As I recall it, the loudest the crowd got during Saturday’s nationally televised UNLV-Duke game at T-Mobile Arena came with just over six minutes to play, when Grayson Allen checked out after torching the Runnin’ Rebels for a career-high 34 points. At that point, large numbers of UNLV supporters had already departed, not wanting to stick around to catch the final blowout score of 94-45. The sellout crowd of 19,107 (reported as the largest audience for a basketball game in Las Vegas since 1991), once a blended sea of bright reds and blues, was decidedly blue, and happy, and very loud.
This might sound strange, but it felt like a big moment for Las Vegas.
A Duke win was a given in the first meeting of these two college basketball teams in 25 years, a rivalry that remains inexplicably strong despite the fact they’ve only played four times. (And the series is tied 2-2, just for the record.) The rebuilding Rebels never really had a chance, though they played with heart and passion for most of the first half.
This was more an event than a basketball game, a celebration that lasted all weekend. It began Friday night with a fundraising reception at Light Nightclub featuring a discussion with UNLV coach Marvin Menzies, Rebel greats Anderson Hunt and Moses Scurry and former Duke star Brian Davis—connecting the glory days to the present. The benefactor was Coaches Vs. Cancer, a nationwide collaboration between the American Cancer Society and the National Association of Basketball Coaches. Partners included our own Comprehensive Cancer Centers as well as heavy hitters Mandalay Bay, Nike, Gatorade, Summerlin and ESPN.
The main event, the first college basketball game played at T-Mobile, which opened in April, was nothing short of electric. The massive videoscreen played clips from past UNLV-Duke duels, the introductions included fireworks just like in the good old days, and the national anthem was performed by Irene Queen, who sang it at the Thomas & Mack during UNLV’s 1990 championship season. Nostalgia aside, there were those thousands of Duke fans who traveled to Las Vegas from North Carolina (and Hawaii and Ohio and other places, judging from a few overheard conversations) between Thanksgiving and Christmas to have a huge weekend.
The sellout should provide some relief for those concerned about Las Vegas’ ability to fill a potential NFL stadium for eight or more football games every year. When all those Duke fans were cheering for Allen, all I could think about was how much money they’d spend Saturday night at restaurants and casinos. A simple college basketball game in December had become a major event worth a trip to Vegas.
It also made me think of this coming Saturday’s 25th annual Las Vegas Bowl, a matchup between Houston and San Diego State. John Saccenti, the bowl’s executive director, couldn’t make it to UNLV-Duke because he was in San Diego meeting with Aztecs officials. And he was very sad to miss it.
“We’re an event town first. People want big-time events to go to once every year or a couple times a year, so the NFL is kind of the perfect scenario,” Saccenti says. “You’re talking eight home dates a year on [mostly] Sundays. With baseball or basketball or hockey, there’s so much competition in Las Vegas for your entertainment dollar.”
There will be out-of-towners in attendance for Las Vegas’ NHL and NFL games, and they won’t necessarily be coming from the visiting team’s city. For pro sports to succeed on a consistent basis, Vegas will have to be Vegas, which means putting on a great show regardless of what happens on the field, court or rink. It happened last Saturday, and it’ll happen again this Saturday.
“Our goal is to make sure everyone gets to experience Vegas and put on a good show up until kickoff,” Saccenti says. “Then it’s up to the teams to finish the job.”
