BYU basketball: Rice gets UNLV job, Rose starts search for replacement

Pending approval by the Nevada Board of Regents, UNLV will name BYU assistant Dave Rice as its new head basketball coach on Monday, the school announced earlier today in a news release. Rice has been at BYU the past six years, including the last three as associate head coach under head coach Dave Rose. So, a few days after signing a new five-year contract to remain BYU's coach, Rose now has to find himself a new assistant coach.Who will that be? Names are already starting to surface. One is former Wyoming coach Heath Schroyer, a former BYU assistant, who was seen talking to Rose over the weekend in Los Angeles at the John R. Wooden Awards Gala at the Los Angeles Athletic Club. It is no secret that Schroyer and Rose remain good friends from their days working together as assistant coaches under Steve Cleveland at BYU. Rice's departure leaves Rose with two young assistants, Terry Nashif and Tim LaComb. Rice primarily directed BYU's offense, and was its recruiting coordinator. Current BYU director of basketball operations Mike Hall could get a promotion, as LaComb did last summer when John Wardenburg left the program. Former Cougar Austin Ainge, now head coach of the Maine Red Claws of the NBA Developmental League, might be a possibility. Locally, Lone Peak High coach Quincy Lewis, who has sent several players to BYU in recent years, could also be a candidate.————————————- Last week, we presented a list of college and professional basketball coaches from around the country with LDS ties. Our readers have written or called with more additions to the list. Here are more: * Washington State men's assistant coach Jared Barrett, a former Utah Valley University assistant coach. Barrett has also been an assistant at Sacramento State. * San Diego State women's assistant coach Adam Barrett (Jared's brother). * Snow College head men's coach Michael Ostlund * Snow College assistant coach Steve Dixon * Otero Junior College (Colo.) women's head coach Taylor Wagner, a former Alaska-Anchorage assistant coach