Month-old, two-point loss still stings UH

By Dayton Morinaga
Advertiser Staff Writer

Of all the close losses the University of Hawai'i men's basketball team has suffered this year, none was more hurtful than the 61-59 loss to Louisiana Tech last month.

"We all know we should have won that game," Hawai'i senior forward Jeff Blackett said. "There's not going to be a problem getting motivated for them."

The Rainbow Warriors will get a chance at payback today when they play a Western Athletic Conference game at Louisiana Tech in Ruston, La.

Hawai'i is 13-5 overall and in sixth place in the WAC at 5-5. The Bulldogs are 11-9 overall and in a tie for fourth in the WAC at 6-5.

The game is scheduled to start at 2:30 p.m. (Hawai'i time) and will not be televised.

"We definitely want to settle the score, but we can't get too caught up in that aspect of it," Blackett said. "They're a good team and we have to focus on our game or we'll get beat again."

Prior to the game at Hawai'i, LaTech was 6-8 overall and 1-4 in the conference. Since then, they have won five of six WAC games.

"It was a huge win for us," Richard said. "We gained a lot of confidence from that game."

The Bulldogs also gained a new defensive scheme in that game.

LaTech stymied Hawai'i by playing a zone defense for the entire 40 minutes. Richard said he has used the zone defense in every game since then, although not exclusively.

"We're still a (man-to-man) team, but now we have a zone that we can throw in there to give us another look," he said. "It's made us a more versatile team."

Hawai'i head coach Riley Wallace said he expects to see more zones today.

"It worked the last time, so I imagine they'll try it again," he said. "But at least we'll be more prepared for it. They kind of surprised us the last time by staying in it for the whole game."

What's more, Wallace said the 'Bows are a better shooting team than they were a month ago. Guards Jake Sottos and "Little Matt" Gibson combined to shoot 10 for 16 from 3-point range in a victory at San Jose State last Saturday.

In any case, both teams should be well-prepared.

The 'Bows have been in Louisiana since Sunday. They practiced at Centenary College in Shreveport on Monday and Tuesday and got to practice in LaTech's Thomas Assembly Center yesterday.

"We've had some good practices this week," Wallace said. "The guys seem to have their energy."

The Bulldogs should also be energized because classes at LaTech were not in session this week because of Mardi Gras.

"It's allowed us to put all our focus on this game," Richard said.

The Bulldogs are led by Paul Millsap, a 6-foot-8 sophomore forward. He is averaging 19.8 points per game and ranks third in NCAA Division in rebounding with 11.7 per game.

"You're not going to stop their big guys, Millsap especially," Wallace said. "But we still need to do a better job on the boards. They had their way with us the last time and we can't let that happen again. We're the bigger team overall, so we need to take advantage of that."

In the game at Hawai'i, LaTech won the rebounding battle, 36-29, with Millsap grabbing 14. The most significant rebound turned into the game-winning putback by Wayne Powell with 3.3 seconds remaining.

Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-8101.