[ COLLEGE BASKETBALL ]
BYUH faces Hawaii
Opportunities like this don't come along often for Brigham Young-Hawaii.
Sure, the Seasiders have played NCAA Division I basketball teams before, but it's been more than two decades since they've lined up against the one that shares the island with them.
"I think it's a huge opportunity for us," BYUH guard Shawn Opunui said of BYUH's game against Hawaii tonight. "They're the big Division I on the island and they gave us that respect for us to play them. Also it's just an opportunity to grow as a team playing such good competition."
The Seasiders make the trek from the North Shore to Manoa to face the Rainbow Warriors at 7 p.m. at the Stan Sheriff Center, marking the first meeting between the schools since 1982.
UH leads the all-time series 3-0 and defeated BYUH 81-67 on Dec. 11, 1982.
The game is an exhibition for UH, a chance for the Rainbows to experiment with different lineup combinations and tune up for the season opener against UC Santa Barbara on Friday.
For BYUH, an NCAA Division II program, the game marks the beginning of the regular season and an opportunity to earn some respect from their Division I neighbors.
"They're the biggest school on the island, so it's important for us to represent who we are and what kind of a program we're building out here," BYUH senior Beau Nobmann said. "In games like this it's almost like you're playing against your brother, and if you're the younger brother you always want to beat the older brother and you play just a little bit harder."
In his 13 years as the Seasiders' coach, Ken Wagner has led BYUH to a 250-130 record. The Seasiders are coming off a 19-4 season a year ago and won the PacWest Conference title. They ended last season by losing to Cal State Bakersfield in the first round of the NCAA Division II tournament.
This season, BYUH will play five Division I opponents. After facing UH they travel to Colorado State. They'll host Baylor, Northern Illinois and San Jose State in their Surf 'n' Slam Tournament Dec. 19-22.
BYUH also faces Humboldt State, the nation's top-ranked Division II team, which defeated Western Athletic Conference member Nevada last week.
But the Hawaii game sticks out in the minds of the BYUH players and coaches.
"We're just grateful Hawaii gave us a chance to play them," Wagner said. "A lot of times they really don't have anything to gain. If they win, everyone says, 'You should win.' If they lose everyone goes, 'What's wrong with you?'"
This year's BYUH squad must replace second-team All-American forward Alexus Foyle and All-PacWest first team center Scott Salisbury.
The Seasiders do have some Division I experience on their side. Opunui played 10 games as a freshman at BYU-Provo two years ago, but suffered an injury in a game against Stanford and transferred to the Laie campus last year.
Guard Michael Stowell joined the team this year after transferring from Utah State. Forward/center Jake Chrisman was a baseball player at BYU-Provo, but decided to play basketball at BYUH.
"He was playing baseball, but he saw the light," said Opunui, who was born on Maui but moved to Utah when he was 4.
Chrisman opened his BYUH career by scoring 31 points on 13-of-19 shooting to lead the Seasiders to a 96-89 win over Song Kyun Kwan University of Korea on Friday.
Stowell had 20 points and forward Austin Smylie added 17 in the win.
Chrisman is the team's tallest player at 6-foot-9, and Wagner knows the Seasiders will have a tough time matching up with the Rainbows' front line. They hope to lure the UH big men away from the paint to open up lanes to the basket.
"Their big guys will have to chase our little big guys and they're good perimeter players," Wagner said.
With BYUH making its first appearance in the Sheriff Center, the UH players are know they'll face a fired-up Seasider squad. But the key for the Seasiders may be to keep the emotion of their rare opportunity from getting the best of them.
"I think there's going to be a lot of emotion," Opunui said. "It'll be important to keep the emotion in check, especially with a young team."
Brigham Young-Hawaii at Hawaii
When: Today, 7 p.m.Where: Stan Sheriff Center
TV: None
Radio: Live, 1420-AM
Internet: uhathletics.hawaii.edu
Tickets: Lower Level, $15 (single seats only); Upper Level (adult) $11; Upper Level (student) $5; Super Rooter $8
Probable starters
Brigham Young-Hawaii (0-0)
HAWAII (0-0)
Ht. Wt. Cl. G Shawn Opunui 6-1 175 So. G Beau Nobmann 6-1 185 Sr. G Michael Stowell 6-4 200 Jr. F Jake Chrisman 6-9 230 Jr. F Austin Smylie 6-7 225 So.
Notes: The game is an exhibition for UH and will not count toward its overall record. It does count as a regular-season game for BYUH. ... Carter and Jesinskis are set to make the first starts of their UH careers. ... Sensley will be the first Hawaii native to start for UH since Alika Smith in 1998. ... Radford graduate Sa Tanuvasa is the only local high school product on the Seasiders' roster. ... Opunui and Nobmann were honorable mention All-PacWest selections last season.
Ht. Wt. Cl. G Jason Carter 5-10 155 Sr. G Michael Kuebler 6-4 190 Sr. F Julian Sensley 6-9 235 So. F Phil Martin 6-8 220 Sr. C Paul Jesinskis 6-8 230 Sr.
