Rainbows built special bonds in special season

By Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writer

DALLAS — So many shooting stars, so many fulfilled wishes.

Predrag Savovic and the University of Hawai'i take aim in the NCAA tournament Advertiser library photo

The Rainbow Warriors are 27-5 — the most wins of any team in UH history. They are the undisputed Western Athletic Conference champions, having won the regular-season and tournament titles. They are ranked No. 25 in the country. They are in the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year.

"We're 27-5," junior point guard Mark Campbell said. "When you think about it, that's pretty impressive. And the thing is, we could have been even better."

By the end of this week, these 'Bows could be considered the best ever at UH.

Hawai'i is scheduled to play Xavier in a first-round game of the NCAA Tournament tomorrow at the American Airlines Center. The 'Bows are the No. 10 seed in the West Region; the Musketeers (25-5) are seeded seventh and ranked No. 22 in the nation.

A victory would be historic — no Hawai'i team has ever won an NCAA Tournament game.

"That would be our legacy," sophomore forward Phil Martin said. "If we pull that off, we will be remembered for life."

Even if they don't pull it off, they will be hard to forget.

This was a team that somehow blended players from seven different countries. A team that endured player suspensions and departures. A team that took the state of Hawai'i on an unexpected thrill ride.

"It's their mentality," said Riley Wallace, who is experiencing his finest season in his 15th as head coach at UH. "The ones who are here believe in themselves. They never get down on themselves."

Adversity from the start

This was a team that was supposed to open the season in disarray. Star guard Predrag Savovic was suspended by the NCAA for the first seven games of the season for his past participation with professionals in Europe.

"We knew we could do things without Savo," fellow senior tri-captain Mike McIntyre said. "We never let it affect us that he wasn't there. We just figured we'd be better when he came back."

And they were.

With Savovic, the 'Bows defeated Georgia, 54-44, on Dec. 22 in the championship game of the Rainbow Classic. Georgia eventually became a top 20 team, and is a No. 3 seed in the East Region.

"There was no way at the time you could know that Georgia and Wisconsin were going to be that good," Wallace said. "At that stage, we were still wondering where we were."

There was even more reason to wonder when junior forward Luc-Arthur Vebobe quit in midseason. He was the team's most athletically gifted player, and was starting to work himself into the playing rotation.

"This team liked him and would welcome him back in a second," Wallace said. "But when he left, none of the other guys lost their focus."

As McIntyre put it: "I feel bad for him for leaving something special."

Without Vebobe, the 'Bows took a road test and passed. On its first WAC trip of the season, Hawai'i won games at Texas-El Paso and Boise State.

"In my opinion, we really started believing in ourselves then," senior tri-captain Mindaugas Burneika said. "That was the biggest question about us and we answered."

The 'Bows would go on to eventually win a school-record 11 games away from home this season, including a 6-3 mark in WAC road games. For a program that traditionally struggled on the road, it was huge.

"When you have shooters like we do, you're always in a game, even on the road," Wallace said. "Sooner or later, somebody on this team will get hot."

They have already proved that with a school-record 233 3-pointers. Hawai'i was especially effective from long range against WAC opponents, averaging nearly nine 3-pointers per game.

"It really amazes me, sometimes," McIntyre said. "It'll be multiple guys just taking turns. It's funny watching the defenses try to adjust, and then somebody else will light it up."

Case in point — and the turning point of the season, according to Wallace — came in a 90-82 victory at Tulsa Jan. 26. The 'Bows hit nine 3-pointers in that game, and established themselves as the team to beat in the WAC the rest of the way.

"I think the win over Tulsa, at Tulsa, was big," Wallace said. "That's when everybody started saying 'Hey, these guys are for real.' "

To be sure, Hawai'i beat Tulsa two more times — the "white night" sellout at the Stan Sheriff Center, and then last week's WAC Tournament championship at Tulsa.

Hawai'i wound up with its best WAC record ever at 15-3, and for the first time ever, won both the regular-season and tournament titles.

His greatest team

Savovic, the 6-foot-6 senior from Yugoslavia, averaged 20 points per game and became the school's all-time 3-point leader. He is also the first player in UH history to make the All-WAC first team twice, and was also an honorable mention All-America selection by the Associated Press, becoming just the fourth 'Bow to make that list.

Sophomore Carl English was UH's most versatile player with 15.7 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game, fulfilling the expectations after emerging as a star during last year's WAC Tournament.

McIntyre amazed crowds — and teammates — with his uncanny long-range shooting.

Burneika became Mr. Reliable off the bench. Martin was steady all year long as a returning starting forward.

Sophomore Haim Shimonovich made an impact with his 6-foot-10 presence in the low post. Campbell was the unselfish point guard Wallace had hoped could run the 'Bows' flex-motion offense.

Paul Jesinskis, Tony Akpan, Ryne Holliday and Lance Takaki gave the starters fits during the whole season as the scout team during practices.

