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Friday, January 21, 2000

Rainbows end
road woes

The Hawaii men's basketball
team beats Rice to end an 11-game
losing skid, but next up is
15th-ranked Tulsa

RAINBOW PLAYBOOK

Star-Bulletin staff

Nerijus Puida can move with the stealth of a Ninja in a basketball game.

Silent, hard to notice, but deadly when he makes his move.

No one inside Rice's ancient Autry Court in Houston figured the crew-cut Lithuanian, who had scored four points all night, would be the Owls' undoing in the closing moments of the Rainbows' 68-65 victory.

"But Nerijus does the things you need when you need them," said Hawaii head coach Riley Wallace.

With Hawaii leading, 64-63, and just over 30 seconds left, Rice's Brandon Evans rebounded Troy Ostler's missed free throw. Evans passed to point guard Mike Wilks on the fast break. Puida pursued, stole the ball at midcourt and fed Predrag Savovic, who drove to the hoop and was fouled.

It was Puida's fourth steal on a night when theft was a virtue.

"He (Wilks) didn't see me," Puida said. "He was running fast and Johnny (White) was in front of him. I knew if he made the basket, we are in trouble. We didn't have enough time."

Savovic sank the two critical free throws to make it 66-63 and Hawaii had all but sealed its first win in its last 11 road games dating back to Feb. 28, 1998, when the Anthony Carter-led team beat the Bulldogs at Fresno State, 92-78.

But the 'Bows won't have much time to celebrate. They play 15th-ranked Tulsa at 3 p.m. tomorrow, HST, at the Donald W. Reynolds Center. Tulsa is 3-0 in the Western Athletic Conference, 17-1 overall.

"They are quicker than us," Wallace said of the Golden Hurricane, a 67-41 winner over San Jose State last night. "They're going to trap. If we can get into our offense without committing too many turnovers, then we'll be competitive."

Puida also had two assists and committed no turnovers. White added a pair of free throws in the final seconds.

Savovic led Hawaii (13-4, 2-2 WAC) with 16 points. Marquette Alexander had 13 and Ostler added 12. Wilks led Rice (4-10, 0-3) with 25 points while T.J. McKenzie added 14.

Hawaii was outrebounded, 37-27, by Rice and outshot, 43 percent to 40 percent.

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RAINBOW PLAYBOOK

vs. Tulsa Golden Hurricane

Coaches: Hawaii, Riley Wallace, 13th year (210-203 career). Tulsa, Bill Self, 3rd year (115-76 career).

Season record: Hawaii (2-2 WAC, 13-4); Tulsa (3-0 WAC; 17-1).

Top players: Hawaii, 6-8 Sr. C. Marquette Alexander (14.1 ppg, 7.4 rpg), 6-6 So. G. Predrag Savovic (11.9 ppg, 79 percent free throw shooter), 6-1 Sr. G. Johnny White (8.6 ppg, 3.2 apg), 6-9 Jr. F. Troy Ostler (12.1 ppg, 57 percent from the floor, 6.8 rpg, 1.6 bpg), 6-5 Jr. F. Nerijus Puida (6.4 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 5.1 apg, 1.8 steals a game). Tulsa, 6-6 Jr. F. David Shelton (12.8 ppg, 4.5 rpg), 6-5 Sr. F. Eric Coley (11.4 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 3.4 apg), 6-2 So. G. Greg Harrington (12.4 ppg, 3.1 rpg, 4.0 apg), 6-5 Jr. G. Marcus Hill (12.3 ppg, 4.1 rpg), 6-10 Sr. C. Brandon Kurtz (11.7 ppg, 5.5 rpg).

Interesting facts: The Golden Hurricane is the first nationally ranked team Hawaii has faced this season. Tulsa is ranked No. 15 in the AP poll and No. 17 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll...Tulsa's Coley owns three quarterhorses and goes calf roping on weekends, according to a story in the Jan. 17 edition of SI...Alexander has hit double figures for Hawaii in 12 straight games... Savovic has been in double figures for six straight games...Hawaii's last meeting with Tulsa was Feb. 21, 1998, at the SSC where Hawaii won, 72-62. The last time the Rainbows were at Tulsa was Jan. 24, 1998, when the Golden Hurricane won, 64-63.

Coach's quote -- Wallace on Hawaii's chances of beating Tulsa: "Nothing's impossible. Oral Roberts did it. Billy Tubbs told me they're the real deal. They have the full package."

Tipoff: Tomorrow, 3:05 p.m., Donald W. Reynolds Center.

On the air: KCCN radio (1420 AM).

RealAudio: Click here

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By Pat Bigold, Star-Bulletin

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http://uhathletics.hawaii.edu
Ka Leo O Hawaii