Wahine paved way for postseasons to come
By Ann Miller
Advertiser Staff Writer
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — For the first time since November, the University of Hawai'i Wahine don't have to come back. They won't know how to act.
Relentless in practice, games and its pursuit of excellence, Hawai'i pushed this basketball season to a place no Wahine team had gone before: spring break. They refused to lose despite an obstacle course of a season and a relatively low ratio of talent to tenacity.
Saturday at New Mexico, the Wahine's longest and most fulfilling season ended in the Women's National Invitation Tournament final four. They crashed and burned in The Pit. When the shock wore off, they searched for perspective.
They found it immediately, in the form of a 26-8 season and nationally ranked defense that kept them in every game except the last. For the first time in their history, the Wahine played postseason games at home, and thrived before a following that grew in size and passion.
The Wahine looked deep into their hearts — as they had all season — and counted their blessings all the way home. It had been an incredible journey.
"These last four games, especially for the young girls, set the standard," said senior Crystal Lee. "No matter if its NCAAs or WNIT, we're going to go to postseason and we're going to succeed. The season doesn't end at the WAC Tournament. Now it ends at spring break."
This team played as if the season would never end. Every time doubts surfaced, they destroyed them.
Hawai'i lost its fifth game, to tri-Pac 10 champion Arizona State, and rallied the next day to nearly overtake perennial national power Arkansas.
It lost its Western Athletic Conference opener, at home in overtime, to eventual conference champion Texas Christian. Two nights later, the Wahine smashed preseason favorite Southern Methodist. That was the moment Lee knew she was part of something special.
"We could have stuck our tail between our legs after TCU and we didn't," she said. "We came back out and beat SMU by 18. It showed a lot of character. We could have crumbled."
They didn't crumble then, or after a devastating loss to San Jose State. Instead they reeled off seven straight wins — two on the road. They lost at Rice when captain Kylie Galloway couldn't play because of an accident the night before. In their next game, at San Jose, they thrashed the Spartans by 30.
Hawai'i lost at TCU, despite 32 from Lee, then came back to beat Tulsa and SMU — 97-88 in overtime — at the WAC Tournament. Down 34-18 at halftime of the WAC championship, the Wahine nearly chased TCU down.
Ignored by the NCAA, Hawai'i embraced the WNIT. When Galloway quit after the WAC Tournament, the Wahine simply moved on.
Their postseason was a nonstop chase as they outscored opponents by 42 points in the second half. Until Saturday, when New Mexico, a great crowd, a debilitating trip and everything else that had gone on all season collaborated to beat them.
"With all the conditions present in this game, they had the potential to win big on us," Goo admitted.
He told his team to judge itself based on the entire season, and said it had gone as far as it possibly could — probably farther.
"We squeezed all the juice out of them," Goo said. "No team had more heart than this team. Yeah, we had some disappointments, but these kids always came back."
Part of the reason was technical. In JC transfer Janka Gabrielova, Goo had a true point guard again. Posts Dainora Puida and Christen Roper were healthy. Freshmen April Atuaia and Christa Brossman were so dedicated, and talented, there was little gap between the oldest and youngest players.
That they came together, particularly through every disappointment, had nothing to do with technique, and everything to do with character — and the quiet leadership of Lee and Puida. They were there for their teammates every moment in the final month, in every way.
"They were an integral part of the team in more ways than just basketball," Goo said. "The important thing is, they never made themselves bigger than the program itself. They were a part of the whole picture. They didn't need to be the center of attention."
There are 10 Division I women's teams still playing today, and 305 on spring break. The Wahine were among the last to play, for the first time in history.
"The experience our players went through is going to pay dividends next year," Goo said. "For the seniors, it will give them something to remember about their final year. It improved our awareness at home. Most of the people at those three (WNIT) games will remember come November."
OVER AND BACK: The Wahine signed three players during the early commitment period, and have three scholarships remaining. Coaches are looking for post players and a "pure" shooter, and have their eyes on a junior college player and two freshmen. . . . Recruits signed in the fall could have a huge impact on next year's team. Coach Vince Goo expects Punahou point guard Milia Macfarlane to push Janka Gabrielova for a starting spot. He believes posts Arijanan Sijercic (6-2, from Bosnia) and Jade Abele (6-1, from Australia) also have the potential to start. . . . Jamie Lewis had 20 points and 17 assists, and Courtney Coleman added 24 points as Ohio State defeated James Madison, 74-65, to reach the championship game of the Women's NIT. Ohio State will face New Mexico for the championship tomorrow or Wednesday. . . . Tickets are available for the annual Wahine Basketball Banquet on April 8, at the Waikiki Beach Marriott. The cost is $37, with kids half price. Call 956-4507 for information and to make a reservation. . . . Stanford, Baylor, Washington State, Texas A&M and Portland State — coached by former Wahine assistant George Wolfe — will play in Hawai'i next season. . . . Defending NCAA champion Connecticut, Purdue and Iowa State — all Sweet 16 teams this year — will be in Hawai'i in 2002. . . . WAC Player of the Year D-dra Rucker, a senior for Southern Methodist, Nevada sophomore Kate Smith and BYU's Erin Thorne were named to the District 7 All-America team.
