After being jilted by Chris Beard, UNLV has moved forward with the announcement that Marvin Menzies has been hired as basketball coach. The deal is pending a review from the Nevada System of Higher Education board of regents. The coach has a reputation as a “journeyman”, but he is the flawless fit for Texas Tech and the Red Raiders are the ideal fit for him.
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“It’s like when Bear Bryant left Texas A&M for Alabama”, Beard said Saturday at a campus news conference.
Texas Tech announced the hiring Friday afternoon. Then Georgia Tech subsequently hired Memphis’ Josh Pastner.
When Kunzer-Murphy spoke at Beard’s introductory news conference last week, she declared that he was the right coach to bring the Rebels back to prominence after three straight seasons without an NCAA tournament bid.
“This unprecedented move is extremely disappointing to (UNLV) President (Len Jessup) and I, for our program and to our fans”, Kunzer-Murphy wrote. She says UNLV will go back to its candidates and hire someone “who really wants to be here and who will honor his commitments”.
Menzies’ name had popped up for the UNLV job since Dave Rice’s firing during the regular season.
The Sacramento Kings fired Karl as head coach on Thursday after parts of two seasons with the team, going just 44-68, per ESPN.com. He also has direct ties to the Runnin’ Rebels program.
Those three are: Ben Carter, who tore his ACL in February, Jaylen Poyser and Tyrell Green. “Our job is to take this to the next level”.
Beard was a Texas Tech assistant from 2001-2011 and several of those years were spent working under Bob Knight.
In his past five years at New Mexico State, Menzies has presided over the Aggies’ most successful era since their heyday in the early 90s.
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Beard, 43, came to UNLV from Arkansas-Little Rock, which he led to the NCAA tournament and a first-round upset of Purdue this year in his first season as a Division I head coach.
