Another game
of inches
Hawaii again will be
By Dave Reardon
at a height disadvantage when
it plays Tulane in the
PowerBar Invitational
Special to the Star-BulletinUniversity of Hawaii basketball coach Riley Wallace says the Rainbows are fortunate to catch Tulane tomorrow, because the Green Wave could be a tsunami before long. "They have some really good athletes," Wallace said. "They've had some ups and downs because they're young. But we're lucky to be playing them now and not later in the year. They will be very good."
Tulane is coming off a 69-64 loss to Prairie View (Texas) A&M on Tuesday. But Hawaii scout Jeff Law said the Green Wave's green but talented youngsters can be dangerous.
"If we plan on going out on the floor and just showing up, we'll get killed," Law said.
Tulane starts four underclassmen, including freshmen wings Byron Mouton and Chris Owens, who were high school all-Americans last year and became part of a recruiting class considered among the nation's top 25.
They've adjusted well to college ball. Mouton leads Tulane in scoring average at 16.0 and assists with 2.6. Owens averages 12.6 points and a team-leading 7.8 rebounds.
"Mouton and Owens can play inside and outside," Law said. "You can't sleep for a second on them. They might jack up some shots that most people would think were bad shots, but they stick them. They like to spread their offense and create from the wings."
Owens is 6-foot-8 and Mouton 6-6. Point guard Dylan Osean is 6-4, power forwards Sterling Davis and Keith Harris are 6-7, and center Lawrence Nelson is 6-10.
The Rainbows will again be at a height disadvantage, with a frontline of Mike Robinson (6-8), Eric Ambrozich (6-8) and Micah Kroeger (6-6). Guards Alika Smith and Anthony Carter are both listed at 6-2.
But the Rainbows negated the inches they gave up last week against Indiana -- they played the Hoosiers even on the boards -- partly through tremendous outside shooting that carried over against Illinois State.
Smith hit nine of 10 trey attempts over the weekend, and Carter was 5-for-8. Smith is averaging 25.0 points a game, with Carter at 21.0 and 9.5 assists.
"That (3-point shooting) would be hard to sustain for a season," Wallace said. "That's why we've got to improve other facets, like cutting down turnovers, getting rebounds and more defensive stops. We can't count on that kind of shooting all the time."
Wallace added that practices haven't been as sharp as he would like the past couple days.
"I was unhappy with the intensity level. There was a little bit of a falloff and I got on them pretty good for it today," he said. "This team responds well to that kind of thing, so they picked it up. If they want to continue playing well, they're going to have to continue to improve."
Hawaii isn't ranked in the Associated Press Top 25, but is No. 14 in the Sagarin ratings.
PowerBar Invitational
Saturday: Hawaii (2-0) vs. Tulane (3-2), 7:07 p.m.; Long Beach State (2-3) vs. Southern Illinois (1-3), 9 p.m.
1997-98 Rainbow Men’s Basketball
Schedule and Recordhttp://uhathletics.hawaii.edu
