Wahine basketball wants shot at Texas

By Leila Wai
Advertiser Staff Writer

Ask University of Hawai'i women's basketball coach Vince Goo what he thinks about possibly playing second-ranked Texas when his team is off to an 0-2 start, and you might be surprised at his answer.

GOO

Huh?

"That will mean that we won two and they won two. That will be a great challenge."

Hawai'i is hosting the Hawaiian Airlines Rainbow Wahine Classic, featuring Texas, No. 21 Arizona, Navy, Virginia, Hartford, Syracuse and Montana, today through Sunday.

Hawai'i plays Hartford today at 4:50 p.m. at the Stan Sheriff Center.

Texas is led by senior post Stacy Stephens, who is an AP third-team All-American, junior guard Jamie Carey, who is the reigning co-Big 12 Player of the Week, and junior forward Heather Schreiber, a Basketball Times third-team All-American. Both Schreiber and Stephens were named to the Preseason Wooden Award All-America Team, made up of the nation's top 30 players.

Last year, the Longhorns lost to eventual national champion Connecticut, 71-69, in the semifinals of the Final Four.

However, in the one time they've played the Rainbow Wahine, on Nov. 28, 1999, Hawai'i won, 78-74.

"I think it's a fabulous opportunity, because how often does any team that is not ranked get to play a ranked team?" said UH junior point guard Milia Macfarlane. "Being able to play against high-caliber teams helps us to improve as a team. We can't focus on what they can do, but what we can do and how we can improve from our last couple of games."

What they need to improve on, according to Goo, are their individual skills and getting their offense running with better timing.

"It is hard when you are young and there are a lot of new players who haven't played with each other," Goo said. "Not like a veteran team."

He said that although the Rainbow Wahine have been shooting 32.8 percent from the field, "they were all good shots, but they weren't going in. We don't want to pass up those shots. It isn't like we are taking our shots with a defender in our faces."

Macfarlane, a co-captain, said that the team has yet to jell, and agreed with Goo that the lack of time playing together has hurt.

"But it also comes with not taking care of responsibilities," she said. "We need to do that better. But we still have a whole season and people need to see that."

Other Classic teams include:

• No. 21 Arizona (1-1): 22-9 overall, 13-5 Pacific-10 last year. Center Shawntinice Polk was first-team all-Pac-10 and Freshman of the Year last season. Polk is also a Preseason Wooden Award All-American. Junior guard Dee-Dee Walker averaged 16.2 ppg and 4.6 rpg last season.

• Navy (2-1): 16-12, 6-8 Patriot League. Senior guard Courtney Davidson is two-time, first-team all-Patriot League.

• Virginia (1-1): 17-14, 9-7 ACC. 20 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances. Received 42 points in the AP Top 25 poll, after entering the season at No. 25. Led by senior guard Anna Prillaman (13.5 ppg) and junior forward Brandi Teamer (12.5 ppg, 9.0 rpg). Teamer was named to the ACC second team last season. Junior guard LaTonya Blue (15.0 ppg) was an honorable mention selection.

• Hartford (2-0): 7-21, 5-11 America East Conference. Freshman guard Ikea Witt (15.0 ppg) was named the America East Rookie of the Week Monday.

• Syracuse (2-0): 10-18, 5-11 Big East Conference. Senior guard Julie McBride is a preseason Big East conference second-team pick after earning conference second-team honors last season.

• Montana (1-0): 20-10, 10-4 Big Sky Conference. Received one point in the AP Top 25 Poll. Has 21 20-win seasons. Led by junior center Hollie Tyler, who was an all-Big Sky Conference selection, and the Big Sky Tri-Defensive Player of the Year.

Reach Leila Wai at lwai@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2457.