UH eager for shot at Rice
By Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writer
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| Hawai'i center Haim Shimonovich high-fives his teammates during the 'Bows' win over Rice two weeks ago.
Rebecca Breyer • The Honolulu Advertiser MEN Hawai'i times Quarterfinals Today Nevada vs. Southern Methodist, 10 a.m. Rice vs. Hawai'i, 12:30 p.m. Texas-El Paso vs. Louisiana Tech, 4 p.m. Boise State vs. Fresno State, 6:30 p.m. Semifinals Tomorrow Nevada-SMU winner vs. Rice-Hawai'i winner, 4 p.m. UTEP-Louisiana Tech winner vs. Boise State-Fresno State winner, 6:30 p.m. Championship Saturday Semifinal winners, 4 p.m. |
The Rainbow Warriors are now in search of a different kind of fresh meat.
After six uneventful nights in Fresno — including almost daily stops at In-n-Out — the 'Bows will finally begin play in the McCaffrey Western Athletic Conference Tournament today against Rice.
The four men's quarterfinal games will be played today at the Save Mart Center. Hawai'i and Rice will tip-off at 12:30 p.m. (Hawai'i time).
"We've had enough time to practice," Hawai'i head coach Riley Wallace said. "We're as ready as we can be. I think the guys are just anxious to go out there and play somebody besides themselves."
As sophomore forward Julian Sensley put it: "We're hungry. We all want to go to the NCAA (Tournament). I think that's why we were all going so hard the last couple practices."
In an effort to keep his team's spirits up and its legs running, Wallace has conducted short intrasquad scrimmages the past three days.
Senior point guard Jason Carter was one of the standouts, and he was rewarded with a starting spot for today's game.
"We've come out flat our last few games, so I just want to see if shaking things up might change that," Wallace said. "We can't afford to have one bad half and one good half like we've been doing recently."
Wallace said he believes today's game will be key to Hawai'i's postseason chances. He thinks that a loss to Rice would keep the 'Bows out of the NIT, but a win could get them in.
"We need to get that 20 (wins in a season)," he said. "That's the number people look at first."
Hawai'i is 19-10 overall and finished the WAC regular season at 11-7. Rice is 21-9 overall and went 12-6 in the WAC. The Owls are the No. 4 seed for the tournament; the 'Bows are No. 5.
The teams also met in the WAC Tournament last season as the exact same seeds that they are this year, and Hawai'i prevailed 62-61 in overtime.
Rice and Hawai'i split a two-game series this season, with the 'Bows winning the last meeting, 91-77, two weeks ago in Honolulu.
"I'd rather not be playing Hawai'i in the first round, to tell you the truth," Rice head coach Willis Wilson said. "They kicked our butts the last time, so we're the ones that have to respond."
In truth, both teams have concerns.
Hawai'i's low-post defense has been suspect at best recently, and Rice has two strong low-post players in 6-foot-9 center Yamar Diene and 6-6, 240-pound forward Michael Harris.
"We've been working on that," Wallace said. "We'll try some different things."
Harris, who was picked to the All-WAC first team this week, has made 15 of 19 shots against Hawai'i this season. He and guard Jason McKrieth are arguably the WAC's best pair of teammates, combining for 33.3 points and 14.1 rebounds per game.
However, Wilson is equally concerned about his own team's defense. Hawai'i's two best shooting games this season have been against Rice.
Michael Kuebler, Hawai'i's first-team All-WAC guard, is averaging 18.5 points per game against Rice this season, and Sensley is getting 20.5.
"We have not defended well against Hawai'i, and that needs to change," Wilson said.
Hawai'i may also have winning experience on its side. Because Tulsa was eliminated in a play-in game on Tuesday, the 'Bows are the only team remaining in the tournament that has players with championship experience.
Phil Martin, Haim Shimonovich and Paul Jesinskis were on the Hawai'i team that won the 2002 WAC Tournament in Tulsa.
"We know what it takes to win it," Martin said. "And we feel like this team is capable of making that kind of run like we did two years ago."
Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-8101.
