Final home stand
next week
Rainbow Playbook
Wahine Playbook
The Hawaii men's basketball team will fly home tomorrow morning to prepare for Thursday's game with nationally ranked Tulsa and next Saturday's home finale with Rice.
Next weekend could be the last time 6-foot-8 senior center Marquette Alexander, 6-1 senior point guard Johnny White and 6-4 senior guard-forward Geremy Robinson play at the Stan Sheriff Center.
Only if the Rainbows qualify and host a National Invitational Tournament preliminary will Alexander, White and Robinson do an encore here.
Hawaii, 15-7 overall and 4-5 in the Western Athletic Conference, must win at least 18 games to earn an NIT berth.
The Rainbows have five games plus the WAC tournament (March 9-11 in Fresno) in which to accomplish that.
Today they take on Southern Methodist (18-5, 6-3 WAC) at Moody Coliseum in Dallas.
Hawaii seeks to even the score for a 79-73 defeat at the Stan Sheriff Center on Jan. 12.
The most heartbreaking aspect of the Rainbows' home-court loss to SMU was the fact that they rallied from a 48-30 deficit in the second half to assume a 68-67 lead with 2:50 left.
Consecutive 3-pointers by Jeryl Sasser and Stephen Woods started a 12-5 Mustang run that wrested victory from Hawaii's grasp.
Turnovers hurt
Looking back at the box score of the last SMU game, it's easy to see why the Mustangs prevailed.
The Rainbows committed 21 turnovers to SMU's 12 and the Mustangs scored 23 points off 11 of them.
Hawaii's 6-9 junior power forward Troy Ostler had one of his most unproductive games of the season against quicker, smaller 6-6 junior Willie Davis.
Davis is the Mustangs' leading scorer (17.7 ppg) and the NCAA's 16th leading rebounder (9.8 rpg).
Ostler had only two points in the first half and nine for the game. He played only about six minutes of the second half.
Junior Bernard McIntosh, who left the Rainbows before the Feb. 5 game against Fresno State, came off the bench in response to the situation and scored 10 points in the first half and 16 for the game.
Two other Rainbows who had subpar games against SMU were junior small forward Nerijus Puida, who had zero points, three assists and five turnovers, and senior point guard Johnny White, who had two points, four assists and five turnovers.
Meanwhile, the Mustangs got nine blocks to Hawaii's one.
Still on target
Despite their current two-game skid, the Rainbows are 16th in the nation in field-goal percentage. Their 48.5 percent mark puts them ahead of teams like Oregon, Duke and Fresno State. Hawaii is just a half percentage point behind Indiana. The Rainbows shot 55.3 percent in a 106-96 loss at TCU on Thursday. The Horned Frogs shot 56.1 percent.
Baywatching
The episode of Baywatch Hawaii featuring Riley Wallace will air May 13, according to the show's production office. Scenes were shot at Duke Kahanamoku Pool and Stan Sheriff Center on Nov. 9, 1999. Some members of the Rainbows team were used to simulate a background practice session during dialogue between Wallace and Baywatch star Jason Brooks. The background shot of the players will be faded to meet NCAA requirements regarding commercial exposure of athletes.
By Pat Bigold
Rainbow Playbook
vs. Southern Methodist Mustangs
Tipoff: Today, 3:35 p.m. HST, Moody Coliseum
Coaches: Hawaii, Riley Wallace, 15th season (212-206, .507 ); SMU, Mike Dement, 14th season (197-185, .515).
Season records: Hawaii (4-5 WAC, 15-7 overall); TCU (6-3 WAC, 18-5 overall).
Series record: Hawaii trails the all-time series with the Mustangs, 2-3. Hawaii lost, 79-73, at the Stan Sheriff Center on Jan. 12. Hawaii is 0-2 at SMU.
Top players: SMU, Willie Davis, 6-6 junior guard-forward (17.1 ppg, 9.8 rpg), Jeryl Sasser, 6-6 junior guard (16.8 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 4.4 apg), Stephen Woods, 6-0 senior guard (13.9 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 3.0 apg), Damon Hancock, 6-4 sophomore guard (10.1 ppg, 3.1 rpg), Quinton Ross, 6-6 freshman guard (7.2 ppg, 4.1 rpg). Hawaii, Marquette Alexander, 6-8 senior center (15.1 ppg, 7.8 rpg); Predrag Savovic, 6-6 sophomore guard (12.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg); Troy Ostler, 6-9 junior forward (11.9 ppg, 6.5 rpg); Johnny White, 6-1 senior guard (8.8 ppg, 3.1 apg); Nerijus Puida, 6-5 junior forward (7.1 ppg, 5.2 apg); Geremy Robinson, 6-4 senior guard-forward (7.4 ppg, 2.3 rpg).
