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Saturday, March 4, 2000
Near the end of
her Rainbow
Raylene Howard put together
By Al Chase
quite a career for someone who
had never thought of
coming to Hawaii
Star-BulletinIMAGINE going to Australia on a recruiting trip and watching the Under-18 National Girls' Basketball Tournament in hopes of discovering a player that might help your team.
Imagine seeing a player possessing the skills and qualities you like, but first you have to check with the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) to see if they plan to offer this player a scholarship so she can train for the national team.
Imagine your good fortune when the AIS people tell you they already have two players at the position of the player you want.
Then imagine you can't talk to the player you want to recruit until you get back to Hawaii and call her long distance.
It happened to University of Hawaii women's basketball coach Vince Goo in 1995.
The player was Raylene Howard.
So exactly what did Goo discover on that trip Down Under?
He found the Western Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year in 1996-97, an all WAC-second team pick in 1997-98, the WAC Pacific Division Player of the Year in 1998-99 and a leading candidate for WAC Player of the Year in 1999-2000.
Also add a GTE District VIII Academic All-American this year and last. And eight consecutive preseason all-tournament teams the past two seasons.
"I don't like to get carried away with those things. It's hard to explain," Howard said.
"Yes, it's nice to recognized for the hard work you put in, but you have to look around at the other girls who are putting in as much effort. It's a team sport and that's more important."
The success story has another twist. Howard never thought about coming to this country to attend school and play basketball until Goo made that first telephone call. She wasn't even aware scholarships were available.
"It never even crossed my mind. I thought I would go to a university in Australia and play club basketball," Howard said.
"There was a lot of basketball skills I liked in her," Goo said. "Everyone in the tournament had basketball skills. What I really liked about her was her aggressiveness on the floor, her desire to win."
As the 5-foot-11 wing player nears the end of her Wahine experience, her consistent play for four years guarantees her name will be among the career leaders in the UH record book for a long time.
Howard is first in field goal percentage (.553), second in scoring average (15.7), third in points (1,712), field goals made (599), free throws made (436), fourth in rebounds (662), fifth in 3-point field goals made (78) and seventh in free throw percentage (.780).
Although Howard had made a brief stop in Waikiki as a 15-year-old following a basketball tour to California, she knew little about the state and had to deal with homesickness when she arrived here in the spring of 1996.
"That first semester was really tough, being so far from home, not really knowing anybody or anything about the university,'' she said. "It was overwhelming for awhile. For a couple of weeks, I had no idea where I was or what I was doing.
"The apprehension was there, but I think I sat down and thought this is a big opportunity and I can't squander it. I knew if I didn't like it or something happened I could always go home. I think every kid kind of has those thoughts no matter where they are from."
Howard spent her first season just trying to contribute to the team in any way that was needed. She knew she had to earn the respect of the veteran players.
It did not take long for her to understand what the Wahine program was all about.
Asked to describe her playing style, the Goulburn, New South Wales, resident pondered the question while a slight quizzical smile emerged.
The term 'blue collar' was suggested.
"That's fairly accurate, nothing fancy," she said. "It's more of 'get in there and get the work done' kind of attitude. On the same side, I like to get in there and have fun, have a joke on the court now and then, but I'm pretty competitive. I hate losing. I'm just a player who wants to play hard and win."
"She got better with experience," Goo said. "She refined her game and learned to play with the people around her."
Howard has never missed a game and has started 104 of 109 games in her career. The Wahine have gone 80-29 in that time.
She is the WAC's leading scorer, averaging 16.8 points a game. In 63 of the last 64 games, Howard has scored in double figures.
Howard and fellow seniors Maj Forsberg, Kyle Evers and Hedy Liu will be honored after tonight's final regular-season game against Fresno State.
The four years have gone by quickly.
"It's not something to be sad about in a sense,'' Howard said. "It's going to be sad that it's our last home game, but I have to think of it as a chapter closing.
"You'll always be a Rainbow Wahine and that can't be changed. It is something that has to end to be able to step into other things. I'm not saying I won't miss it. I will."
UH Athletics
Ka Leo O Hawaii
