Unlv

USC tonight VS. NEVADA LAS VEGAS When: 6:30 PST. Where: Stan Sheriff Center, Honolulu. On the air: TV: ESPN2. Radio: 830. Records: USC 7-4, Nevada Las Vegas 12-1 Update: USC faces Nevada Las Vegas in the championship game of the inaugural Diamond Head Classic. The Runnin' Rebels advanced with a 77-53 win over Hawaii. They are led by junior guard Tre'Von Willis (15.4 points a game)

ATLANTA -- Rick Pitino hasn't had “One Shining Moment” this Final Four weekend. He's had several. It's been pretty surreal. It started last week, when Pitino's son Richard, was named coach at Minnesota to replace Tubby Smith, who replaced Rick Pitino at Kentucky in 1998. It continued Saturday, when a horse that Rick Pitino has an ownership stake in, “Goldencents,” won the Santa Anita Derby. Later that night, Louisville's basketball team advanced to Monday night's NCAA title game with a win over Wichita State at the Georgia Dome.

Armen Gilliam , who was part of the UNLV basketball team that made a run to the Final Four in 1987 and played for several NBA teams died at 47. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office said Wednesday that Gilliam died Tuesday night at the LA Fitness gym in Bridgeville, Pa., while playing basketball. The office said an autopsy was pending. The Phoenix Suns drafted Gilliam as the No. 2 overall pick in the 1987 NBA draft. In addition to the Suns, Gilliam played for the Charlotte Hornets, Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Nets, Milwaukee Bucks and Utah Jazz.

LAS VEGAS - For six crazy years, Jon Goldman has undergone a transformation before every UNLV game from energized boy-wonder student to, well, cartoon character. He's got the facial hair of Yosemite Sam, the speed of the Roadrunner and the whirling-dervish energy of the Tasmanian Devil. But for fans of the Runnin' Rebels sports teams, he's the high-fiving, fist-pounding, fireworks-shooting, do-it-all dance machine who goes by the name “Hey Reb.” Goldman, the University of Nevada Las Vegas team mascot, retired Saturday with a ceremony at the Rebels basketball game against Fresno State.

Shon Tarver, who led Santa Clara High to two consecutive state Division IV basketball championships, announced Tuesday that he has given an oral commitment to attend Nevada Las Vegas. Tarver, a 6-foot-5 off-guard who averaged 31.6 points this season, was also named Division IV Player of the Year on Tuesday for the second year in a row.

With their point-a-minute defense leading the way, New Mexico's Lost Lobos took over the Bottom Ten lead. The Lobos, edged 14-56 by Utah, have allowed 180 points in three games. However, they face a threat to the top spot Saturday when they play equally inept Nevada Las Vegas (0-3), ranked No. 6. It's a must-lose game for both teams. No. 7 North Carolina, which had 12 players sit out a 24-30 loss to Georgia Tech because of an NCAA investigation, announced it's switching to six-man football.

Jeff Kearin, Cal State Northridge's football assistant head coach, is joining John Robinson's staff at Nevada Las Vegas. "It was tough to leave but it's something I think I had to do for myself in order to get a head coaching job someday," Kearin said. Kearin, 38, was a Northridge assistant the last four seasons under three coaches and was the team's recruiting coordinator. He was an assistant to Robinson at USC from 1991-94. Kearin will be tight ends coach and help with special teams at UNLV.

Jeremi Rudolph and Kevin Brown each topped the 100-yard mark in rushing and quarterback Jason Thomas added 126 yards on the ground as Nevada Las Vegas hung on Saturday to defeat Hawaii, 34-32, and assure itself of a postseason bowl game. With the victory, the Rebels (7-5) will play Arizona State in the Las Vegas Bowl. It was a dominant offensive show displayed by UNLV, which finished with 431 yards on the ground. Thomas rounded out the attack with 124 yards passing.

Tyrone Nesby made a three-point basket with 1:24 left to give Nevada Las Vegas the lead, then sealed the win with a pair of free throws as the Runnin' Rebels upset fifth-ranked Utah, 54-51, in the quarterfinals of the Western Athletic Conference tournament at Las Vegas. Nesby, who had a game-high 22 points, rebounded a miss by Andre Miller of Utah (25-3), and then sank two free throws after being fouled with 6.4 seconds left.

Reporting from Las Vegas -- Dewayne Dedmon's face belonged on a milk carton in USC's previous four games. The 7-foot sophomore had all but vanished from the box scores, turning Coach Kevin O'Neill's lofty hype that Dedmon was a future NBA lottery pick into a foolhardy forecast. Against Nevada Las Vegas on Friday, Dedmon finally made an impact — only not the kind he wanted. Showcasing the inexperience of a player who began playing organized basketball at 18, Dedmon drew a game-turning technical foul in the second half that keyed UNLV's 66-55 win in the Las Vegas Invitational.

at Long Beach State 75, UC Riverside 35: The balanced 49ers shot 53% and handed the Highlanders their seventh loss in a row. It was the fewest points Long Beach (16-9, 12-2 Big West) has given up since UC Irvine scored 26 in 1980. Tony Freeland scored 14 points and James Ennis had 12 for the first-place 49ers, who had a 31-19 halftime lead and closed the game with a 28-5 run. Riverside (5-20, 2-11) shot 24%. St. Mary's 61, at Loyola Marymount 50: The Gaels used an early 14-0 run to hand the Lions their 10th consecutive loss.

