CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. -- Jerry Tarkanian inherited one of college basketball's most barren outposts when he accepted a job offer to lead the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in 1973. The team's infamous "Tumbleweed Tech" nickname had been earned by the program's lack of national following at a time when the sport was exploding onto the national scene, and it lived on a campus and city that resembled nothing of its current form. Home games were played at the Las Vegas Convention Center - away from the old Vegas Strip that lacked much of the flash and glitz that eventually arrived with the huge resort experiences established in the 1980s - and its spot in the NCAA College Division put it on par with the current Division II until a reclassification into the Division I ranks in 1970.
Thursday Three-Pointer: Feb. 22, 2024
