelming favorite to defend their title. But to reach the Final Four in Indianapolis, they may have to get by Georgetown and Arizona, two teams with powerful inside games. Barring any upsets, UNLV and second-seeded Arizona would meet in the West final.
"To get through that region, we have to play the same way we've been playing," Tarkanian said.
Jim Delany, chairman of the NCAA selection committee, denied there was any attempt to stack the deck against UNLV.
"What makes the West tough is that UNLV is in it," Delany said. "If you pull UNLV out and put them in any other region, they would be considered the toughest of the regions."
Montana coach Stew Morrill said his team's 16th seed and first-round pairing were an insult for a conference champion.
"I certainly didn't expect to draw Vegas," he said. "Needless to say, it's going to be quite a challenge for us."
Three teams will play their opening games in their home states - Ohio State in Dayton, Georgia State in Atlanta and Brigham Young in Salt Lake City.
Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton will be taking a record fourth school to the NCAA tournament. He previously guided Creighton, Arkansas and Kentucky to the tournament.
First-round action begins Thursday at regional sites. Second-round winners advance to the regionals the following weekend, with the four regional winners going to the Final Four at Indianapolis March 30-April 1.
Keywords:
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by CNB