any thoughts about UNLV?

[nwhoopfan]

Admittedly I haven't seen them play at all. Noticed they recently entered the polls. 25-2 record overall and 15-0 in the Mountain West. There is a decided lack of signature wins (and a couple iffy losses?), but it's a gaudy record. They had a nice season last year as well. I have to imagine Lindy La Rocque is quickly working her way towards getting an opportunity for a more high profile coaching gig soon if she wants it.

 

[DefenseBB]

Gaudy record similar to the poor voter opinions on Middle Tennessee, that they have played no one of consequence and are not a top team.

 

[JellyBean]

UNLV is like Gonzaga and BYU over the years. They won't get a lot of attention from the media but UNLV is fun to watch. Coach La Rocque has that program on the rise in her third season. I hope Coach La Rocque stays at UNLV and builds that program into a powerhouse. Much like Coach Fortier at Gonzaga.

 

[nwhoopfan]

UNLV is like Gonzaga and BYU over the years. They won't get a lot of attention from the media but UNLV is fun to watch. Coach La Rocque has that program on the rise in her third season. I hope Coach La Rocque stays at UNLV and builds that program into a powerhouse. Much like Coach Fortier at Gonzaga.

She's from Vegas isn't she? Maybe she's exactly where she wants to be and has no intention of moving on.

I would say Coach Graves built Gonzaga into a power and Fortier has done a very good job of maintaining it.

 

[JellyBean]

Yes indeed. Coach LaRocque is from Vegas. True. Coach Graves built Gonzaga into a power and Coach Fortier is doing a great job of keeping that program at a high level.

 

[Carnac]

My UNLV alum granddaughter who was a team manager for 4 years, and is impresed with the quick turn around LaRoque has done with this team, thinks she’s using it as a stepping stone to a major P5 program. I agree.

My opinion, she’ll be gone in 3 years. This is the first time the Lady Rebels have been ranked in decades. She’s drawing national attention to the program. That’s always a plus.

 

[Lorcan]

La Rocque has commented on how much she appreciates being close to her parents as she’s had her first kid this year. I would think that means she’ll stick around for a while and it may be a while before she leaves Vegas.

 

[dabears17]

Lindy is one of my favorite Stanford players. I can't find the video clip, but during a rivalry game against Cal she dove for a loose ball and while still laying flat on the ground passed the ball ahead for a lay-up assist. It was her parents at the airport after the loss to UConn in the 2010 final four who told me that Jayne Appel had played the entire tournament with a broken foot.

 

[JellyBean]

La Rocque has commented on how much she appreciates being close to her parents as she’s had her first kid this year. I would think that means she’ll stick around for a while and it may be a while before she leaves Vegas.

I hope that she sticks around. Las Vegas is a great place and to have the women's program at UNLV slowly building into solid program over the past few years, this is a great thing to grow the game.

 

[Carnac]

La Rocque has commented on how much she appreciates being close to her parents as she’s had her first kid this year. I would think that means she’ll stick around for a while and it may be a while before she leaves Vegas.

We can only speculate. SHE is the only one that knows when the time is right and she's ready to move on to a more challenging and lucrative coaching opportunity.

 

[Carnac]

I hope that she sticks around. Las Vegas is a great place and to have the women's program at UNLV slowly building into solid program over the past few years, this is a great thing to grow the game.

The higher the profile she can create and maintain there makes it easier to recruit and keep the top "local" recruits from Las Vegas. I wish her all the best. I've been following UNLV for the past 8 years.

 

[oldhusky]

The higher the profile she can create and maintain there makes it easier to recruit and keep the top "local" recruits from Las Vegas. I wish her all the best. I've been following UNLV for the past 8 years.

In addition I think the success of the Aces and UNLV help feed the interest in both, and in local women's high school basketball. As Vegas becomes an attractive destination for WNBA free agents, it can also be the same for high school recruits to join the Running Rebels, and as attendance and interest in UNLV raises the area's interest in women's basketball, more people will start paying attention to the Aces as well.

Women's basketball is on the upswing there for both programs.

 

[Carnac]

In addition I think the success of the Aces and UNLV help feed the interest in both, and in local women's high school basketball. As Vegas becomes an attractive destination for WNBA free agents, it can also be the same for high school recruits to join the Running Rebels, and as attendance and interest in UNLV raises the area's interest in women's basketball, more people will start paying attention to the Aces as well.

Women's basketball is on the upswing there for both programs.

Absolutely!!! Who doesn't like to go to Las Vegas, the city that has something for everyone? The UNLV women host a 3 day thanksgiving holiday tournament every year. They don't have a problem getting teams to accept invitations to play in that tournament. Las Vegas has an "allure" all its own that's hard to match.

Las Vegas loves its NHL Golden Knights, its NCAA Runnin' Rebels, its WNBA Aces, and of course its NFL Raiders. It would not surprise me if an NBA team relocated to Las Vegas, or the league gave them an expansion team in the next 10 years. I think an NBA team would do very well there. Right now the WNBA champion Aces "own" Las Vegas.

 

[oldhusky]

Absolutely!!! Who doesn't like to go to Las Vegas, the city that has something for everyone? The UNLV women host a 3 day thanksgiving holiday tournament every year. They don't have a problem getting teams to accept invitations to play in that tournament. Las Vegas has an "allure" all its own that's hard to match.

Las Vegas loves its NHL Golden Knights, its NCAA Runnin' Rebels, its WNBA Aces, and of course its NFL Raiders. It would not surprise me if an NBA team relocated to Las Vegas, or the league gave them an expansion team in the next 10 years. I think an NBA team would do very well there. Right now the WNBA champion Aces "own" Las Vegas.

The Oakland A's are possibly very close to moving to Vegas as well, and I think they are at least one of the rumored sites for MLS expansion. I think the NBA will happen it is just a question of when. Amazing when not that long ago they didn't have any professional franchises.

 

[Carnac]

The Oakland A's are possibly very close to moving to Vegas as well, and I think they are at least one of the rumored sites for MLS expansion. I think the NBA will happen it is just a question of when. Amazing when not that long ago they didn't have any professional franchises.

Because the main "draw" of Las Vegas is gambling, leagues didn't want any of their teams in that city, or associated with gambling.
Every casino in Las Vegas has a sportsbook.

Enter all of the off site on-line gambling sites like "FanDuel" and "Draft Kings", etc that opened up sports betting to the entire country, removing the negetive thoughts of any professional team being in Las Vegas. You can make bets on your cellphone from any place in the country. A lot of folks even make bets while at work. How convienent. On-line sports betting is here to stay.

These cities had better start treating their baseball teams right, or like the Raiders did, they'll move. Vegas would welcome a MLB team with open arms. What better way to grow the local economy than with the addition of a MLB franchise? It would be childs play to build a state of the art 45,000 seat baseball stadium in Las Vegas. The Raiders and the Rams are the only NFL teams to leave a city for greener pastures, and later return. The success of the Raiders and the Sparks are not going unnoticed by other professional sports.

 

[LwrcasefaN]

How do you watch UNLV games?

 

[nwhoopfan]

How do you watch UNLV games?

I haven't been watching. I think a few Mountain West games end up on CBSSN, and the conference has its own streaming service.