Saturday, January 8, 2000
Ending road woes would
By Pat Bigold
be big step for Rainbows
Star-BulletinCan they win on the road?
That is the burning question this weekend about Riley Wallace's comeback kids.
The University of Hawaii men's basketball team has lost nine straight games on the road, dating back to March 3, 1998, at UNLV.
There's never been a better reason to break the jinx than now.
After last season's 3-10 start, Wallace has this team off to an 11-2 start, and what happens tomorrow at UTEP (9-4) could determine a lot about its character.
The Miners might be a bit deflated after blowing a seven-point lead in the last 54 seconds Thursday on their homecourt, losing to New Mexico State, 74-73.
Asked this week how he'd assess the Rainbows' chances in the Western Athletic Conference, Wallace shook his head and put it simply, "I couldn't tell you anything about them until I see them on the road."
If the Rainbows are to break into the top 25, they must continue winning, and the Miners must be their next victim.
RAINBOW BASKETBALL
What: Hawaii (11-2) at Texas-El Paso (9-4)
If Hawaii prevails in El Paso, it's home sweet home for games against SMU (12-2) on Jan. 12 and TCU (9-6) on Jan. 15.
Thinking about Hawaii's long losing streak on the road, Wallace did something this season he hadn't done since 1995. He arranged to play an away game before the WAC season began.
But if the 85-56 shellacking Hawaii took on Dec. 8 at USC is to serve any purpose, Wallace will have to see it manifested at the Don Haskins Center.
"If you lose, you've got to hope that you just got beaten by a better ball team and that both teams really went at it," said Wallace. "We can't afford to have another blowout."
Hawaii and UTEP match up well in shooting percentage, with the Rainbows at 47 percent and the Miners leading all WAC teams at 49 percent.
Marquette Alexander, Hawaii's aggressive 6-foot-8, 250-pound senior center, has the most important assignment in the UTEP game.
He will guard 6-9, 230-pound junior Brandon Wolfram, who is second in the WAC behind Courtney Alexander (Fresno State) in scoring with a 20.8 average, and pulls down 6.2 rebounds per game.
He has the best numbers of any big man in the WAC.
Wolfram is shooting 61 percent from the field and it's dangerous to foul him. He is an 84 percent free throw shooter.
"I just have to play smart and just don't let up," said Alexander, who is averaging 13.4 points and 7.6 rebounds.
"I'm going to try to stay out of foul trouble and yet stand my ground."
Troy Ostler, Hawaii's 6-9, 205-pound power forward, will take on UTEP's surprising 6-6, 190-pound freshman forward, Roy Smallwood. Smallwood is averaging 11.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.42 blocks, while Ostler averages 11.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and 1.54 blocks.
"Marquette gets the bigger guy because he's stronger and more powerful," said Ostler. "And on the smaller guy I might be a little quicker. He'll be faster up top because he can handle it, but down low I think I can get a hand up and bother his shot. And I can double down on 'Quette's guy (Wolfram)."
Ostler figures he won't have too much trouble with Smallwood on the offensive side because of his size advantage.
Hawaii senior point guard Johnny White draws UTEP senior point guard Eggie McRae, who is averaging 8.6 points, 3.8 assists and was named to the WAC all-defensive team last season.
"The coaching report is that he's a driver and a penetrator, and that's about all I know about him," said White, who averages 8.2 points and just under three assists.
As for 6-6 sophomore guard Predrag Savovic, who was successful in shutting down top scoring guards for Colorado and Oregon in the Rainbow Classic, he and 6-5 junior small forward Nerijus Puida will be used interchangeably on UTEP's senior guards, 6-2 William Smith (14.9 ppg) and 6-4 Jarvis Mullahon (11.3 ppg).
Mullahon is the WAC's second leading 3-point shooter (47 percent).
Smith is the conference's seventh leading assist man with 3.92 per game.
But Puida is second only to Fresno State's Demetrius Porter (6.08) in assists, averaging 4.92.
http://uhathletics.hawaii.edu
Ka Leo O Hawaii
