Monday, December 10, 2001
[ UH BASKETBALL ]
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Kona coffee has its worldwide allure, but it was Starbucks coffee that helped lure Mark Campbell to Hawaii to play basketball. Campbell thrives on sharing
By Cindy Luis
cluis@starbulletin.com
"I'm addicted," admits the junior point guard for the Rainbows.
It helped that Campbell found a fellow junkie on his recruiting trip to Manoa. Hawaii assistant coach Jackson Wheeler is equally hooked on the coffee from the Seattle-based company.
"It's the best thing about Mark," Wheeler joked. "But seriously, he's a great person and a smart, competitive basketball player. He's a real gamer.
"I saw him playing in a junior college basketball tournament. I had gone to look at someone else, but then I saw Mark and I thought he'd fit in with the kind of group we have. We needed someone who's not concerned about shooting, who wants to win and who is very happy helping his teammates score."
Campbell, the youngest of four brothers, learned early about sharing. Basketball was a family game at his Mt. Vernon, Wash., home, and Campbell learned to play it well.
He was his league's MVP as a senior at Mt. Vernon High, where the Bulldogs lost just four games in Campbell's three seasons.
Campbell went off to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo for his freshman season, starting for over half the games for the Mustangs. But the team was not a happy one; Campbell said he transferred after the rest of the freshman players and an assistant coach left the program.
The 6-foot-4 guard ended up at Clackamas (Ore.) Community College, averaging 10.2 assists for the Cougars, tops in the nation. Campbell takes a 6.3 assist average into tonight's game with Alcorn State, Hawaii's first game since Nov. 27.
"Mark is very unselfish, which a point guard needs to be," said Hawaii coach Riley Wallace. "He still has a lot to learn. We have a lot of plays and he's still working on learning the second options. But he's coming along."
When: 7 p.m. today HAWAII VS. ALCORN STATE
Where: Stan Sheriff Center
TV: Live, KFVE-TV
Radio: Live, 1420-AM
Internet: www.uhathlet ics.hawaii.edu/ Sport slive/listen.html
Tickets:
Adults (upper) $10
UH students $7
Super Rooter $8
Parking $3
It's not an easy transition from junior college to Division I and, as a point guard, Campbell literally has the Rainbows' fate in his hands. He's started all but one game for Hawaii (5-1). The only time he didn't start was against Mercer, where he finished with 11 assists, a team high through six games.
"We should easily be 6-0," said Campbell, referring to the 61-59 loss to Colorado State, a game the Rainbows led by as many at 16 points. "We're off to great start without having two key players.
"Obviously, there are things we need to work on, but I'm loving everything here. It was a tough decision to come but I'm glad I made this choice."
Campbell had several options as a junior transfer and was considering Drake, Tulsa, Creighton and Santa Clara as well as Hawaii. It came down to the Broncos and the Rainbows, and Wheeler said he was very nervous when Santa Clara entered the picture late.
"Mark's a Christian and you can see him fitting in easily at a school like Santa Clara," Wheeler said. "But I think when it came down to it, he wanted to be around a bunch of good guys and wanted a real chance to go to the postseason."
Campbell concurs.
"It's my style of game here," he said. "The talent is better and the guys accepted me as soon as I got here. I developed a good relationship with the coaches and with the guys during my (recruiting) trip, and that was a big influence on my decision.
"We've really bonded. We hang around together, went to the beach and movies. It all helps create the type of team we want to be."
Hawaii fans will see a similarity between Campbell and former Rainbow guard Anthony Carter, now playing for the Miami Heat. They're both unselfish playmakers and have the ability to make amazing passes.
"Our point guards after A.C. were not as good as we wanted," said Wheeler. "We have guys like Carl (English) and Savo (Predrag Savovic) who like to shoot.
"Now we have Mark and he's doing everything we want and need him to do. He's doesn't have to score to be a positive for us."
