Hawaii Warriors- College Basketball Odds

May. 25, 2006 - 2006-07 Men's Hoops Schedule Finalized

University of Hawai`i men's basketball head coach Riley Wallace announced the 2006-07 schedule, which includes participation in two of the longest running early season eight-team tournaments - the 29th Great Alaska Shootout and 43rd Outrigger Hotels Rainbow Classic, a pair of non-conference road games, and a home-and-home series with UNLV.

The 30-game regular season opens, Nov. 10, on the road against the Runnin' Rebels, marking the first time the Rainbow Warriors open away from home since 1993, UH's last appearance in the Great Alaska Shootout.

UH then hosts non-conference games against Coppin State, Nov. 13, and Oregon State, Nov. 19 before embarking on an 11-day road trip to Anchorage, Alaska, Nov. 22-25, and Santa Clara, Nov. 29. The bracket for the eight-team Shootout is not set as organizers are still finalizing the field. This year marks UH's third appearance in the Shootout (1989 and 1993). The game against Santa Clara is a return trip as SCU made the trip across the Pacific Ocean last February.

"We think we've put together a schedule worthy of creating a high RPI with hopes of getting back to the NCAA Tournament this year," Wallace said. "We have a very challenging preseason with non-conference road games at UNLV and Santa Clara and three games in Alaska. We'll also get exposure with possible national TV games in Alaska and the BracketBuster in February."

The 'Bows return to Honolulu for the rematch against UNLV, Dec. 5 and host Northwestern State, Dec. 16. The friendly UH-UNLV rivalry is in the second year of an in-season home-and-home series, which the teams split last season. The Demons were the Cinderella of the last year's NCAA Tournament after a dramatic first round upset of third-seeded Iowa. UH defeated NSU in the third-place game of last year's Outrigger Hotels Rainbow Classic.

For the 43rd consecutive year, Hawai`i serves as hosts of the Rainbow Classic, Dec. 20-23. Participating along with UH are Charlotte, Creighton, Houston, Nebraska, San Francisco, Valparaiso, and Wyoming. In a first round match-up, the 'Bows will open against USF, Dec. 20.

Besides Hawai'i, Houston and USF have captured Rainbow Classic titles. Houston, which is making its fourth appearance (1967, '76, '88), won the 1967 championship while USF, which is making its fifth showing (1969, '76, '81, '89), took the 1976 crown. Nebraska is also making its fourth appearance (1979, '92, '97) in the tournament. Creighton has made two previous appearances (1987, '89) while Charlotte participated once (1998). Wyoming and Valparaiso are first-time entrants.

UH hosts one more non-conference home game, Tennessee-Martin, Dec. 28, before opening Western Athletic Conference play on the road against New Mexico State, Jan. 4, and Louisiana Tech, Jan. 6.

Once again the WAC will send all nine teams to participate in ESPN's BracketBuster Saturday event, Feb. 17. Also this year, the WAC Tournament shifts from Reno, Nev., to Las Cruces, N.M.., March 6-10.

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Apr. 3, 2006 - Women's Basketball Banquet Set For April 12

The University of Hawai'i Rainbow Wahine basketball program will hold its annual season-end banquet at the Waikiki Beach Marriott Hotel on Wednesday, April 12.

The banquet begins with no-host cocktails at 6 p.m. Dinner is set for 6:30 p.m. with a program to follow. Tickets are $40 and may be purchased by calling Bobbie Omoto at 956-6501 or by filling out the order form below.

The Rainbow Wahine finished the season 18-10 overall under second-year head coach Jim Bolla. UH recorded its first winning season in three years and posted its highest win total since the 2001-02 campaign. Hawai`i won eight straight to start the year 10-2 and placed third in the WAC, its best finish in four years.

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Mar. 15, 2006 - NMSU Wins Thriller Against Hawaii

Shaun Davis scored the game-winning basket on a 3-point play with two minutes left to lead New Mexico State past Hawaii 58-to-57 in the Western Athletic Conference tournament.

Hawaii's Julian Sensley had 16 points but missed a 12-footer with four seconds left and Matthew Gipson's shot off the rebound missed as time expired.

Tyrone Nelson led the Aggies with 16 points and eleven rebounds and Elijah Ingram added 13 points for New Mexico State (16-13).

The Aggies advance to Friday night's semifinal against Number 21 Nevada (25-5). Utah State (22-7) faces Louisiana Tech (20-11) in the other semifinal.

Chris Botez had 13 points, Deonte Tatu 12 and Matt Lojeski ten for the Rainbow Warriors (17-11).

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Mar. 3, 2006 - Rainbow Warriors beat New Mexico State

Julian Sensley scored 22 points to lead Hawaii to a 61-56 basketball win over New Mexico State on Thursday night at the Stan Sheriff Center, snapping the Aggies’ six-game winning streak.

New Mexico State used a 7-0 spurt to pull to within one, 42-41, with 10:34 remaining in the game.

Hawaii responded with a three-minute, 7-0 run of its own to go up 49-41 with 6:41 to go.

