Coach Eran Ganot talks to his players about enjoying the moment, and there are no shortage of those these days for the University of Hawaii’s men’s and women’s basketball programs. ADVERTISING Coach Eran Ganot talks to his players about enjoying
Coach Eran Ganot talks to his players about enjoying the moment, and there are no shortage of those these days for the University of Hawaii’s men’s and women’s basketball programs.
Less than 15 hours after celebrating their Big West championship, the Rainbow Warriors gathered again Sunday, rising and cheering as one when the found out their next opponent: California.
“The last 24 hours have been kind of crazy,” Ganot told UH-Manoa television. “You go from that moment to celebrating with your special ones, and a quick turnaround coming into the selections show.
“These (moments) are hard to get. Last night was their night. Today is their day.”
For fans back home, it will be breakfast in Spokane, Wash., at the NCAA tournament. Hawaii (27-5) was seeded 13th in the South Regional and will take on the Golden Bears (23-10) at 8 a.m. Friday in the first of four first-round games at Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena.
“Once you start hearing your name you have to start getting ready to shift gears,” Ganot said, “and for these guys it’s about taking care of their bodies.”
Defensive-minded Cal, seeded fourth, tied for third in the Pac-12 and enters the NCAA tournament, their first since 2013, having won nine of 11 games under coach second-year coach Cuonzo Martin after reaching the Pac-12 tournament semifinals.
The winner will face either fifth-seed Maryland or 12th-seed South Dakota State on Sunday. Overall No. 1 seed Kansas was seeded first in the South.
The Golden Bears hold a 12-1 advantage all-time against UH.
“A dynamic team, very talented and extremely well-coached,” Ganot said. “Cuonzo Martin does a great job, and they play hard on both ends
“They had a terrific year. Any team you play at this point is tough. It’s going to be a great battle and we’re excited for the challenge.”
On Saturday night, Hawaii earned its first trip to the NCAA tournament since 2002, and fifth overall, with a a 64-60 victory over Long Beach State in the Big West championship game at the Honda Center. Aaron Valdes scored 14 points and Stefan Jankovic scored all 10 in the second half as the Rainbow Warriors atoned for loss to UC Irvine last season in the Big West final.
“I’m just happy we’ve matured from last year,” senior guard Roderick Bobbitt said. “The loss woke us up and drove us to be better and come back to win.”
As the selections were unveiled on television, many Hawaii players had their cell phones in hand to record the moment.
“It felt great,” Bobbitt said. “The wait of seeing what seed you get and who you would play. I like our matchup vs. Cal.”
The Golden Bears figure to enter more battle-tested. Cal led the Pac-12 in scoring defense (67.0 points per game), field goal percentage defense (39.3 percent) and 3-point field goals allowed (5.5 per game), and was a stromg rebounding team in going 5-5 against teams that made the NCAA field.
Forward Ivan Rabb, a second-team all-Pac 12 selection, and league Freshman of the Year Jaylen Brown, a forward, have NBA scouts salivating.
“I thought it was a good seed,” Martin said in a university release. “Obviously a very talented Hawaii team, and also good to play in Spokane. We won’t have to do a lot of heavy traveling so that’s always good.
“I know their big guy (Stefan Jankovic) is probably their best player. He was at Missouri when I was at Tennessee. He’s 6-11, can put the ball on the floor, can make shots from the perimeter, so I know he’s very talented, but I can’t tell you about each individual guy.”
The Rainbow Wahine will find out their NCAA destination on Monday.
Ganot said the men’s team was just following the lead of the women’s team, which took the court first Saturday at the Honda Center and dominated UC Davis in its Big West final.
“We appreciate how tremendous our fans have been,” Ganot said. “That place was electric, and for both teams to get that kind of support with the stakes at the highest, means a lot.
“Our guys feed off it. It was special. Think about. We’re travelling 2,500 miles away and we had the best best turnout. That’s special.”
