The 'Bows arrived in Tulsa yesterday, greeted by temperatures that ranged from a low of 11 degrees, to a high of 25.

"I can't believe how cold it is," said sophomore forward Julian Sensley. "We're not in Hawai'i anymore, I know that."

After a disappointing 76-73 loss at Rice Wednesday, the 'Bows are no longer in sole possession of first place in the WAC anymore, either. However, Hawai'i is 14-4 overall and in a three-way tie atop the conference at 6-2 with Rice and Fresno State.

Head coach Riley Wallace made sure to get that point across to his players during a two-hour practice yesterday.

"Not a single guy was hanging his head or dragging during the whole practice," Wallace said. "That's a good sign. I've been hoping that this is the kind of team that's going to bounce back strong from losses so let's hope it stays that way. We're right in this thing, so we can't afford any more letdowns."

Because Rice disrupted the Hawai'i flex-motion offense with its pressure defense, the 'Bows went back to basics yesterday.

For starters, they trained in a small gym at Hale High School. It's the same facility the 'Bows have used for the last three years, thanks to Wallace's contacts in Oklahoma from his days as a junior college coach there.

"As long as you got two hoops and a full court, it's still basketball," Sensley said.

With about 20 Hale students watching from the bleachers, the 'Bows went through several fundamental drills yesterday.

"We made mistakes that cost us against Rice," Wallace said. "So we're going over the stuff that needs to be corrected. It's always good to do stuff like that every once in a while. The little things mean a lot as we found out, so we're not taking anything for granted."

In particular, the 'Bows worked on setting stronger screens and timing their passes better.

"It's behind us," Sensley said of the loss to Rice. "Now we have two days to get ready for Tulsa."

Hawai'i is scheduled to play the Golden Hurricane tomorrow in an afternoon game (10 a.m. Hawai'i time). Tulsa improved to 7-10 overall and 3-5 in the WAC with an 86-70 victory over San Jose State last night.

"They're not the same team they were in the last couple years, but they're still tough at home," Wallace said.

Hawai'i has been pretty tough in Tulsa as well. Counting WAC Tournament games, the 'Bows are 8-3 in Tulsa's Reynolds Center over the last three seasons, including two WAC Tournament championships.

• Golden meal: Wednesday's loss to Rice snapped Hawai'i's six-game winning streak. In an effort to regain their golden touch, the 'Bows went back to another Tulsa tradition — eating dinner at the Golden Corral.

For the uninitiated, the 'Bows started eating at the Golden Corral — an all-you-can-eat American buffet for $9 — during the 2000-01 season. The ever-superstitious Wallace believes it has helped contribute to UH's success in Tulsa.

"If it keeps working, keep going," he said.

• Bracket bustling: The match-ups for ESPN's Bracket Buster Saturday will be announced on Feb. 2, but Wallace said he thinks the 'Bows may travel to Southern Illinois for one of the marquee games on Feb. 21.

"If we win (tomorrow), then it looks like it's going to shape up that way," Wallace said.

Southern Illinois is 15-2 overall and in first place in the Missouri Valley Conference at 9-0.

The Bracket Buster was created by ESPN last year to give so-called "mid-major" teams an opportunity to play each other. Hawai'i defeated Kent State, 79-78, in last year's Bracket Buster.