Friday, October 15, 1999

’Bows party
’round midnight

Midnight Ohana will showcase
a UH basketball team
with 14 newcomers

By Pat Bigold
Star-Bulletin

Midnight Ohana takes on a "Baywatch Hawaii" motif tonight as members of the cast join Rainbow and Wahine basketball players at the Stan Sheriff Center.

Festivities get under way at 8 p.m. with a concert and mini-carnival. It will be the public's first chance to see what the 1999-2000 men's team looks like in action, and there will be a lot of unfamiliar faces.

Of the 18 scholarship and walk-on players taking the court in the "Baywatch"-colored Yellow vs. Red intrasquad game, 14 will be newcomers.

There are only two returning starters, senior center Marquette Alexander and senior point guard Johnny White, and two returning reserve guards, senior Geremy Robinson and sophomore Mike McIntyre.

MIDNIGHT OHANA Tonight STAN SHERIFF CENTER 8 p.m. Doors open, mini-carnival begins 8:30 p.m. Concert. Pre-game warmups Slam-dunk exhibition, 3-point shooting vs. Wahine 12:01 a.m. Tipoff Admission Free YELLOW TEAM Marquette Alexander, Troy Ostler, Nerijus Puida, Carl English, Todd Fields, Geremy Robinson, Phil Martin, Rahula Hall, Evan Blackwell RED TEAM Predrag Savovic, Bernard McIntosh, Johnny White, Mike McIntyre, Lane O'Connor, Tre' Stovall, Oa McGee, Ryne Holliday, Lance Takaki

One of the newcomers, sophomore guard Predrag Savovic, was chosen, along with Tulsa freshman forward David Shelton, as a preseason Western Athletic Conference Newcomer of the Year.

Savovic, a native of Montenegro, is an outstanding shooter.

Fans will also get a peek at Hawaii's rugged new 7-footer, Todd Fields (still working his surgically repaired knee back into shape), and sharpshooting Lane O'Connor, who hit 51 percent of his 3-point attempts for Santa Rosa Junior College.

Then there's Lithuania-born guard Nerijus Puida, considered one of the better all-around players in the junior college ranks last season.

The Yellow team will be coached by "Baywatch Hawaii" executive producer Greg Bonann. Co-executive producer Maurice Hurley will handle the Red team. Imua, Pure Heart, Makaha Sons and Robi Kahakalau will perform in concert, beginning at 8:30 p.m.

In pregame warmups, there will be a slam-dunk competition among the men, and a 3-point shooting competition between the men's and women's teams.

"It's something special," said team captain Alexander. "A chance to laugh a little and ham it up. Most importantly, it's a chance to meet the fans."

Alexander said there is more unity and more desire on this squad than last year.

"The intensity level in pickup games has been so much higher than it was last year," he said.

Alexander offered these comments of his teammates:

PREDRAG SAVOVIC
6-5 so. guard (Montenegro)
"Even more intense than me. He'll dive on the floor, he'll grab you, he'll bite you, he'll try to rip your arm off. He plays to win. And as a scorer, he's the man."

TODD FIELDS
7-0 jr. center (Mesquite, Texas)
"The opposing big guy won't be so anxious to come inside when he sees Todd. Todd LIKES to bang, and he can shoot. You keep banging him and he won't budge. If Todd and I could be in there at the same time, that would be special. We could just pound teams."

TROY OSTLER
6-9 jr. forward (West Valley City, Utah)
"His long arms will make him 7-foot-1. You can't just throw a pass over in the post because he will deflect it or tip it to somebody. He's like a volleyball player."

BERNARD McINTOSH
6-7 jr. forward (Lexington, N.C.)
"He has played like a power forward/center all his life, like me. And he can jump right out of the gym. He's a real good rebounder."

NERIJUS PUIDA
6-4 jr. guard (Lithuania)
"His basketball sense is just so good that he doesn't even have to look at you on the pass, he knows where you're at."

LANE O'CONNOR
6-7 jr. forward (Vancouver, Wash.)
"He's a pure shooter. He''s like Savo (Savovic) because he can hit any shot on the court."

JOHNNY WHITE
6-0 sr. point guard (Orlando, Fla.)
"He knows the system now, whereas last year he was thrown in the fire. He's going to have a really good season. And to have a point guard who's the strongest bench-presser on your team is pretty special."

CARL ENGLISH
6-4 fr. point guard (Newfoundland)
"He doesn't even have to look when he passes. And he can throw the ball right where you want it in the low post. He's going to be something special. I already see it."

GEREMY ROBINSON
6-3 sr. guard (Baton Rouge, La.)
"Jumps like (Michael) Jordan and dribbles like Tim Hardaway. All the talent in the world, but he has to unlock it."

MIKE McINTYRE
6-2, so. guard (Long Beach, Calif.)
"He's a real good defender and his shot has gotten better. Could tell that in pickup games."

PHIL MARTIN
6-7 fr. forward (Ontario, Canada)
"He's like a Scottie Pippen in terms of his defense. He'll guard anybody. Anything that comes to the glass, he's on the help side blocking it. You're going to be shocked at all his blocked shots."

TRE' STOVALL
6-2 so. walk-on guard (Irvine, Calif.)
"He's a left-hander who can shoot the ball. He can run the court, too, and he's not scared."

OA McGEE
6-3 fr. walk-on guard (Honolulu)
"He's physical in the backcourt. He won't let the guards push on him because he'll push right back."

OTHER WALK-ON PLAYERS:

EVAN BLACKWELL, 6-5, jr. forward (Spring Valley, Calif.)
RYNE HOLLIDAY, 5-11, so. guard (Belleville, Ill.)
RAHULA HALL, 5-11, jr. guard (Hilo)
LANCE TAKAKI, 5-4 fr. guard (Honolulu)

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