[ UH BASKETBALL ]
Rainbows may
host ‘Buster’The national event again is
part of UH basketball schedule
The third time will apparently be the charm for the Hawaii basketball team. After being on the road for the past two "Bracket Busters," the Rainbows' third appearance in the ESPN event likely will be at the Stan Sheriff Center.
"There's nothing official, but we were promised a home this time," Hawaii coach Riley Wallace said yesterday.
Bracket Busters Saturday is Feb. 19. All 10 WAC teams will be involved rather than four as in the past two years. According to Wallace, the highest-rated teams will have their games televised on ESPN.
The Bracket Buster game would be one of eight nonconference home contests for UH this coming season. The others are prior to the Dec. 20-23 Rainbow Classic, being held before Christmas for just the second time in 41 years.
The Classic is the only tournament Hawaii hosts this season as opposed to the two or three in past years. UH associate head coach Bob Nash said the single-game format will allow the Rainbows to play every six days or so instead of having a two-day tournament followed by a 10- or 12-day break.
"We try to be fan friendly and give them more bang for the buck (with tournaments)," Nash said. "But I think our fans will be pleased with the structure of our schedule."
Confirmed opponents are Coastal Carolina (Nov. 26), Southern Illinois (Nov. 29) and St. Mary's (Dec. 11). Possible teams for a mid-December date include Western Michigan and UNC-Ashville.
UH also has a home-and-home with St. Louis and will play the Billikens Dec. 4 at the 21,000-seat Savvis Center. St. Louis is set for a Nov. 25, 2005, game at the Sheriff Center.
UH will receive $25,000 to play at St. Louis "and we're giving them rooms when they come here," Nash said. "It's a good trade-off. It's a chance to play on the road, play a quality opponent in a big venue. Hopefully, we'll get on ESPN, which is what they're talking about."
The Rainbow Classic field includes Alabama-Birmingham, Clemson, Georgetown, Indiana State, Long Beach State, LSU and Southern California. The Rainbows open WAC play at Fresno State Dec. 30 with a New Year's Day game at Nevada.
Nash is hoping to schedule an exhibition game against Hawaii-Hilo and a controlled scrimmage against Brigham Young-Hawaii in November. The schedule is expected to be finalized later this week.