"It's hard to explain," Wallace said. "Even I can get on the guys sometimes and they just pick each other up. It's the greatest team, as far as being a team and playing together and liking each other, that I've ever coached."

Hawai'i roster

PROBABLE STARTERS

No. Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. Hometown
15 Mark Campbell G 6-4 180 Jr. Mt. Vernon, WA
1 Predrag Savovic G 6-6 225 Sr. Herceg Novi, Yugoslavia
23 Carl English F 6-5 205 So. Newfoundland, Canada
2 Phil Martin F 6-8 230 So. Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
14 Haim Shimonovich F/C 6-10 245 So. Rishon LeZion, Israel

RESERVES

3 Mike McIntyre G 6-3 205 Sr. Long Beach, CA
4 Gabe Lombard G 5-9 155 Fr. Agana, Guam
10 Lance Takaki G 5-4 150 Jr. Honolulu, HI
11 Joshua Stanhiser F 6-9 200 Jr. Loma Linda, CA
12 Milos Zivanovic F 6-11 220 Fr. Belgrade, Yugoslavia
21 Mindaugas Burneika F 6-7 230 Sr. Kaunas, Lithuania
25 Ryne Holliday G 6-0 170 Jr. Belleville, IL
32 Dan Pickart F 6-7 215 Fr. Novato, CA
40 Paul Jesinskis F 6-8 220 Jr. Assagay, Natal, South Africa
54 Nkeruwem Akpan F 6-8 240 Fr. Akwa-Ibom, Nigeria

Head coach: Riley Wallace

Notes: The Rainbow Warriors are 11-4 away from the Stan Sheriff Center this season, including 4-1 on their current road trip, which started with a flight out of Honolulu Feb. 26. ... Hawai'i is making its second consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament, and fourth overall. UH is 0-3 in its three previous appearances, including a 79-69 loss against Syracuse last year. ... Savovic has scored in double figures in 23 of the 24 games he has played this season. He has also made at least one 3-pointer in 34 consecutive games, and is Hawai'i's all-time leader with 174 career 3-pointers. ... English recorded the first statistical double-double of his career in the Western Athletic Conference Tournament championship over Tulsa with 11 points and 10 rebounds. ... Senior guard Mike McIntyre is averaging 10.1 points per game off the bench, and is second on the team with 60 3-pointers. ... The 'Bows led the WAC in defense this season, allowing an average of 62.8 points per game. They held 12 opponents to less than 60 points in a game this season. ... Hawai'i has already established a school record with 233 3-pointers this season, an average of 7.3 per game. The 27 victories by the 'Bows is also a school record.

Xavier roster

PROBABLE STARTERS

No. Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. Hometown

0 Lionel Chalmers GÊ 6-0Ê 178 Jr. Albany, N.Y.
10 Romain Sato G 6-5 195 So. Central African Republic
24 Alvin Brown GÊ 6-3Ê 185 Sr. Washington, D.C.
3 Kevin Frey FÊ 6-8Ê 235 Sr. Chicago, Ill.
30 David West F 6-9 232 Jr. Garner, N.C.

RESERVES

1 Jaison Williams G 6-3 182 Fr. Aurora, Colo.
13 David Young GÊ 6-5 200 Jr. New Castle, Pa.
21 Anthony Coleman F 6-10 210 Fr. Carson, Calif.
22 Andre Johnson G 5-9 158 Jr. Youngstown, Ohio
25 Keith Jackson G/F 6-5 196 Fr. Cincinnati, Ohio
45 James Baronas F 6-8 250 Sr. Baltimore, Md.
52 Will Caudle F 6-9 225 Fr. Indianapolis, Ind.
53 Ryan Caldwell F 6-5Ê 245 Jr. Cincinnati, OhioÊ
54 Tom Compton F 6-11 225 So. Cincinnati, Ohio

Head Coach: Thad Matta

Notes: The Musketeers are making their second consecutive appearance in the NCAA Tournament, and 14th overall. ... This season marked Xavier's sixth consecutive 20-win campaign. ... Thad Matta led Butler to the NCAA Tournament last season. ... The Musketeers are allowing just 62.2 points per game, and have a record of 22-1 this season when holding opponents below 70 points. ... West was named to the AP All-America second team this week. He was also named the Atlantic-10 Player of the Year for the second consecutive season. West has scored in double figures in 29 of 30 games this season, including the last 22. ... Sato leads the Musketeers with 75 3-pointers and a .412 percentage from beyond the arc. ... Xavier has used the same starting lineup in 28 of its 30 games this season. The only change came last week when starting forward Dave Young suffered a wrist injury and missed two games. ... Young, a 6-5 junior, has been cleared to play tomorrow, although his status is still uncertain. He averages 8.4 points and 3.6 rebounds per game. ... Xavier and Hawai'i are meeting for the first time.