Hawaii wearing
No. 7 with pride

RENO, Nev. » The number seven isn't a particularly lucky one in the WAC tournament.

The men's basketball team seeded No. 7 has bounced a higher-seeded squad only twice in the 20-year history of the league's postseason one-and-done event to determine its NCAA Tournament representative.

That's not good news for seventh-seeded Hawaii, which plays No. 2 Texas-El Paso tomorrow morning (10 a.m. Hawaii time) in a quarterfinal at the Lawlor Events Center. UH earned the ticket for tomorrow with a 72-48 first-round "play-in" victory against San Jose State, while UTEP was among the six top teams to enjoy a bye.

In 1990, No. 7 Utah beat No. 2 Brigham Young 62-61 in overtime. In 1995, No. 7 Colorado State beat No. 2 BYU 75-73. Both games were quarterfinals and none of the teams involved are still in the WAC.

If recent history is any indicator, the UH-UTEP game has a chance at being competitive, even though the Rainbows are 16-12 and the Miners are 24-7 and UTEP won both meetings this year. The games were close (71-70 at El Paso and 71-67 at Honolulu), and that gives UH hope.

"UTEP's a great team. They have a great point guard (Filiberto Rivera) and (Omar) Thomas is one of the better forwards in the country offensively," Hawaii coach Riley Wallace said. "We have played 'em well the last few years and they know how to play us, too. They won't give us some of the looks we got tonight."

Hawaii center Chris Botez said he looks forward to it.

"UTEP is a great team with a lot of good matchups," he said. "It will be a good turnout with good intensity."

Johnson exits: UH's win over San Jose State was the last Spartans game for Phil Johnson, whose resignation as coach was announced Monday.

"When a program doesn't get better, the coach takes the blame. I accept responsibility," Johnson said. "We had some injuries, but I don't make excuses, we didn't progress as a program. The only emotion I felt during the game was winning. I never felt like the team laid down."

Johnson coached at Seminole Junior College (Okla.) after Wallace, and the two are friends.

"The man can coach. He's intense, they play solid defense, they're organized," Wallace said. "You'll see him somewhere. He'll surface in a good situation."

Layups: Deonte Tatum wasn't the only Hawaii player to make his first career UH 3-pointer last night. So did reserve center Milos Zivanovic, who hit both of his shots last night, including one from behind the arc. The junior scored a season-high five points in 10 minutes. ... Boise State guard Jodi Nakashima, a Roosevelt High alumnus, contributed four steals and three points to the Broncos' 55-50 victory over Texas-El Paso in a first-round game yesterday. ... Jason Ellis collected a WAC tournament record 21 rebounds in Boise State's 83-73 first-round win against Tulsa. Ellis also scored a career-high 22 points. The previous rebounding record was 19 by Theo Ratliff of Wyoming in 1994. The BSU men play top-seeded Nevada in a quarterfinal tomorrow. ... WAC commissioner Karl Benson, who usually attends the early portion of the tournament, was in New York yesterday meeting with NIT officials. He and other members of the NCAA Tournament selection committee begin gathering in Indianapolis today. ... UH athletic director Herman Frazier said last night a third-consecutive NIT is a possibility for the Rainbows if they continue to advance. "We've had some productive discussions the past day or so that may lead to another postseason appearance," Frazier said. ... Attendance for yesterday's games was 2,546.