UH can't mask disappointment of early exit
By Ferd Lewis and Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writers
DALLAS — The days of enjoying a single dance in the NCAA Tournament are over for the University of Hawai'i men's basketball team.
Unlike last year, the Rainbow Warriors were not afraid to express their disappointment after a 70-58 loss to Xavier in the first round of the NCAA Tournament West Region yesterday at the American Airlines Center.
"This program has come too far to accept just being here," UH head coach Riley Wallace said. "We weren't just happy to be here. We wanted to advance. That's why there's so much disappointment in that locker room right now."
The 'Bows were making just their fourth appearance in the NCAA Tournament, including the last two consecutively. All four have ended with first-round losses.
"You get that monkey on your back, you want to get it off," Wallace said. "But we put it on ourselves because we made the statement that we wanted to win this game and advance."
Even when reminded of their school-record 27 victories (against six losses), the 'Bows found little consolation.
"We accomplished almost everything," leading scorer Predrag Savovic said. "But it was my wish to get to the Final Four. It might sound weird to say that, but I believe this team was capable."
Fantastic freshman: Tony Akpan played only three minutes of yesterday's game, but he came up with one of the plays of the year in that short span at the end of the first half.
Akpan, a 6-foot-8 freshman, blocked a shot attempt by Xavier star David West hard into the backboard with 2:18 remaining in the half.
The play — and replay — drew oohs and aahs from the capacity crowd of 19,951 at the American Airlines Center.
Long trip: Yesterday's loss ended a six-game road trip for the 'Bows. They departed Honolulu on Feb. 26 for regular-season road games at Nevada and Fresno State. From there, they went directly to Tulsa, Okla., for three games in the Western Athletic Conference Tournament.
They arrived in Dallas on Monday for this week's West Region games. Wallace said the travel may have finally caught up to the 'Bows yesterday.
"Our legs finally went down a little bit," he said. "These kids are tired. They've been on the road for three weeks living out of hotels. They've been able to turn it up when they had to every time, but just couldn't reach down for that extra little bit today."
Cut off: Wallace's post-game radio interview with KCCN was canceled after phone lines were cut after the game.
Hot seller: T-shirts with "Hawai'i" on them were the big seller on the opening day of the regional, selling out more than 200 in the first hour, according to concession workers.
"Anything with Hawai'i on it is selling fast," said one worker who identified himself as Dave.
Hot dog! Feeding an appetite was expensive at the American Airlines Center where hot dogs went for $7.50 and 12-ounce drinks $3.75.
Banquet information: The UH men's basketball team's awards banquet is April 11 at the Hawai'i Prince Hotel. Tickets are $40 per person. For information and reservations, call 956-6501.
Coming home: The team, without coach Riley Wallace, is scheduled to arrive in Honolulu tonight at 9:36 on Delta Flight 219.
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Thad Matta, Xavier coach, on Hawai'i guard Predrag Savovic:
"I told him I'm going to have fun watching him the next 10 years. That guy is going to be outstanding."
