Sure, the University of Hawai'i men's basketball team has had its share of injuries this season.

But when it comes to roster adjustments, Fresno State is still the leader of the Western Athletic Conference.

The Rainbow Warriors will host the Bulldogs tonight at the Stan Sheriff Center in a WAC battle of undermanned teams.

"They're kind of short-handed right now," Hawai'i head coach Bob Nash said. "But that just means more shots for the other guys. We have to prepare as if all their guys are there. We have to be at our best because we're short-handed as well."

The 'Bows and Bulldogs will both have 10 active players tonight. Still, the two teams are in the middle of the WAC race.

Hawai'i is 6-10 overall and 2-2 in the WAC. Fresno State is 9-9 and 2-2.

The 'Bows played without starting point guard Matt Gibson early in the season, and starting center Stephen Verwers is out for the season with a broken leg. However, they have had time to adjust — Verwers' injury occurred on Christmas Day — and are coming off a 65-64 victory over San Jose State on Monday.

San Jose State then went home and beat Fresno State, 69-65, on Thursday.

"We have our challenges; we're down three starters," Fresno State head coach Steve Cleveland said. "Offensively, we've just been really inconsistent. I think for the most part, defensively we've been pretty solid in league play."

The Bulldogs played without starting forward Bryan Harvey, who was declared academically ineligible a few days before the game. Earlier this year, starting forward Rekalin Sims was dismissed from the team for disciplinary reasons, and starting guard Dwight O'Neil broke his wrist. Reserve center Shawn Taylor is also out with an injury.

"We got some guys who were role players ... and are now playing significant minutes," Cleveland said. "It does take a while to make that adjustment."

But Fresno State still has the backcourt duo of Kevin Bell and Eddie Miller. Bell has emerged as one of the top point guards in the WAC, and is averaging 17.2 points and 5.9 assists per game.

Miller is averaging 13.7 points per game and leads the WAC with 61 3-pointers.

"They're still a good team," Nash said. "They're all talented, and they can all shoot the basketball."

The Bulldogs lead the WAC in 3-pointers with 8.5 per game, and are averaging 25.2 3-point attempts per game.

"We kind of live and die by the jumper because we don't have the presence inside," Cleveland said.

He noted that the 'Bows have used a similar approach since losing Verwers.

"Kind of like us, when they're knocking jump shots down, they're a very dangerous basketball team," he said of the 'Bows.

Hawai'i swept two games from the Bulldogs last season.

"We had a hard time guarding (Bobby) Nash and (Matt) Gibson last year, so hopefully we do a little better job of it or it's going to be a long night," Cleveland said.

NOTES

Fans attending today's game will receive a free poster of the UH football team; UH Alumni Association members can purchase two tickets for the price of one (up to a maximum of six).

The UH football, women's volleyball and women's soccer teams will be honored at halftime tonight.

Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com.