’Bows are wary of
stumbling Spartans

Hawaii knows better than
to overlook 3-8 San Jose State

The first step in avoiding a trap is knowing it's there.

On the surface, playing a San Jose State team that has won 16 games over the past three seasons looks like an easy stroll. But the Hawaii basketball team has fallen into the pit enough in recent years to be wary whenever the Spartans are lurking.

Three of the last four meetings between Hawaii and San Jose State at the Stan Sheriff Center have been decided by one point and UH coach Riley Wallace remembers all too well the 55-54 loss to the Spartans in 2003 that snapped the Rainbow Warriors' 24-game home winning streak. SJSU nearly stunned UH again last year as the Rainbows escaped with a 56-55 win.

So although the Spartans return to the Sheriff Center tonight on a six-game losing streak, Wallace has spent the week hammering home the point that the 'Bows can't afford to overlook SJSU.

"I'm just trying to make sure they're focused and ready," he said.

Tip-off for tonight's Western Athletic Conference game is set for 7:05 p.m.

Both Hawaii (8-2, 0-2 WAC) and SJSU (3-8, 0-2) are seeking their first conference win after losing to Fresno State and Nevada last week.

The WAC schedule-makers certainly didn't do the Spartans any favors to start the season, sending SJSU on the road for its first three conference games. Tonight's game is actually the end of a four-game stretch of road games for the Spartans.

"You hope to be competitive and you hope not to lose your team," SJSU coach Phil Johnson said of the scheduling quirk. "We were competitive against Fresno and even at Nevada, it was a close game with 16 minutes to go and it got away from us."

The Spartans have given UH fits the past few seasons by slowing down the pace of the game and keeping the score tight going into the final minutes. The Rainbows expect more of the same tonight.

Points figure to be at a premium as UH and SJSU are the two lowest-scoring teams in the conference at 66 and 58.4 points per game, respectively.

"They play good defense, they make you use second and third options and if you're not good at it then they can beat you," Wallace said. "You have to have counter moves for them."

Said UH guard Matt Gibson: "It's not about being a better team, it's more about execution, especially in the WAC. You have to execute better, set your screens a little bit harder and fight a little harder."

The Rainbows' lineup will have a new look, as forward Matthew Gipson will make his first start in place of Jeff Blackett.

Blackett, UH's leading rebounder and third-leading scorer, missed two days earlier in the week due to an infection on the right side of his torso and practiced Thursday. He sat out again yesterday after having further treatment.

Wallace said Blackett will play tonight, but his minutes will be limited. Small forward Vaidotas Peciukas may also see more playing time.

"It gives me more responsibility -- I have to play more minutes and I have to produce more," said Gipson, the 'Bows' top reserve this season. "I'll have to carry some of (Blackett's) share of the load, grab more rebounds and maybe score a little more. I just have to play within the system and play hard and everything else will take care of itself."

SJSU is led by forward Marquin Chandler, who ranks among the WAC's leaders with 20 points and 7.7 rebounds per game. Finding enough production around him has been the challenge for Johnson and his staff.

"We've tinkered with the lineup here and there, and we might tinker with it again (tonight)," Johnson said. "We need one or two other guys to give us some point production. We're averaging 58 points a game and that has to get up to at least the mid 60s to have any chance to win."

Guard Alex Elam is second on the team in scoring at 11 points per game, and Johnson hopes guard Eric Bloom, who has been slowed by injuries this season, can give the Spartans an outside shooting threat.