# 1986–87 UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball team

The 1986–87 UNLV Runnin' Rebels basketball team represented the University of Nevada Las Vegas in NCAA Division I men's competition in the 1986–87 season under head coach Jerry Tarkanian. The team played its home games in the Thomas & Mack Center, and was a member of the Pacific Coast Athletic Association (PCAA), now known as the Big West Conference; it would join the Western Athletic Conference in 1996 and become a charter member of its current conference, the Mountain West Conference, in 1999.
The nickname "Runnin' Rebels" is unique to men's basketball at UNLV. The default nickname for men's sports teams at the school is simply "Rebels", while all women's teams are known as "Lady Rebels".

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Regular season |||||||||
| 11/21/1986* | No. 5 | No. 19 Arizona Preseason NIT | W 92–87 | 1–0 | – | – | – | Thomas & Mack Center (15,065) Las Vegas, NV |
| 11/24/1986* | No. 5 | No. 7 Oklahoma Preseason NIT | W 90–81 | 2–0 | – | – | – | Thomas & Mack Center (14,836) Las Vegas, NV |
| 11/28/1986* | No. 5 | vs. Temple Preseason NIT | W 78–76 | 3–0 | – | – | – | Madison Square Garden New York, NY |
| 11/29/1986* | No. 5 | vs. Western Kentucky Preseason NIT Championship | W 96–95 | 4–0 | – | – | – | Madison Square Garden New York, NY |
| Dec 5, 1986* | No. 2 | at Memphis State | W 80–77 | 5–0 | 26 – Paddio | – | – | Mid-South Coliseum Memphis, Tennessee |
| 12/19/1986* | No. 1 | Ohio Rebel Round-Up | W 105–81 | 8–0 | – | – | – | Thomas & Mack Center Las Vegas, NV |
| 12/20/1986* | No. 1 | Louisiana Tech | W 79–75 | 9–0 | – | – | – | Thomas & Mack Center Las Vegas, NV |
| 12/27/1986* | No. 1 | Old Dominion UNLV Holiday Classic | W 103-83 | 10–0 | 35 – Gilliam | – | – | Thomas & Mack Center (19,320) Las Vegas, NV |
| 12/28/1986* | No. 1 | No. 12 Navy UNLV Holiday Classic | W 104–79 | 11–0 | 27 – Gilliam | – | 21 – Wade | Thomas & Mack Center (20,321) Las Vegas, NV |
| 1/3/1987 | No. 1 | UC Irvine | W 114–72 | 12–0 (1–0) | – | – | – | Thomas & Mack Center (19,058) Las Vegas, NV |
| 1/8/1987 | No. 1 | San Jose State | W 89–77 | 13–0 (2–0) | – | – | – | Thomas & Mack Center Las Vegas, NV |
| 1/10/1987 | No. 1 | Utah State | W 114–94 | 14–0 (3–0) | – | – | – | Thomas & Mack Center (19,418) Las Vegas, NV |
| Jan 15, 1987 | No. 1 | at UC Santa Barbara | W 88–74 | 15–0 (4–0) | – | – | – | The Thunderdome Santa Barbara, CA |
| 1/17/1987* | No. 1 | at No. 16 Oklahoma | L 88–89 | 15–1 | – | – | – | Lloyd Noble Center Norman, OK |
| 1/19/1987 | No. 4 | at Cal State Fullerton | W 73–65 | 16–1 (5–0) | – | – | – | Titan Gym Fullerton, CA |
| 1/22/1987 | No. 4 | Long Beach State | W 104–74 | 17–1 (6–0) | – | – | – | Thomas & Mack Center Las Vegas, NV |
| 1/24/1987 | No. 4 | New Mexico State | W 85–58 | 18–1 (7–0) | – | – | – | Thomas & Mack Center Las Vegas, NV |
| 1/26/1987 | No. 3 | Fresno State | W 106–58 | 19–1 (8–0) | – | – | – | Thomas & Mack Center (18,068) Las Vegas, NV |
| 1/29/1987 | No. 3 | at UC Irvine | W 114–103 | 20–1 (9–0) | – | – | – | Bren Events Center (4,644) Irvine, CA |
