By Ferd Lewis
Advertiser Columnist

Rice University basketball coach Willis Wilson watched from a distance as the Stan Sheriff Center crowd said a thunderous good-bye to the five University of Hawai'i's departing players at "Senior Slam."

"I'd like to see some more of them be seniors," Wilson said, only slightly joking.

A pointed reference to Julian Sensley, perhaps?

Clearly, after just two games, Wilson and the Owls have already seen enough of Sensley, whose domination again yesterday went a long way to ensuring a 91-77 victory for the Rainbow Warriors in the regular-season home finale.

On an afternoon when 7,627 gathered to see the seniors off, it was a sophomore, Sensley, who put on a performance sure to remind them that the cupboard isn't being left empty for next year.

Where there is the 6-foot-9, 235-pound Sensley at forward, there is still hope for the future despite the considerable losses. The go-to guy in the 'Bows' game plan yesterday is someone they can built around for a while.

Beginning with a soaring alley-oop dunk and then pulling back to hit a three-point shot — something he accomplished on consecutive UH baskets in the first five minutes — Sensley scored a season-high 21 points on 8-of-10 shooting, passed around eight assists, grabbed five rebounds and blocked two shots.

He scored or assisted on nine of the 'Bows' first 15 points to keep them in the game early and then contributed five more points and a couple more assists as UH ran off to a 49-35 halftime lead.

If you're counting — and the Owls have just about stopped where Sensley is concerned — that's an average of 20.5 points per game against Rice in his first trip around the Western Athletic Conference.

Between those performances, a month apart, "I think he's really getting confidence in himself," Wilson said. After a well-traveled early career, "He's back home; he's in a comfortable environment and he's really been well-received by the players and coaches in this program," Wilson said. "I know it sounds like a cliche, but I think he's found a home and that's allowed him to find his niche on a comfort level."

Sensley's only regret? "It is that I, unfortunately, only get to play one season with these seniors because it has been a lot of fun playing with them," he said.

If the Rainbows complete their recruit shopping list — and there's no room for error with just three scholarship openings that are allowed by NCAA edict — Sensley could be the foundation of a pretty decent team next year.

"Sensley's still got a lot in the bank," said senior Phil Martin. "He's just beginning to blossom and is only gonna get better. He'll make them a good team next year."

He made the 'Bows a pretty good one last night, too, in improving to 19-8 (11-5 WAC). "Normally, we go to (Michael) Kuebler at the start (of the game), but they (the Owls) had us pretty well scouted," said Riley Wallace, the UH coach. "So, we put in some things for Julian. We called his number a lot and he answered every one of them for us."

For 38 minutes, Sensley carried the 'Bows in a manner that should not only give fans hope for the remainder of this season, but for the future.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8044.