RAINBOW PLAYBOOK
San Jose State Spartans
n Coaches: SJSU, Phil Johnson (1st year, 12-13); UH, Riley Wallace (12th year, 181-171)
Season: SJSU, 12-13 (5-7 WAC); UH, 5-19 (2-10 WAC).
Top players: Terrance Richmond, 6-2 junior guard (12.3 points per game, 2.5 rebounds per game); Will Trawick, 6-7 senior center (10.5 ppg, 8.0 rpg); Michael Quinney, 5-10 senior guard (10.4 ppg, 2.4 rpg); Shaun Murray, 6-9 senior forward (8.1 ppg, 3.8 rpg).
Interesting facts: The Spartans have made a big turnaround from last year's 3-23, 1-13 record. Their victory over Brigham Young on Saturday clinched the sixth and final Pacific Division berth in the WAC Tournament ... San Jose State's second-leading scorer, guard Ben Sanders, is expected to miss his sixth consecutive game recovering from a broken right arm ... Rainbows junior point guard Johnny White is coming off a career-high (23 points) game at San Diego State ... Hawaii will end its season Saturday at home against Fresno State, having failed to qualify for the WAC Tournament.
Keys to the game: The Rainbows lead the series, 5-4, dating back to the 1951-52 season. At home, Hawaii leads, 3-1 ... Hawaii's leading scorer, junior center Marquette Alexander (13.7 ppg), had a career-high 29 points at San Jose State on Jan. 28. But the Rainbows lost, 70-55 ... Trawick (18 points, 9 rebounds) led four Spartans in double figures that night.
Tipoff: Today, 7:07 p.m., Stan Sheriff Center.
On the air: Live, KFVE TV (Channel 5); KCCN radio (1420 AM)
WAHINE PLAYBOOK
San Jose State Spartans
Coaches: SJSU, Karen Smith (7th season, 49-138). UH, Vince Goo (12th season, 239-106).
Season: SJSU, 2-23 (0-12 WAC). UH, 15-9 (7-5 WAC).
Top players: Megan Gluhan, 5-7 guard, fifth in WAC in 3-point field goal percentage (34-of-90, .378), 2.9 assists per game; Dafina Dailey, 6-0 forward, 7.4 rebounds per game; and Ayana Smith, 6-0 forward.
Interesting facts: The Wahine hold a 25-4 lead in the series ... Spartans are last in WAC in scoring (48.2) and 11th in points allowed (69.2) ... UH is eighth in scoring (65.7) and third in scoring defense (59.0) ... Wahine make 43 percent of their field goal attempts, Spartans 32 percent ... The only statistical edge SJSU holds over UH is in rebounding (36.1 to 33.0 per game) ... The Wahine received one vote in the latest USA Today/ESPN poll ... UH is No. 67 in the latest RPI rankings.
Keys to the game: The Spartans have lost 20 consecutive games ... The Wahine have to play at their caliber and not fall to the Spartans' level ... Defense and converting free throws have been key in UH's recent success. Defense, in particular, is what sparks the Wahine offense ... It would be beneficial for Hawaii to build a substantial lead so Goo can give his starters some rest ... The Spartans are playing their next-to-last home game under Karen Smith, who has resigned effective at the end of the season. The emotional lift should be there, but it's likely not enough to offset a long, frustrating season of inept play.
Tipoff: Today, 5 p.m., at the Event Center in San Jose, Calif.
On the air: Live on KCCN radio (1420 AM).