Wheeler points to Campbell's performance against Northwestern State two weeks ago as an example. Against the Demons, Campbell had no turnovers and eight assists -- including the one that led to the game-winning layup by Haim Shimonovich -- in playing the entire 40 minutes.
It was a game that Campbell's favorite NBA player, New Jersey Nets guard Jason Kidd, would be proud of. Last Wednesday, Kidd had a similar outing. He had 11 of his 13 assists before he scored a point in helping the Nets defeat his former team, the Phoenix Suns.
"My goal was to beat them without scoring," said Kidd in an Associated Press story. "It's something weird and unheard of, but it was something I wanted to do."
Campbell shares the sentiment.
"I love giving up the ball, giving people wide-open shots," he said. "It's my favorite thing about the game. I would rather penetrate and pass than score. It's always been my mindset.
"Winning is the No. 1 stat for me."
Campbell is averaging just 3.5 points for Hawaii. The Rainbows coaches and players would like him to score more.
"He's a very good shooter," said senior forward Mindaugas Burneika.
He's also very athletic. Campbell has a 33-inch standing vertical jump, sharing the team best with 6-9 junior transfer Luc-Arthur Vebobe.
"A lot of people don't know that about me because I don't really like to dunk -- that's not part of my game," said Campbell.
His game plan for the future is to play overseas and eventually become a secondary education teacher. He enjoys working with kids and has thoughts about coaching at the high school level.
But the immediate future is his focus.
"I'm looking forward to playing again and getting a lot of fans out to watch us," he said. "We're still improving but we're going to be very exciting. When we get it all together, I think we'll have a really nice ball club."
Notes: Senior guard Mike McIntyre has reaggravated the injury to his right thigh and is questionable for tonight's game. Freshman forward Milos Zivanovic is suffering from what appears to be the flu and is doubtful for the game ... Senior guard Predrag Savovic is still waiting to hear from the NCAA on his eligibility status. Wallace said the best-case scenario is that Savovic will be back for Friday's game with San Diego State, meaning he will have missed seven games. The worst-case scenario, said Wallace, is that last year's leading scorer would return for the Rainbow Classic opener against Portland on Dec. 19.
STARTING LINEUPS
RAINBOWS (5-1)
Ht. Pts. Reb. Ast. G Carl English (So.) 6-5 17.8 5.8 3.0 G Mark Campbell (Jr.) 6-4 3.5 3.3 6.1 F Mindaugas Burneika(Sr.) 6-7 11.7 2.3 3.6 F Phil Martin (So.) 6-8 9.7 3.8 0.8 C Haim Shimonovich(So.) 6-10 10.5 7.5 2.0
BRAVES (1-4)
Ht. Pts. Reb. Ast. G Jason Cable (Jr.) 6-4 7.3 0.3 0.3 G Jeff Cammon (Jr.) 6-1 5.6 2.0 2.2 F Marcus Fleming (Sr.) 6-8 10.8 8.0 2.2 F Tori Harris (Jr.) 6-5 10.8 8.0 1.0 C Walter Harper(Jr.) 6-5 9.8 3.2 0.6 Notes: This is the first meeting between the two teams. ... Hawaii coach Riley Wallace is in his 15th year with a record of 221-199. ... The Rainbows have won 10 straight at home, dating back to last season. The school record is 26 during the 1971-72 and 1972-73 seasons. ... Junior guard Mark Campbell leads the WAC in assists. Hawaii is the team leader with an 18.17 average. ... Hawaii is No. 2 in the WAC in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.38). ... The Rainbows' strength of schedule is ranked 300th out of 327 Division I teams. Hawaii's six previous foes are a combined 13-27, with Drake, at 3-2, having the only winning record. ... Alcorn State coach Davey Whitney is in his 26th season with a record of 477-268. ... The Braves are coming off a 102-61 loss at Alabama-Birmingham on Tuesday, their third consecutive defeat. ... After dropping the season opener at New Mexico State, Alcorn State won its only game of the season on Nov. 24 against Tougaloo College 82-70.
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