By Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writer
TULSA, Okla. — Santa Claus, Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy. Believe in all of ’em, and now put the University of Hawai‘i men’s basketball team at the top of the list.
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| Hawai‘i guard Carl English, right, controls the dribble against the defense of Tulsa’s Antonio Reed.
Associated Press |
The Rainbows’ incredible, fairy-tale run through the Western Athletic Conference Tournament ended with a happily-ever-after 78-72 overtime victory over Tulsa in the championship game last night at the Donald W. Reynolds Center.
"This is the best feeling of my life," Hawai‘i senior co-captain Nerijus Puida said. "We had our ups and our downs this year, and we survived the downs. It was our turn to ride the ups."
Now, they will ride all the way to the NCAA Tournament for only the third time in Rainbow basketball history. After winning three games in as many days to improve to 17-13, Hawai‘i received the WAC’s automatic bid to the 64-team field. The Rainbows will find out their seeding and first-round opponent when the field is announced today.
Last night, they beat the hometown Golden Hurricane with an improbable shot from an improbable player at the end of regulation, and then an undeniable 11-5 run in overtime.
"I really wanted to go out to the middle of the floor and do a dance," Hawai‘i coach Riley Wallace said. "But I figured I better leave that to somebody else."
And so the rest of the Rainbows danced the night away on the Reynolds Center court, tossing hero Carl English jubilantly in the air, and then taking turns cutting down the nets at each end of the court.
Meanwhile, senior center Troy Ostler, the co-captain along with Puida, clutched the WAC Championship trophy to his chest like a newborn baby as tears streamed down his face.
"I told you how special this team was," Wallace said repeatedly to the media afterward.
There was no better example than last night.
For the first time all season, the Rainbows rallied from a halftime deficit. They did so on the shoulders of English, a 6-foot-4 redshirt freshman point guard who came off the bench to score 25 points and earn the tournament’s Most Valuable Player trophy.
"My confidence has been high I’d say the last 10 games," said English, who had 44 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists in the Rainbows’ three victories in the tournament. "Tonight was just my night."
That was clear from the start, when he scored 14 points in the first half, including 3-of-4 shooting from 3-point range. His 3-pointer with eight seconds remaining in the half cut the Tulsa lead to 42-39 at intermission.
The Golden Hurricane, playing before an energized crowd of 8,160, led by as many as eight in the first half behind the play of their own reserve star, Antonio Reed. He came off the bench to score 14 points in the first half on 5-of-5 shooting, including all three of his 3-pointers.
As if the halftime hole was not enough — Hawai‘i was 0-10 when trailing at halftime this season prior to last night — leading scorer Predrag Savovic was in foul trouble and struggling with his shot, and second-leading scorer Ostler sprained his left ankle.
"I thought maybe the good Lord is looking over us," Wallace said. "Because these guys were hurt (earlier this season) and we learned to play without them."
Indeed, seemingly every significant Rainbow was hurt at one time or another this season, and that allowed players like English and fellow reserve Mindaugas Burneika to gain valuable experience.
It proved vital last night, as English directed the offense down the crucial stretch run, and Burneika provided a valuable 17 minutes in relief of Ostler, who returned briefly after the injury, but was ineffective.
"Everybody on this team can play," Puida said. "We believe in everyone, it doesn’t matter who’s out there."
To be sure, the ragtag Rainbows matched the Golden Hurricane run-for-run and shot-for-shot in the second half.
First, Hawai‘i went on a 10-0 surge midway through the second half to turn a 49-47 deficit into a 57-49 lead. Tulsa later responded with an 11-0 blitz to reclaim the advantage at 62-59 with 5:02 remaining.
But unlike Tulsa, which struggled to victories on the first two days of the tournament, Hawai‘i was riding a magical streak that lifted it to impressive victories over Texas Christian on Thursday and Fresno State on Friday.
"We were a very hot team coming in here," Wallace said. "So (Tulsa) got a little bit of a hornet’s nest in playing us."
Just like against TCU and Fresno State, the Rainbows saved their best for last. English hit two free throws with 19 seconds remaining in regulation to cut the Tulsa lead to 66-65. After Tulsa’s David Shelton made one of two free throws, Hawai‘i regained possession of the ball with 12 seconds, trailing 67-65.
English, who was supposed to pass the ball to Savovic, instead drove down the lane and got a twisting shot from about five feet away to drop into the basket and force overtime.
"He made a big play," Wallace said. "We called something, it wasn’t there, and he created it."
Tulsa’s Dante Swanson scored the first basket of overtime, but the Rainbows responded with a 8-0 run over the next two minutes to seize control at 75-69 with 1:56 remaining. Tulsa got as close as three, but fittingly, English made three free throws in the closing seconds to secure it. He finished with seven of Hawai‘i’s 11 points in the extra period.
Reed led the Golden Hurricane with 19 points, while David Shelton added 13, and Kevin Johnson had 10 points and 10 rebounds.
Wallace was quick to point out the Rainbows’ team effort, as epitomized by their 20 assists among 25 field goals. They also made 12 3-pointers, committed just 12 turnovers, and out-rebounded the Golden Hurricane, 36-32.
"Any five guys on that court for us can shoot the jump shot," said junior guard Mike McIntyre, who finished with 19 points, including 5-of-8 shooting from 3-point range. "We’re all confident we can make it."
Because of that, the Rainbows now own just their second WAC championship in the 18-year history of the tournament. Their only other title came in 1994.
"That one was good, too," Wallace said. "But I said a lot of that one was for myself because I’ve never been (to the NCAA Tournament) and it was the greatest moment of my coaching career.
"But this team is so special, and I love them so much, this one is for them."
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