Kruger not interested in Arizona opening

Squash any rumors about UNLV head basketball coach Lon Kruger moving on to Arizona as Lute Olson’s eventual replacement.

That was a hot topic among columnists and reporters at UNLV’s 79-64 win over the Wildcats at the Thomas & Mack Center on Saturday. Was Arizona AD Jim Livengood, who also happens to be a good friend of UNLV AD Mike Hamrick, there taking notes on Kruger as Olson’s replacement?

On the surface it seems like a good potential match. Kruger and wife Barb are fond of warm weather and the desert and Lon also has been known to spend his few spare moments on the golf course. And Arizona would have to rank as one of the top 10 jobs in the nation.

But Kruger put the Arizona rumors to rest in a phone interview with Steve Rivera of the Tucson Citizen.

“Barb (his wife) and I love it in Las Vegas,” Kruger said. “We love the situation here, and the people are great. . . . We love what we’re doing in Vegas.”

Kruger also praised interim Wildcats head coach Russ Pennell.

“Russ has done a very good job,” he said. “He’s done as good a job as you can do. Any time you look for a coach, you are looking for someone who can get the most out of your players, getting them to play with intensity. The Wildcats are doing that.

“I’d hope he’d be the front-runner.”