’Bows looking
to get out and goHawaii plans to push the tempo and
create fast breaks against Rice tomorrow
FRESNO, Calif. >> Some things are just harder to find on the mainland.
WAC tournament
Who: Hawaii vs. Rice
When: Tomorrow, 12:30 p.m. Hawaii time
Where: Fresno, Calif.
TV: Live, KFVE (Ch. 5)
Radio: Live, KKEA 1420-AM
Winner plays either Nevada or SMU in the semifinals Friday at 4 p.m.
A good bowl of saimin. Sticky rice. A white sand beach.
At least in its last few road games, the Hawaii basketball team could add fast-break points to that list.
The Rainbow Warriors can hardly be characterized as a run-and-gun team, but they have been able to spark runs by scoring in transition during games at the Stan Sheriff Center.
Away from home, the Rainbows have been largely content to play half-court offense, especially early in the contests.
"We have 25-30 breaks at home and eight to 10 on the road," Hawaii coach Riley Wallace pointed out. "We don't get out and go."
The Rainbows are looking to push the pace for tomorrow's game with Rice in the quarterfinals of the McCaffrey Western Athletic Conference tournament at the Save Mart Center.
Tipoff is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. (Hawaii time). The winner faces either top-seeded Nevada or eighth-seeded Southern Methodist in a semifinal contest Friday at 4 p.m.
Hawaii worked on turning up the tempo during its practices the past two days at Fresno City College and Wallace said he's considering shaking up the lineup, including giving point guard Jason Carter a larger role, to bring more energy onto the floor.
He said he'll decide on any changes after today's practice.
The team hopes getting out on the break will help cure the first-half ills that have sent the Rainbows to double-digit deficits in their last three road games.
"It's going to be all about how we do in the first half," UH senior Phil Martin said. "The running game will be important, to get up and down the floor and get those quick easy baskets."
The Rainbows struggled with their jump shots early in their last two games of the regular season, losses to Nevada and Fresno State, and fell into deep holes in both games. They came back in both sparked by more aggressive play on the defensive end, which led to some breakaway points.
"You can't play half-court basketball for 40 minutes and win," Wallace said. "You have to have some pressure defense, like we had in the second half against Fresno (State), like we did in the second half against Nevada. In the second half, we picked our defense up and we pushed it. It's like we're saving something in the first half and we get too far behind."
Hawaii and Rice meet for the second time in less than two weeks, but with a bit more at stake this time. The Rainbows embarked on their current trip following a 91-77 win over the Owls on Feb. 29.
"Everything's still fresh," said UH guard Jason Carter, who had 14 points and three steals against the Owls. "We know what they want to do and who their go-to man is."
Forward Michael Harris and guard Jason McKrieth have been the Owls' go-to players most of the season.
Harris, a 6-foot-6 junior, is shooting a WAC-best 60 percent from the field and leads Rice with 17.5 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. McKrieth complements him with 15.9 points per game.
Harris and center Yamar Diene combined for 32 points on 12-of-14 shooting in the last meeting.
Hawaii forward Julian Sensley is coming off his best game of the season after scoring 24 points on nine-of-10 shooting against Fresno State. The Rainbows will need guard Michael Kuebler to rebound from one of his roughest games of the season when he made three of 16 shots from the field.
Tomorrow's game is a rematch of a quarterfinal classic at last year's tournament, which Hawaii won 62-61 in overtime. Martin enjoyed one of the best nights of his career with 21 points and 14 rebounds.
Hawaii, which has advanced to the postseason each of the last three seasons, can keep its hopes alive of making a run for the WAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament with a win. The loser will likely have to sweat out a berth in the National Invitation Tournament.
"It's definitely got a lot of meaning to it" said Martin, who celebrated his 24th birthday yesterday. "You've been there before and you don't want to settle for less."
