This was something a little closer to what Bob Nash hoped for when scheduling two exhibitions to open the 2008-09 basketball season.

Bill Amis posted 23 points on 9-for-11 shooting and Lasha Parghalava added 21 to lead Hawaii over Chaminade in a friendly contest last night, 80-63, before 2,562 at the Stan Sheriff Center.

The Division II Silverswords of the PacWest Conference kept things close in the first half, but Hawaii's near-60 percent shooting for most of the game was gradually too much to overcome. The Rainbow Warriors broke things open with a 9-2 run to open the second half and maintained a double-digit advantage the rest of the way.

Hawaii demonstrated patience in its flex-motion offense, which led to numerous easy baskets inside en route to a final mark of 50 percent from the field.

It was a noticeable improvement for the Rainbows, who shot a little more than 40 percent and hit just one 3-pointer in a narrow win over Hawaii-Hilo on Sunday.

“;After playing against Hilo, our main goal was getting better in our offensive sets,”; Nash said. “;I thought tonight against a very good Chaminade team our guys were able to execute our game plan. We got good baskets off good player movement, and I think it's the fruit of our labor.

“;We talked about not necessarily being selfish, but guys taking bad shots and making bad decisions with the basketball. For the most part our guys did a nice job of stepping up and running the offense.”;

Point guard Kareem Nitoto directed the show effectively with six points, five assists and five steals.

The 'Swords shredded the Rainbows from distance in the first half by connecting on six of 12 3-pointers, but didn't hit any after the break and were held to just 22 points in the period. And unlike the Hilo game, the 'Bows had an answer from distance as Parghalava went 3-for-5 from long range. Even forwards Amis and Petras Balocka (15 points) got involved by stepping out to knock down a trey.

“;We knocked down the open shot, and that opens up everything,”; said Amis, who grabbed 12 rebounds for his second double-double in two exhibitions. “;I think we're still a work in progress, but we improved a lot since the last scrimmage.”;

Hawaii helped its cause at the free-throw line by converting 21 of 26 (80.8 percent).

The Rainbows went with the same starting lineup—Nitoto, Parghalava, Adhar Mayen, Amis and Balocka—that faced Hilo. That was partly out of necessity, as Hawaii again missed forwards Roderick Flemings (death in the family) and Brandon Adams (paperwork issue). In addition, swingman Conrad Fitzgerald (fractured nose) and point guard Hiram Thompson (pulled hamstring) sat out with ailments.

Parghalava gave the Rainbows some breathing room early by draining back-to-back 3-pointers—with the second coming from 30 feet—to spark a 12-0 run.

“;I still have to work a lot to get where I need to be,”; Parghalava said. “;We improved a lot the second game, and we're gonna work a lot ... we had a lot of mistakes (16 turnovers) and we're gonna get better for next our game (vs. San Francisco on Friday).”;

Chaminade responded with a 10-2 run to get right back in it by using effective drive-and-kick tactics to find open shooters in the corners.

Despite shooting 59.3 percent in the first half, Hawaii led just 47-41 at the break. Chaminade posted only 40.6 percent shooting at halftime but neutralized the Rainbows' success by getting to the foul line and hustling for five steals.

Amis (6-for-7 shooting) and Parghalava (4-for-6) each had 15 points by halftime. Mayen scored 10 for the game.