Among the bigger and stronger 'Bows this season are senior forward Jeff Blackett and sophomore guard Bobby Nash.

Blackett, who is 6 feet 8, gained 15 pounds by lifting weights every day during the summer. At the start of his junior season, he was 210 pounds; now he is 225.

"Knowing that this was going to be my senior season, I was in the gym every day, lifting hard and eating right," he said.

Blackett is from Ogden, Utah, but he stayed in Hawai'i over the summer to work with Tommy Heffernan, the UH strength and conditioning coordinator.

"Jeff improved the most from last year," Heffernan said. "He's the strongest on the team this year across the board."

Blackett was tops on the team with a bench press of 275 pounds, and a power clean (hoisting the barbell from the ground to above the shoulders in one motion) of 253 pounds.

"I can feel the difference already," he said. "I think it's really going to help my stamina, especially if I'm going to play under the basket a lot."

Perhaps more important, Blackett said he does not expect the added bulk to affect his shooting skills. He averaged 7.9 points and 3.3 rebounds last season as the team's sixth man.

BOBBY NASH

Nash made similar gains from last season. The 6-6 shooting guard also put on around 15 pounds, and now weighs 190.

"I was real happy with how much Bobby improved," Heffernan said. "And the best part is he's still young, so he still has a couple of years to keep improving."

Nash increased his bench press to 245 this year, and his power clean to 220.

"My goal is to be around 200 (pounds) and still be quick on my feet," said Nash, an Iolani School graduate. "I've been lifting a lot more than last year, and it makes a difference. When I'm fighting off screens or things like that, it makes it a lot easier."

Every healthy player on the team went through a "final exam" of strength and conditioning drills with Heffernan earlier this month.

"It gets competitive," Blackett said. "Not so much to be stronger than the next guy, but more like we're pushing each other to do more weight."

Wallace said he plans to have the team maintain weightlifting sessions throughout the season.

"We have it planned for three times a week," Wallace said. "We don't want them to lose any of that strength they built up."

Despite their weight gains, Blackett and Nash are still two of the best leapers on the team. Blackett's vertical jump was measured at 36 inches; Nash's was 38.

Walk-on Brandon Matano had the highest vertical jump at 42 inches. Another walk-on, Kenny Kelly, had the fastest time in the 1-mile run at 5 minutes, 2 seconds.

• Peciukas sitting out: Senior forward Vaidotas Peciukas has not been practicing this week because of a knee injury. It is not considered serious, and he is expected to return by the end of the week.