DIVISION II PREVIEW
HPU will face early road blocks
By Brandon Masuoka
Advertiser Staff Writer
Last in a series
It's not quite the schedule from hell, but for first-year Hawai'i Pacific men's basketball coach Russell Dung it's pretty close.
No Division II Hawai'i basketball team will dance with adversity more than the Sea Warriors who begin the Pacific West Conference season with five consecutive road games, including stops in Billings, Mont., and Silver City, N.M.
"It will be tough for us," Dung said. "It's not the kind of schedule that a new coach would look forward to. But if we can be successful in our preseason, give our guys some confidence, maybe we'll get that snowball effect that will carry us through the conference."
Hawai'i Pacific went 18-9 last season and finished third in the six-team Pacific West Conference with a 9-6 record. The Sea Warriors, who have lost eight players, including three starters, were picked to finish fifth this season in a preseason coaches poll.
If anyone can maintain HPU's winning basketball tradition, Dung can. Before being named head coach in April, Dung served 14 years as Tony Sellitto's top assistant, compiling a 295-136 record, including a 1993 NAIA national championship, the state's only national basketball title at any level.
Dung, who played for Sellitto at Maryknoll High School more than 30 years ago, still gets tips from the man he calls "coach."
"I talk to coach at least two to three times a week," said Dung, who is also HPU's athletic director. "He feels we're ready. We feel that we have some talented recruits. It's just a matter of getting them to play together because they're all brand new."
Added Hawai'i-Hilo coach Jeff Law: "Russell's been with Tony for a long time. He's been part of that program, part of that system, part of that success for a long time. I don't see that changing for any certain reason."
The Sea Warriors will miss the scoring of guard Nash Subotic and playmaking of point guard John Avilla, both all-conference, second-team honorees who completed their eligibility. To make up for the losses, the Sea Warriors will employ a balanced, uptempo attack and switcheroo defense.
"We'll probably change up our defenses a lot," Dung said. "We'll pressure the ball a lot more and try to get some baskets off defense.
"We really don't have a prolific scorer, but we'll probably score as a team," Dung added. "You'll see one or two different scorers a game."
Dung said he'll look to establish the inside game first, rather than going trigger happy shooting 3-pointers. HPU ranked second in the conference in 3-point shot attempts last season, and third in 3-point field goal percentage (203 of 586, .346).
"We don't want to be a team that lives and dies on the 3-pointer," Dung said. "We want to keep it balanced. It makes for better continuity among the team."
The Sea Warriors starters will likely be center Leandro Maruoka (6-8, Sr., .549 fg), forwards Nate Block (6-7, Sr., 4.9 ppg) and Mike Baron (6-6, Jr.) and guards Nic Walters (6-0, Sr., 5.7 ppg) and Marvin Noble (5-11, Jr.).
The addition of two Division I transfers, forward Rashad Davis (6-8, Sr., Morris Brown University, Ga.) and guard Aaron Abrams (6-4, Jr., Palomar Junior College and University of Wyoming), will likely boost HPU's experience, Dung said.
HAWAI'I PACIFIC
• Coach: Russell Dung (entering 1st year)
• Last season: 18-9 overall, 9-6 Pacific West Conference, third place
• Top players: Nate Block (f, 6-7, sr., 6.2 rpg, 0.74 bpg), Leandro Maruoka (f, 6-8, sr., 1.81 offensive rebounds per game)
• What's expected: Dung will count on his returning players — Ty Riley, Jacob Avilla, Maruoka, Block, and Walters — to produce this season. If they do, and if team chemistry is good, the Sea Warriors could improve on their fifth-place preseason ranking. Block and Walters are co-captains.
2002-2003 SCHEDULE
November
25-St. Mary's University (TX) at Mid-Pacific. 27-Carleton College (MN) at Mid-Pacific.
December
4-Kennesaw St. (GA) at Mid-Pacific. 6-Fort Lewis College (CO) at Honolulu. 17-Northwest Nazarene University at Neal Blaisdell. 20-Pacific University (OR) at Mid-Pacific. 21-22 University of Alaska Fairbanks at Mid-Pacific. 27-Maryville University St. Louis at Neal Blaisdell. 30-Cathage College (WI) at Neal Blaisdell.
January
5-St. Martin's College (WA) at Neal Blaisdell. 7-Drew University (NJ) at Neal Blaisdell. 10-*at BYU-Hawai'i. 14 and 16-*at Montana State Billings. 18-*at Western New Mexico. 24-*at BYU-Hawai'i. 30-*Chaminade at Neal Blaisdell.
February
4-*at UH-Hilo. 12-*BYU-Hawai'i at Neal Blaisdell. 20 and 22-*at Chaminade. 25-*Western New Mexico at Neal Blaisdell. 27-*Western New Mexico at Mid-Pacific.
March
1-*Montana State Billings at Mid-Pacific. 5-6-*UH-Hilo at Mid-Pacific. 7-9 NCAA II West Regionals (TBA). 21-23 NCAA II Elite Eight (TBA).
*PacWest Conference games
All home games begin at 7:30 p.m. at Mid-Pacific Institute or Neal Blaisdell, unless noted.