LAS VEGAS - President Obama announced a new effort to help people struggling to repay student loans, part of his ongoing campaign to push policies that grab young voters' attention without having to go through Congress. In a memorandum released Thursday, Obama instructed his administration to take steps to improve a student loan repayment plan, directing the Education Department to better advertise the program, streamline the application process and develop Web and mobile applications to ease access.

When: 4:30 p.m. Where: Orleans Arena, Las Vegas. On the air: Radio: 710. Records: USC 2-3, UNLV 5-0. Record vs. opponent: USC leads all-time, 5-3. Update: The Rebels beat Cal Poly by 23 points Tuesday. Cal Poly beat USC by six. UNLV has five players averaging double figures in scoring, led by UCLA transfers Mike Moser (16.0) and Chace Stanback (13.3). The Rebels average 83.2 points per game — 26.8 more than USC. — Baxter Holmes

Reporting from Las Vegas -- Dewayne Dedmon's face belonged on a milk carton in USC's previous four games. The 7-foot sophomore had all but vanished from the box scores, turning Coach Kevin O'Neill's lofty hype that Dedmon was a future NBA lottery pick into a foolhardy forecast. Against Nevada Las Vegas on Friday, Dedmon finally made an impact — only not the kind he wanted. Showcasing the inexperience of a player who began playing organized basketball at 18, Dedmon drew a game-turning technical foul in the second half that keyed UNLV's 66-55 win in the Las Vegas Invitational.

Armen Gilliam , who was part of the UNLV basketball team that made a run to the Final Four in 1987 and played for several NBA teams died at 47. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office said Wednesday that Gilliam died Tuesday night at the LA Fitness gym in Bridgeville, Pa., while playing basketball. The office said an autopsy was pending. The Phoenix Suns drafted Gilliam as the No. 2 overall pick in the 1987 NBA draft. In addition to the Suns, Gilliam played for the Charlotte Hornets, Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Nets, Milwaukee Bucks and Utah Jazz.

No. 3 Boise State 59, at New Mexico State 0: Kellen Moore passed for 196 yards and three touchdowns in limited playing time as the Broncos (4-0, 1-0) dominated in their Western Athletic Conference opener. Moore connected on two touchdown passes to Kyle Efaw and Doug Martin caught a touchdown pass and rushed for another as Boise State extended its winning streak to 18 games. Jeremy Avery, Jarvis Hodge and Mike Coughlin also scored. Matt Christian passed for 63 yards with an interception for the Aggies (0-4, 0-1)

Only a few years ago, the best defensive player on Nevada Las Vegas' football team was concentrating on hitting the ball, not the ballcarrier. Linebacker Scott Patton played three minor league seasons as an outfielder in the Chicago White Sox organization, rubbing elbows briefly with Michael Jordan before quitting to return to college. Patton--who went to Capistrano Valley High School and later Saddleback College--was hitting .300 with Class A Hickory (N.C.

Pacific ended a 26-game losing streak to Nevada Las Vegas on Thursday night as Michael Jackson scored a career-high 19 points and made three of four free throws in the final 1:13 in a 62-56 upset of the 10th-ranked Rebels. The loss ended a seven-game winning streak for UNLV (13-2, 6-2 Big West), which was held to its lowest point total of the season. The Rebels, who shot 39% from the field, had not lost to the Tigers since Jan. 3, 1972.

With their point-a-minute defense leading the way, New Mexico's Lost Lobos took over the Bottom Ten lead. The Lobos, edged 14-56 by Utah, have allowed 180 points in three games. However, they face a threat to the top spot Saturday when they play equally inept Nevada Las Vegas (0-3), ranked No. 6. It's a must-lose game for both teams. No. 7 North Carolina, which had 12 players sit out a 24-30 loss to Georgia Tech because of an NCAA investigation, announced it's switching to six-man football.

PEBBLE BEACH, Calif. — Toward the end of his eight-minute, anti-USGA rant Sunday, Ryan Moore was asked if he would play at any future U.S Open. "Probably, just to torture myself," he told a handful of reporters off the 18th green. "I get angry, and it makes me hate golf for about two months, and then I'm OK again." Moore shot a solid two-over-par 73 on Sunday to put himself in position for a top-40 finish. But to hear him tell it, Moore got little out of the experience other than extreme frustration.