| 2/1/1987* | No. 3 | at No. 18 Auburn | W 104–85 | 21–1 | – | – | – | Beard–Eaves–Memorial Coliseum Auburn, AL |
| 2/5/1987 | No. 1 | at Utah State | W 113–78 | 22–1 (10–0) | – | – | – | Smith Spectrum (10,280) Logan, UT |
| 2/7/1987 | No. 1 | at San Jose State | W 83–74 | 23–1 (11–0) | – | – | – | San Jose Civic Auditorium San Jose, CA |
| 2/9/1987 | No. 1 | at Pacific | W 73–59 | 24–1 (12–0) | – | – | – | Alex G. Spanos Center Stockton, CA |
| 2/12/1987 | No. 1 | Cal State Fullerton | W 74–64 | 25–1 (13–0) | – | – | – | Thomas & Mack Center Las Vegas, NV |
| 2/14/1987 | No. 1 | UC Santa Barbara | W 86–76 | 26–1 (14–0) | – | – | – | Thomas & Mack Center Las Vegas, NV |
| 2/19/1987 | No. 1 | at Long Beach State | W 86–66 | 27–1 (15–0) | – | – | – | Gold Mine (8,663) Long Beach, CA |
| 2/21/1987 | No. 1 | at New Mexico State | W 80–69 | 28–1 (16–0) | – | – | – | Pan American Center Las Cruces, NM |
| 2/26/1987 | No. 1 | Pacific | W 82–55 | 29–1 (17–0) | – | – | – | Thomas & Mack Center Las Vegas, NV |
| Mar 1, 1987 | No. 1 | at Fresno State | W 70–59 | 30–1 (18–0) | – | – | – | Selland Arena (10,132) Fresno, CA |
| PCAA tournament |||||||||
| 3/5/1987* | (1) No. 1 | vs. (8) Long Beach State Quarterfinals | W 105–70 | 31–1 | – | – | – | The Forum Inglewood, CA |
| 3/6/1987* | (1) No. 1 | vs. (5) Cal State Fullerton Semifinals | W 99–65 | 32–1 | – | – | – | The Forum Inglewood, CA |
| 3/7/1987* | (1) No. 1 | vs. (3) San Jose State Championship Game | W 94–69 | 33–1 | – | – | – | The Forum Inglewood, CA |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| 3/12/1987* ESPN | (W1) No. 1 | vs. (W16) Idaho State First Round | W 95–70 | 34–1 | 23 – Banks | 10 – Hudson | 9 – Wade | Special Events Center (11,314) Salt Lake City, UT |
| 3/14/1987* CBS | (W1) No. 1 | vs. (W9) Kansas State Second Round | W 80–61 | 35–1 | 24 – Gilliam | 11 – Gilliam | 13 – Wade | Special Events Center (14,944) Salt Lake City, UT |
| 3/20/1987* CBS | (W1) No. 1 | vs. (W12) Wyoming Sweet Sixteen | W 92–78 | 36–1 | 38 – Gilliam | 13 – Gilliam | 9 – Wade | Kingdome (23,035) Seattle, WA |
| 3/22/1987* CBS | (W1) No. 1 | vs. (W2) No. 6 Iowa Elite Eight | W 84–81 | 37–1 | 27 – Gilliam | 10 – Gilliam | 12 – Wade | Kingdome (22,914) Seattle, WA |
| 3/28/1987* CBS | (W1) No. 1 | vs. (MW1) No. 3 Indiana Final Four | L 93–97 | 37–2 | 38 – Banks | 10 – Gilliam | 18 – Wade | Louisiana Superdome (64,959) New Orleans, LA |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. |||||||||
    Source:

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking ( ) = First-place votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Final |
| AP | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Coaches | Not released | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 (32) | 1 | 1 (30) | 1 | 1 (29) | 1 (39) |

## Awards and honors

* Armon Gilliam – PCAA Player of the Year, Consensus Second-team All-American

## Team players drafted into the NBA

| Round | Pick | Player | NBA Club |
| 1 | 2 | Armon Gilliam | Phoenix Suns |
| 2 | 24 | Freddie Banks | Detroit Pistons |