Saturday, November 21, 1998
Wahine cruise
in opener
They defeat Minnesota in
By Al Chase
Hawaiian Regent Classic
Star-BulletinWhen Raylene Howard is on the floor, her Hawaii Wahine teammates look for the 5-foot-11 junior forward often. And with good reason.
"We all know Ray can score," UH captain and floor leader BJ Itoman said. "She's been put in a different spot that she's not really used to, but she's like a Kylie (Page), she can play anywhere."
Howard's tour of duty lasted the full 40 minutes last night at the Stan Sheriff Center. She scored 27 points and pulled down eight rebounds, both team highs, in leading the Wahine to a 63-52 season-opening victory over Minnesota in the first round of the Hawaiian Regent Classic.
"When you have someone like Raylene, you always look for her," Wahine head coach Vince Goo said. "She's an outstanding offensive player. She's only a junior, but is playing with a lot of experience and savvy. She knows when to shoot and when to pass it."
Howard, who scored 18 of UH's 32 first-half points, said playing inside is different and a challenge, but she's enjoying it.
Hawaii maintained its 11-point halftime lead (32-21) at the end, although the Golden Gophers rallied early in the second half to cut the deficit to five (41-36).A 12-2 run by the Wahine pushed the lead to 15 as Howard scored six points and Itoman hit a 3-pointer.
"We played good spot basketball for 26 out of 40 minutes," Goo said. "But the most important thing for tonight, being our first game, is we played about 3912 minutes with a lot heart. We battled on the boards and went for loose balls on the floor and chased down long rebounds. We didn't get them all, but we had the effort."
Sophomore forward Crystal Lee, in her first start for Hawaii, had 17 points, including four 3-pointers.
Junior guard Kyla Evers played a solid game on defense for UH, but was 1-for-6 from the free-throw line.
"We want her to put the ball in the basket a little more," Goo said.
Evers said she worked harder this past summer than she did the previous two summers combined.
"I busted my butt knowing I had a role to fill and might have a chance to start," said Evers, who tied Itoman for top honors with six assists.
"That surprises me, but this year I'm seeing things I should see coming down the floor," Evers said.
Moneeke Bowden, a 6-2 junior center, paced Minnesota with 15 points. Theresa LeCuyer added 12.
UH's 62.5 free-throw shooting percentage was a disappointment, and Goo said that would be addressed at today's practice.
No. 17 Kansas 58, UMass 49: Lynn Pride scored 15 points and Jaclyn Johnson had 13 points for the Jayhawks.
Tonia Thomas' 16 points led the Minutewomen, who may have lost more than the game.
Kelly Van Huisen left with a knee injury six minutes into the game and Jaywana Bradley hurt her knee with 7:19 left to play. Both had ACL's last season.
Hawaiian Regency Classic
At Stan Sheriff Center
Golden Gophers (1-1 overall)
mp fgm fga ftm fta reb pf tp Robinson 29 3 9 0 0 3 3 6 LeCuyer 25 5 9 2 2 7 1 12 Bowden 29 7 19 0 0 4 3 15 Taylor 13 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 VanderHeyden 14 2 8 0 0 2 1 4 Blevins 3 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 Olson 33 1 7 0 0 3 2 4 Harris 20 1 8 0 0 5 4 5 Hansen 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Tate 32 1 1 4 4 7 1 6 Team 2 Totals 200 22 63 6 6 33 18 52Rainbows (1-0 overall)
mp fgm fga ftm fta reb pf tp Lee 35 4 11 6 6 7 1 17 Howard 40 10 14 6 8 8 1 27 Liu 30 2 7 1 2 5 0 5 Itoman 39 5 13 1 2 2 1 13 Evers 38 0 5 1 6 7 1 1 Forsberg 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 McMeeken-Ruscoe 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 Kohler 8 0 1 0 0 1 1 0 Petersen 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Greeny 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Team 3 Totals 200 21 51 15 24 34 6 63Halftime score--Hawaii 32, Minnesota 21.3-point goals--Minn. 2-10 (Harris 1-2, Bowden 1-3, Blevins 0-1, Olson 0-1, VanderHeyden 0-3), UH 6-16 (Howard 1-2, Itoman 2-5, Lee 3-8, Evers 0-1).
Assists--Minn. 10 (Taylor 4), UH 14 (Evers, Itoman 6). Turnovers--Minn. 20 (LeCuyer 4), UH 20 (Lee 6). Steals--Minn. 12 (Robinson, VanderHeyden 3), UH 7 (Itoman, Lui 2). Blocked shots--Minn. 1 (Olson), UH 2 (Liu, Lee).
Technicals--None.
A--897 (tickets issued 1,727). Officials: Dubas, Yamasaki, Tanibe.
Jayhawks (1-1 overall)
mp fgm fga ftm fta reb pf tp Raymant 28 4 8 0 0 6 2 10 Jackson 24 1 3 2 5 0 2 4 Pride 30 6 13 3 5 5 2 15 Johnson 23 3 5 7 9 2 5 13 Sanford 31 2 8 1 2 7 1 5 Pruitt 17 0 1 0 0 3 0 0 Reves 15 2 5 0 1 1 0 4 Robbins 22 0 6 7 7 0 1 7 Geoffroy 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 Fletcher 7 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 Team 5 Totals 200 18 50 20 29 30 14 58Minutewomen (1-2 overall)
mp fgm fga ftm fta reb pf tp Rayside 34 1 4 2 2 12 3 4 Coyner 34 2 7 2 2 3 4 6 Kraft 29 2 7 0 0 6 2 4 Van Huisen 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 MacFarland 26 2 13 0 1 2 2 6 Thomas 25 6 13 2 2 3 5 16 Bradley 22 3 4 0 0 1 1 6 Penton 0+ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Nehls 10 2 4 0 0 2 1 4 Smith 14 0 1 3 4 3 3 3 Team 7 Totals 200 18 53 9 11 39 21 49Halftime score--Kansas 26, Massachusetts 18.3-point goals--KU 2-10 (Raymant 2-2, Jackson 0-1, Pruitt 0-1, Pride 0-2, Robbins 0-4), UMass 4-13 (MacFarland 5, Thomas 2-5, Kraft 0-1, Coyner 0-2).
Assists--KU 10 (Robbins 4), UMass 10 (Rayside 3). Turnovers--KU 18 (Pride 7), UMass 24 (Coyner 9). Steals--KU 14 (Pride 6), UMass 5 (Coyner, Kraft, MacFarland, Thomas, Smith 1). Blocked shots--KU 5 (Raymant, Sanford 2), UMass 2 (Rayside, Smith 1).
Technicals--None.
Officials: Johnson, Hayashi, Nunokawa.
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