Interesting facts: Hawaii ranks in the NCAA's top 20 in field goal percentage...The Rainbows lost to the Mustangs, 79-73, on Jan. 12, but staged their most dramatic rally of the season in that game. Down by 18 points with 14:46 left, the Rainbows took a one-point lead with 5:31 to go...Alexander led Hawaii with 24 points in that game while Bernard McIntosh (no longer with team) led off the glass with eight rebounds...Puida is Hawaii's best percentage shooter from the floor at nearly 58 percent (3rd in the WAC) and is second in the WAC in assist average...SMU leads the WAC in team rebounding (41.9 per game) while Davis and Sasser are No. 2 and No. 4 in the conference. Yet Hawaii, which is sixth in team rebounding (32.5 rpg), out-rebounded SMU, 33-26, on Jan.12...Hawaii out-rebounded the Horned Frogs, 36-35. Hawaii has now out-rebounded its last four opponents, 141-129. ...Wallace said that Savovic, who scored only five points at TCU, is still letting the home loss to Fresno State bother him. Savovic guarded Courtney Alexander, who scored 30 points in that game.
Game keys: Hawaii hasn't managed to play good team defense for a long time and that must change at SMU. The Rainbows have yielded more than 100 points twice in the last five games...The Mustangs used a trapping, pressing defense to completely disorient the Hawaii offense at Stan Sheriff Center. The Rainbows must solve it this time...Savovic must start to offer some offense again, and his roommate, Lane O'Connor, must continue to be a scoring threat off the bench. O'Connor, whose 27-point performance at TCU on Thursday was the highest total for a Rainbow this season, was a 51-percent 3-point shooter at Santa Rosa JC... Hawaii must contain Woods, Davis and Sasser, who combined for 55 points here on Jan. 12...Alexander must improve substantially on his 8-for-18 shooting performance at TCU and he must rebound better on the defensive glass. He had only one defensive carom against TCU.
On the air: Broadcast live on KCCN radio (1420 AM) and KFVE TV (Channel 5), also available on the internet at http//uhathletics.hawaii.edu/Sportslive/listen.html.
By Pat Bigold
Wahine Playbook
vs. Southern Methodist Mustangs
Tipoff: Tonight, 7 p.m., Stan Sheriff Center.
Coaches: Hawaii, Vince Goo, 13th season (257-112, .696); Southern Methodist, Rhonda Rompola, 9th season (170-87, .661).
Season records: Hawaii (8-1 WAC, 16-5 overall); Southern Methodist (8-0 WAC, 15-5 overall).
Series record: Hawaii's leads the series, 5-1. In the last meeting, Jan. 13, 2000, SMU handed the Wahine their only conference loss, 68-51, in a very physical game at Dallas. The Mustangs outscored UH, 18-4 in the final five minutes of that game.
Top players: Southern Methodist, D-dra Rucker, 5-foot-10 junior guard (16.0 points per game); Karlin Kennedy, 6-1 senior forward (15.6 ppg, 9.0 rebounds per game); Anika Calvert, 5-7 junior guard (10.9 ppg, 3.7 assists per game) ... Hawaii, Raylene Howard, 5-11 senior guard (17.3 ppg, 6.4 rpg); Kylie Galloway, 6-0 senior forward (14.0 ppg, 4.7 rpg); Kyla Evers, 5-8 senior guard (10.7 ppg, 3.5 assists per game), Dainora Puida, 6-4 junior center (8.6 ppg,5.6 rpg); Hedy Liu, 5-11 senior forward (7.4 ppg, 6.1 rpg).
Interesting facts: Southern Methodist has not lost since Dec. 21. The Mustangs' 12-game winning streak is the longest in school history ... Both teams received votes in this week's USA Today/ESPN Top 25 poll. SMU is No. 43, UH is No. 47 ... SMU's Nici Johnson was the WAC Player of the Week last week ... It's Schuman Carriage and Girls Scout Night in conjunction with the National Girl's and Women's Day clinic. Participants who wear their T-shirt and girl scouts who wear their sash get in free.
Game keys: This is a matchup of the top teams in the conference. They are very evenly matched ... Both teams will use pressure defense and the outcome could hinge on which team keeps the pressure on with composure and intensity for 40 minutes ... The opposite also is true. The team that handles the pressure on offense, works to get good looks at the basket and knocks down those opportunities could have the upper hand ... Neither coach should have to worry about the players being emotionally ready, but controlling the emotions could be a key ... The Mustangs have won their WAC games by an average of 24 points. In six of those victories they simply blew the other team out in the second half. Only Hawaii and Tulsa stayed close until the final minutes ... Both teams can go inside or outside on offense. SMU is adept at denying the ball to opposing wing players ... Every Mustang starter averages better than a steal per game ... The Wahine will have to take care of the ball better than ever ... "This is a big challenge. This is for the WAC," said UH's Raylene Howard. "We still have to go away and play two tough games on the road. If we play well Saturday, I think it will spill over on the road next week." ... Tonight, however, the Wahine need to take advantage of playing at home in front of their fans.
Tickets: $6 adults, $5 senior citizens, $4 students 4-18 and UH students with valid ID. Available at the Stan Sheriff Center, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and by telephone, 944-2697 ($1 fee assessed per ticket). Only Mastercard and Visa accepted. The box office remains open for weekday games and opens two hours prior to Saturday games. $3 parking charge.
On the air: Broadcast live on KCCN (1420 AM).
By Al Chase
