Make it count.

That's the outlook of the Hawaii men's basketball team when the Rainbow Warriors leave tomorrow on their only nonconference road trip of the season.

Hawaii (3-2) takes a three-game winning streak into Champaign, Ill., where the Rainbows take on the Illinois Fighting Illini (6-1) on Monday night.

The 'Bows will fly straight to Chicago overnight and bus down to Champaign on Saturday morning, where the 16,618-seat Illini Assembly Hall awaits.

“;It's a great opportunity for us to go into a very good venue, against a very good team,”; Hawaii coach Bob Nash said. “;Great fans, something that we aspire to get our fans to, the color coordination, the chants, all that stuff. It's a storied history of their program, and we're fighting all that going there. But I think it's something our kids need to experience and get us ready for the (Western Athletic Conference) road trips.”;

Getting travel experience for a young team is one thing. Coming away with a win against a skilled team in a hostile environment is something else entirely.

But Nash is confident the possibility exists.

“;We're not just going to show up ... it's going to be an uphill battle, but we're up for the task, and we're going to learn a little bit more about ourselves as a team,”; he said.

Some of the Rainbows watched Illinois fall short at home against unbeaten Clemson on ESPN on Tuesday night - the Illini's first loss of the year.

“;That place is very hostile,”; freshman guard Leroy Lutu Jr. said. “;You gotta be confident in your abilities and in yourself and the team, and go in there and play how we know we can play.”;

The Rainbows are bringing their full roster, minus Gary Satterwhite Jr., who is recovering from shoulder surgery.

Canadian players Paul Campbell (Toronto) and Adam Jespersen (London, Ontario) are eagerly awaiting the frigid winter conditions of Illinois.

“;I can't wait to be in cold weather, in the snow,”; said Jespersen, whose parents and grandparents will head south to watch the game. “;I miss that a lot for some reason. I'm excited because it's not that far away from Canada.”;

“;It kind of feels like I'm going home, almost,”; Campbell said. “;I know we're going for business, but it's also a little bit of pleasure going to a place like Illinois.”;

The contest is a return game from last year, in which the Illini pulled off a 79-77 comeback win in the Stan Sheriff Center on the way to the EA Sports Maui Invitational. Illinois - which trailed by 13 in the second half - rallied while a distracted crowd watched the Hawaii football team defeat Nevada on a Dan Kelly field goal on the arena's big screens.

UH is looking to snap a five-game road losing streak going back to last season.

The last time the Rainbows traveled such a distance (4,226 miles or more) was to play at Kent State in their debut in ESPN's BracketBusters event in 2003.