Kabo

Jason Kabo just wanted to be with his girlfriend.

Now he's with the Sweet 16 in the NCAAbasketball tournament as the strength and conditioning coach for the University of Nevada, Las Vegas men's basketball team.

Originally from Johnstown, Kabo graduated from Slippery Rock University with a degree in exercise science in 2000. He volunteered as a strength coach at UNLVduring the summer of 1999 and followed up with an internship there.

"My wife (then girlfriend and fellow SRUgraduate Sheri Edwards) was going to Las Vegas for a teaching training program that summer,"Kabo said. "SRUsent student teachers out there all the time.

"The Las Vegas area is hurting for teachers. Go through that program and you're an instant hire."

Kabo's wife now teaches first grade in Las Vegas, and he is having the time of his life enjoying the Runnin' Rebels tournament ride.

"This is like my second family here," he said of the UNLVbasketball team. "I see these guys all year round. I do a lot of personal training with each player.

"I get a lot of personal satisfaction out of the team doing so well."

After completing his internship at UNLV, Kabo was hired part-time by the university as an assistant strength and conditioning coach. He became full-time when a position opened in 2002.

Besides men's basketball, he works with UNLV's men's and women's swimming and diving teams, men's soccer, and men's and women's tennis.

But basketball is his primary focus. Twelve of the 17 UNLV players stay on campus throughout the summer.

"We give them a two-week break once the season ends, then it's right back into training for next year,"Kabo said.

The Runnin' Rebels live up to their nickname with their style of play, and Kabo has had no problem getting the athletes to conform to his training techniques.

"From their first day here, we sit them down and tell them how we do it," he said. "We do a lot of speed mechanics and conditioning on the court.

"Whatever a player needs to get better, we handle it."

The Rebels posted just their fifth 30-win season ever and are in the Sweet 16 for the first time since 1991.

But the tournament ride came to an end when UNLV lost to Oregon, 76-72, in the regional semifinals Friday.

The Rebels finished with a 30-7 record, the program's best since finishing 34-1 in 1990-91.

"This is exciting for me,"Kabo said about the Rebels' run through the tournament. "My first year here, we made the tournament and got knocked out in the first round.

"Playing the fast-paced style that we do, seeing our success on the court and the fact our players are still fresh this deep into the season — yeah, I take a lot of pride in that," he added.