By Kathryn Bender, Star-Bulletin
Sophomore Chris Herren gave the Bulldogs
their bite with 35 points.
University of Hawaii basketball fans have been waiting for him for a long time -- for 15 years to be exact, ever since Danny Ainge finished at BYU. There has been an occasional small-time villain here and there since, but never anybody to loathe as much as Ainge. And the good/bad news is that Herren is only a sophomore.
Of course, he is the player who you love, period, if he's on your team. Especially when he scores a career-high 35 points in the biggest game of the year, like Herren did for Fresno State last night as the Bulldogs whipped the Rainbows, 98-80.
He's a complete guard who can shoot from outside, pass and penetrate. And he's a tough guy; Herren's one of the few college kids who would still have tattoos if they weren't in style.
Unlike Ainge, Herren's not what you'd call a whiner. He's more of a smirker. When the fans get on him -- which they do whenever the Bulldogs play on the road -- he often acknowledges them with a grin or just a strange, psychotic stare.
And every now and then, he'll get in the face of an opponent -- or an opposing coach. Sometimes for no apparent reason.
"You never know when he's going to go off," Fresno assistant coach Danny Tarkanian said of Herren, meaning it in more ways than one.
When he makes a 3-pointer, he struts back to the other side of the court, talking to himself, his goofy smile even bigger than usual.
It's too early to call Herren a budding Dennis Rodman. He hasn't kicked any photographers, or dressed in drag yet. But he does have a similar on-court persona: equal parts raw talent and quirky showmanship. Real or contrived? Who knows?
With every 3-pointer, with every hard contact with a Hawaii player, Herren heard about it from the nearly 10,000 fans:
"You look like Charles Manson with a bad haircut!" "You'd better enjoy it while you can Herren, you're gonna be digging ditches in a couple years." "Hey, come here, Herren. I've got some humble pie for you."
"I loved the crowd, they're great fans," Herren said. "Once in a while I hear a few of the things they say. But they don't know me and they probably don't mean most of what they say, anyway. It helps keep me focused."
Herren looked anything but at times, especially at the free-throw line, where he made only 11 of 18 shots. Still it was obvious Herren had control of the game.
His 3-pointer and beautiful bounce pass assist on a fast break started a 17-2 run at the outset of the second half. With Anthony Carter in foul trouble, that basically settled the issue as the Bulldogs led 60-39 with 16:16 remaining.
"I think we did a great job on Carter," Herren said. "He's a great player, but (Dominick) Young and (Kendric) Brooks didn't let him have many shots.
"Tonight we were well prepared. We knew everything they were going to do," he added. "This was the best scouting we've had all year."
Herren wore two leis after the game.
"I have a special friend who I used to see at Boston College," explained Herren, who transferred from there to Fresno State after his freshman year. "Her family lives here."
Well, at least someone in Hawaii likes Chris Herren.
Fresno State 98, Hawaii 80
Bulldogs (19-7 overall; 11-4 WAC)
mp fgm fga ftm fta reb pf tp R. Smith 31 9 13 2 3 11 0 20 Forney 20 3 8 1 2 7 0 7 Young 25 3 9 0 0 1 0 8 Herren 36 9 17 11 18 2 0 35 Macklin 11 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 Stanley 9 1 2 0 0 2 0 2 Roberson 12 2 3 4 6 0 0 8 McCulloch 27 2 6 1 4 6 0 5 Brooks 29 4 8 2 3 4 0 13 Team 4 Totals 200 33 67 21 36 39 27 98
Rainbows (19-6 overall; 11-4 WAC)
mp fgm fga ftm fta reb pf tp Robinson 24 3 4 7 10 7 3 13 Kroeger 37 1 3 5 8 7 5 7 A. Smith 38 6 16 8 8 2 3 23 Carter 38 5 13 2 6 2 4 12 Miller 7 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 Furlong 26 4 9 2 2 4 4 10 Ambrozich 30 5 10 5 6 6 5 15 Team 3 Totals 200 24 56 29 40 32 25 80Key: mp-minutes played. fgm-field goals made. fga-field goals attempted. ftm-free throws made. fta-free throws attempted. reb-rebounds. pf-personal fouls. pts-points scored.
Halftime score--Fresno State 42, Hawaii 37.
3-point goals--FSU 11-24 (Herren 6-11, Brooks 3-5, Young 2-6, Roberson 0-1, McCulloch 0-1), UH 3-17 (A. Smith 3-12, Carter 0-5).
Assists--FSU 17 (Herren 6), UH 15 (Carter 6). Turnovers--FSU 16 (Forney, Young, Herren 3), UH 21 (Carter 8). Steals--FSU 9 (Young 4), UH 10 (A. Smith 3). Blocked shots--FSU 5 (Forney 2), UH 5 (Carter 2).
Technicals--Forney 2.
A--10,225. Officials: Dixon, Sanchez, Ristau.