University of Hawai'i women's basketball coach Jim Bolla has applied for the head coaching position at his former school, the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, where he still has support from boosters and former players.

Bolla, who inked a four-year contract extension last summer, was in Florida this week for the women's NCAA Final Four, where UNLV officials were reportedly interviewing candidates for the job. Bolla did not meet with the committee.

On Wednesday, The Las Vegas Review Journal quoted Bolla as saying, "I applied for the job, and I want the job."

In a phone call from Florida yesterday, Bolla confirmed that he did apply for the position, which was vacated when Regina Miller was fired after 10 years at the helm.

"A lot of (UNLV) boosters and former players called me and asked me to apply," Bolla said. "They want to get back to where they were before. They're disappointed with where the program has been the last 10 years, and out of courtesy and respect to them, I applied."

According to the Journal, Bolla is not one of the 16 finalists for the position.

UH athletic director Jim Donovan confirmed that Bolla asked for and received permission to speak with UNLV.

"If a coach wants to coach at another institution, we won't stand in the way," Donovan said. "We think that the University of Hawai'i is a great place to coach."

Bolla coached the Lady Rebels from 1982-1996 and amassed a record of 300-120. During that span, he shared coaching duties the first six seasons with Sheila Strike. In his final eight seasons at UNLV, Bolla's teams made four NCAA Tournaments and ranked as high as No. 2 in the 1989-90 season.

Bolla received a four-year extension over the summer from then UH athletic director Herman Frazier. The deal, which includes the current season, would keep Bolla through the 2010-11 season. Bolla's four-year record at UH is 56-57.

Because Bolla's contract was finalized before the salary range for his position was raised by the UH Board of Regents, his pay is still restricted by the previous salary.

The Regent's action raised the maximum range from $71,388 to $135,000, to $118,488 to $209,784.

Bolla's original three-year contract called for an annual salary of $120,000.

"I've got a great job and I'm not looking to make a move," Bolla said. "I'm getting to the point where I don't want to be running around chasing jobs. I'll leave that to the younger kids. I'm very grateful to the university for letting me get back into (coaching) and we have a goal of getting this program back on track.

"With the new leadership in the athletic administration, hopefully we'll get what we need to compete," he said.

Bolla was the first coach to meet with Donovan after Donovan officially started his AD duties.

"He asked me what we needed, not what was on our wish list, and I told him," Bolla said. "He has to weigh that against the needs of the other programs, but I'm optimistic that he'll be able to help us."

In particular, Bolla said he hopes to be able to address lingering staffing problems within his program. The Rainbows have been without a third assistant coach since Lacole Brooks left after the 2006-2007 season.

Like several other programs, women's basketball has also had to operate without a secretary, forcing assistant coaches to handles many of those duties.

Bolla said he is looking forward to working with a promising crop of new recruits, including early signee Rebecca Dew, a 6-foot-4 post player from New Zealand.

Bolla said he will likely use all seven of the scholarship openings he has available this season. He has received five commitments and is considering five or six potential recruits for the final two spots.

The Rainbows are believed to be in the chase for 6-foot 'Iolani forward Jamie Smith, who has not yet given a verbal commitment.