Rival UNLV, San Diego State assistants share uncommon bond

The bond was born one night during a car ride from Inglewood, Calif., to San Diego, 125 miles along a dark freeway, and nothing between two young basketball junkies but an open road and two hours of talking the game they love more than life itself.

This is a story of friendship, of respect, of mutual admiration.

Justin Hutson and Tony Bland share a connection that can't be broken by any one recruiting battle, any star prep player both covet, any one game -- no matter how much rankings and hype suggest its importance to be.

One sidebar to the Mountain West Conference opener between No. 12 UNLV and No. 22 San Diego State on Saturday is the presence of an associate head coach on one bench and a first-year assistant on the other, of Hutson the mentor and Bland the pupil, of a rivalry within the rivalry that could define West Coast recruiting and beyond for years to come.

Bland was coming to the end of a professional playing career in 2008, which is to say he would need two new knees to continue competing, and he jumped at the chance to return to San Diego State as the team's head manager, to finish his degree in social science and be around the program he helped deliver to the national scene upon transferring from Syracuse.

At the time, Hutson was a rising assistant under coach Steve Fisher and had only heard of Bland through the staff. That night, while in Bakersfield, Hutson picked up the telephone.

"Justin called and said he was near Los Angeles and could come get me and take me to San Diego," Bland said. "He didn't know me to save his life, but immediately offered to let me live with him. That's the kind of person Justin Hutson is.

"He is like a big brother to me. At the end of the day, no matter who wins, my kids will always think of him as an uncle, and I will still do magic tricks for his daughters. I hope we beat them Saturday, but our team and staff know how good UNLV is. The game will end, and I'll call Justin the next day and we'll talk basketball like always."

The two have never stopped talking. They would return home from games during the 2008-09 season and talk deep into the night. Hutson would inquire about Bland's pro career in the states and overseas. Bland would ask about what qualities made a great recruiter.

They shared opinions, experiences, dreams of what they wanted to accomplish. They talked strategy and salesmanship, about this player and that player and how this team countered what that team ran. X this. O that. Hour after day after week after month passed.

"It took me about a day to know Tony would be really good at this," Hutson said. "He has a great personality and owns the gift of gab. He's charismatic and always wanted to learn as much as he could. Our relationship is very special. We're like brothers."

How ironic and, well, appropriate then that we have this:

The 40-year-old Hutson was the first hire made by first-year UNLV coach Dave Rice, taking from the Aztecs a highly respected defensive coach and recruiter who played a major role in San Diego State winning 34 games and advancing to the Sweet 16 last season.

The Aztecs then countered by replacing him with the 31-year-old Bland, whom Fisher and Aztecs associate head coach Brian Dutcher often predicted would make a terrific coach and recruiter during those days Bland ran the point for San Diego State.

What you have now are two ranked programs with two of the best recruiters in the West often chasing the same players, friends who are more like brothers selling their respective visions, two teams that will only get better and better as Hutson and Bland lead the efforts to sign top talent, a rivalry that should not lessen to the degree many believe when San Diego State departs for the Big West Conference in 2013.

"I don't think that (move) will be a big deal for them, because of where their program is and the fact all those guys (at San Diego State) know what they're doing," Hutson said. "You would be surprised. Some (elite) players care about (conference affiliation) and some don't care at all. As for going after the same players, I think that will always be a year-to-year, need-by-need basis. I know Tony is very good. We learned from one another. He's going to do great things for them."

Said Bland: "If Dave Rice tells Justin to go get a certain player, and Steve Fisher tells me the same thing, we'll butt heads recruiting. We'll grind away at it. It's our job. But of all I learned from Justin, the one thing that stands out is his professionalism. Justin doesn't cut corners. He's very smart. He does things by the book and is passionate and relentless. He taught me to outwork whoever you're working against. I soaked up everything he taught me. Nothing, no game or recruit, will ever come between our friendship.

"If I can't get a kid, I want Justin to get him, because I know he will be in great hands."

It must have been some conversation heading down that dark freeway one night in 2008.

Las Vegas Review-Journal sports columnist Ed Graney can be reached at egraney@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4618. He can be heard from 3 to 5 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday on "Monsters of the Midday," Fox Sports Radio 920 AM. Follow him on Twitter: @edgraney.