A week that leveraged the academic side of the student-athlete experience releases the basketball side for University of Hawaii at Hilo men’s and women’s teams this weekend. ADVERTISING A week that leveraged the academic side of the student-athlete experience releases
A week that leveraged the academic side of the student-athlete experience releases the basketball side for University of Hawaii at Hilo men’s and women’s teams this weekend.
The Vulcans’ men’s team (3-5, 2-2 in the Pacific West Conference), having just turned the tables in their last game against Chaminade, spent most of the week in final exams, but after the work comes some play. UHH is coming off a win over the Silverswords with a concerted defensive effort in the campus gym, 10 days after Chaminade had broken down the Vulcans with a 25-point romp on Oahu.
Now, coach GE Coleman’s team gets another shot at retaliation against Seattle Pacific (4-4, 1-1 in Great Northwest Atheltic Conference), Friday at 7:30 p.m. at Afook-Chinen Civic Arena. The Falcons, a perennial power in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, handed UHH its first loss of the season — in its second game — with an 88-80 win the championship game of the Sodexo Classic in Seattle.
“They play a really tough schedule and they are always a tough team to play,” Coleman said of SPU, which lost on a last-second shot by Kevin Shastri that lifted Chaminade to an 87-86 win Wednesday night on Oahu. “No excuses, they beat us in Seattle and when we were trying to find ourselves and not everyone was available but this will be a tough test.”
That first game might have been different if the Vulcans had the services of Brian Ishola, the junior transfer from North Dakota State who has been familiarizing himself with double-double efforts in each of his last two games. Ishola had 15 points and 13 rebounds against Chaminade, following an 11-point, 12-rebound effort against Notre Dame de Namur.
In their limited practices this week, Coleman has emphasized ball security after 43 turnovers in the last two games.
“That’s the thing that jumps out,” he said. “To have that many turnovers in back-to-back games is poor, very poor and you can’t expect to win games playing like that.”
While turnovers are an issue of concern for Coleman, they feel more like a blaring siren accompanied by red flashing lights for David Kaneshiro’s women’s team (1-5, 1-3 in PWC), Saturday at the Civic when they play last year’s national championship game finalist Alaska-Anchorage (7-1, 3-0 in GNAC), the 8th-ranked team nationally.
The Seawolves are coming off a 99-60 demolition of Chaminade Wednesday, the first leg of a two-game trip to Hawaii that concludes with Saturday’s 4 p.m. game against the Vulcans. Alaska-Anchorage is 12th nationally this week in scoring, averaging 82.7 a game while ranking 7th in scoring defense, allowing just 51.1 points per game.
The statistical comparisons are almost nightmarish for the Vulcans, 14th and last in PWC in scoring (50.0) and free throw percentage (45-77, 58.4 percent). Alaska-Anchorage is first nationally in steals, while UHH has averaged 19.8 turnovers per game.
“They’re good, very good,” Kaneshiro said. “My process won’t change, we will take a look at what they do, what we do and try to and try to find a way against them.”
It will require a detailed search because issues are still emerging after the home defeat to Chaminade (59-54), which then lost at home by 39 to the Seawolves.
“We didn’t rebound very well,” Kaneshiro said of the Chaminade game, “and our transition defense wasn’t what it should be, those are points of emphasis for us right now.”
Both teams conclude the weekend with a Monday doubleheader at The Civic against Dominican with the women’s game at 5 p.m., followed by the men at 7:30.
“In my time here our games against them have been very tight, they are well-coached and unselfish, they know how to defense,” said Coleman. “Every game in this conference is difficult. We need to keep those guys off the boards and continue to develop our own play.”
Dominican was 3-6 and 2-1 in the PWC after a 79-66 loss to Hawaii Pacific on Thursday, to be followed by a Saturday game at BYU-Hawaii before meeting the Vulcans on Monday.
The Dominican women were 5-5 and 1-2 in conference after getting routed 85-51 by the Sharks. The Penguins started their trip following an 85-75 loss at home to BYU-Hawaii last Saturday.
