Hawaii has a big
game of its ownThe 'Bows can extend their
win streak by beating third-place
Rice at the Super Bowl's host city
One of the Hawaii basketball team's biggest games of the season figures to be largely overshadowed by The Big Game in Houston.
Hawaii at Rice
When: Tomorrow, 3:05 p.m.Where: Autry Court
TV: None
Radio: Live, 1420-AM
Internet: uhathletics.hawaii.edu
The banners, posters and headlines that greeted the Rainbow Warriors upon their arrival yesterday provided not-so-subtle reminders that tomorrow's game with Rice is relatively low on the radar compared to the city's preparations to host Super Bowl XXXVIII.
Although the town's attention may be trained on the Panthers and Patriots this week, the Rainbows are focused on protecting their lead in the Western Athletic Conference against third-place Rice.
"They see us sitting on top and they want to catch us," UH coach Riley Wallace said. "So we just have to be ready."
UH (14-3, 6-1 WAC) enters its second WAC road trip of the season one game in front of Rice (13-5, 5-2) with Fresno State (10-7, 6-2) sandwiched between them.
UH received 14 points in this week's Associated Press poll, moving up from five last week. The team received four points in the ESPN/USA Today coaches poll, while Rice had three.
Although the 'Bows are looking for their seventh consecutive WAC win and fourth conference road victory in a row (both marks would be school records), Wallace isn't worried about the players getting caught up in their winning streak.
"They haven't talked about it," Wallace said. "They don't take that for granted. We have to get after (the opponents) or we won't win. You have to treat each team individually because they all play you differently."
The matchup in the paint should be a key to the outcome tomorrow at Autry Court.
UH forward Phil Martin had three of his biggest games of last season against Rice, averaging 19 points and 13 rebounds as the 'Bows split their regular-season meetings with the Owls and won an overtime thriller in the WAC tournament.
Rice forward Michael Harris ranks third in the WAC in scoring (18.1 ppg) and second in rebounding (9.4 rpg) and is shooting just under 60 percent from the field.
"Defense is going to be our key to winning games, keeping our man in front of us and keeping him off the boards," Martin said. "Especially on the inside with guys like Harris. They're always around the rim and on the rebounds."
UH center Haim Shimonovich did not play in the team's loss to the Owls last season, and his production and hustle were significant factors in last week's wins over Texas-El Paso and Boise State.
"If we're at one level, it takes us a notch higher," Martin said. "He makes a whole world of difference on the floor."
UH guard Michael Kuebler, the WAC's leading scorer, is coming off a week in which he averaged 20.5 points and hit 64 percent of his shots from the field (16-for-25).
Rice also has firepower in the backcourt led by junior guard Jason McKreith (15.6 ppg, 4.9 rpg). He had 24 points on 10-of-14 shooting and hit the game-winning basket in a 65-63 win at Fresno State last week.
Rice guard Rashid Smith is second in the league in both assists and steals. Brock Gillespie is the team's top 3-point shooter (40-for-118).
Rice has hosted its share of big games already this season. The Owls lost to Stanford, now ranked second in the country, 60-56 on Nov. 30, and fell to No. 6 Connecticut 92-83 on Jan. 2.
The Owls enter this week's play coming off an eight-day stretch in which they played four games, three on the road. After a loss at Tulsa on Jan. 17, Rice blew out Southern Methodist at home then went on the road to beat Fresno State. The Owls closed the trip with a 101-76 loss at Nevada and are looking to rebound against the 'Bows.
"They're probably the best team in the league. I don't know if anyone would take exception to that statement at this point," Rice coach Willis Wilson said in yesterday's WAC teleconference. "We're going to have our hands full and have to play a very complete game to match what they bring to the table."
Bracket Bustle: The announcement of the pairings for ESPN's Bracket Busters Saturday has been moved to Feb. 2 to avoid a conflict with the Super Bowl, WAC commissioner Karl Benson said yesterday. The announcement was originally scheduled for Sunday.
Hawaii is among five WAC teams entered in the event set for Feb. 21. Ten of the 23 Bracket Busters games will be televised, five on ESPN or ESPN2. The other five will be televised regionally.
Kudos for Millsap: Louisiana Tech forward Paul Millsap was named the WAC Player of the Week yesterday. The true freshman had 22 points and 13 rebounds in a 75-61 win over SMU on Saturday.
WAC men's standings
Conference All games W L Pct. W L Pct. Hawaii 6 1 .857 14 3 .824 Fresno St. 6 2 .750 10 7 .588 Rice 5 2 .714 13 5 .722 Nevada 5 3 .625 11 6 .647 UTEP 4 3 .571 13 4 .765 Boise St. 3 4 .429 11 6 .647 Louisiana Tech 3 4 .429 9 8 .529 SMU 2 5 .286 8 9 .471 Tulsa 2 5 .286 6 10 .375 San Jose St. 0 7 .000 5 12 .294 Tomorrow's game
Hawaii at Rice, 3:05 p.m.
Thursday's games
San Jose State at Tulsa, 3:05 p.m.
SMU at UTEP, 4:05 p.m.
Louisiana Tech at Boise State, 4:30 p.m.Saturday's games
San Jose State at Rice, 9:05 a.m.
Hawaii at Tulsa, 10:05 a.m.
SMU at Boise State, 11 a.m.
Louisiana Tech at UTEP, 4:05 p.m.
Fresno State at Nevada, 5:05 p.m.
UH Athletics