The Aggies again pulled to within one on two free throws by David Fisher with 2:02 remaining. Matt Lojeski made four free throws in the final 14.5 seconds to seal the victory for Hawaii.

Lojeski and Deonte Tatum had 11 points each for the Rainbow Warriors (17-9, 10-5 Western Athletic Conference).

Tyrone Nelson led New Mexico State (15-13, 10-6 WAC) with 16 points on 7-of-10 shooting. Shaun Davis added 14 for the Aggies and Fisher 12.

Hawaii outrebounded New Mexico State 35-23.

New Mexico State outscored Hawaii 13-3 to open the game as Hawaii missed six of its first seven shots.

Down by as many as 12 points at the 10:39 mark of the first half, Hawaii went on a 19-4 run keyed by eight points from Sensley. The Rainbow Warriors led 32-29 at halftime.

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Feb. 13, 2006 - Hawaii (13-8) At Fresno State (12-10)

FACTS & STATS: Site: Save Mart Center (16,116) -- Fresno, California. Television: Local. Home Record: Hawaii 12-2, FSU 10-2. Away Record: Hawaii 1-6, FSU 2-7. Neutral Record: Hawaii 0-0, FSU 0-1. Conference Record: Hawaii 7-4, FSU 5-6. Series Record: Fresno State leads, 20-11.

GAME NOTES: With their first road win of the 2005-06 campaign finally realized, the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors now try to make it two in a row on the mainland as they confront the Fresno State Bulldogs in Western Athletic Conference play at the Save Mart Center tonight. On Saturday, Hawaii dropped in on the Boise State Broncos at Taco Bell Arena and escaped with a 73-64 triumph for its third straight victory. The win made the Warriors 7-4 in conference play and moved them into a tie for third place in the standings with Utah State. As for the Bulldogs, they were at home versus local foe San Jose State and snapped a two-game slide with a 79-66 victory. FSU is now 12-10 on the season and 5-6 in league play, which has the Bulldogs sixth in the nine-team conference. With respect to the all-time series between these two schools on the hardwood, the Bulldogs hold a 20-11 edge over Hawaii, although it was the Warriors who posted the 73-65 triumph out in Honolulu in the first meeting of the campaign back on January 21st.

Julian Sensley led four players in double figures as he tallied 22 points against Boise State on Saturday, despite shooting just 5-of-10 at the free- throw line. Matt Lojeski and Deonte Tatum also added double-digit scoring with 16 and 13 points, respectively, while Ahmet Gueye recorded a double-double consisting of 14 points and a team-high 11 rebounds. Shooting 51.1 percent from the field and 8-of-17 beyond the arc, the Warriors got away with 17-of-25 at the free-throw line and a mere four points off the bench. Sensley has led the team in scoring in each of the last four games and in seven of the last eight overall, which explains why he is first overall this season at 17.4 ppg. His shooting percentage from the field has remained rather stable at 44.3 percent, but behind the three-point line he's struggled at only 28.6 percent. Matt Lojeski comes in with 14.1 ppg and has connected on 41.9 percent from three-point range and 86.2 percent at the free-throw line. Gueye (12.3 ppg) is the man on the glass for Hawaii with just over seven and a half boards per game.

Hector Hernandez scored 25 points and pulled down eight rebounds in leading the Fresno State Bulldogs to the 13-point win over the Spartans in Western Athletic Conference play from the Save Mart Center on Saturday night. Ja'Vance Coleman added 23 points and Quinton Hosley eight and a game-high 10 rebounds, despite shooting just 3-of-12 from the floor for the Bulldogs. FSU won the battle of the boards, 46-42, and turned the ball over just nine times on the night, while limiting SJSU to a mere 1-of-7 beyond the arc in the second half to secure the win. Hosley, who is playing more than 34 minutes per game for the Bulldogs, leads the group in both scoring and rebounding with averages of 18 points and 9.3 boards per outing, while Coleman checks in with 17.8 ppg even though he is shooting less than 40 percent from the field through 22 games. The team as a whole is down at just 41.1 percent, compared to 45.5 percent for opponents. It also doesn't help that the Bulldogs are surrendering close to 40 rpg this season.

Now that the Warriors have that elusive road win in their pocket, they can return to the South Pacific with a sense of success, despite a probably loss to Fresno State.

Predicted Outcome

Fresno State 68, Hawaii 64

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Feb. 8, 2006 - WAC race is shaping up for thrilling finish

Folks, we have ourselves a horse race.

That would be the call at the track, but this is basketball. Still, the Western Athletic Conference men’s division is shaping up for a thrilling finish down the stretch.

Utah State, Nevada and Louisiana Tech are all knotted on top at 7-3 in league play. Hawaii is a game behind at 6-4, while New Mexico State (5-4) and Boise State (5-5) are within striking distance.

“It’s going to be an exciting finish,” said Boise State head coach Greg Graham during the weekly WAC conference call.

New Mexico State head coach Reggie Theus concurred.

“I think the winner is going to have three or four losses,” Theus said. “... It’s hard to say who is going to win, because it will depend on schedules.”

The schedule tends to favor the Aggies (16-5 overall) and the Wolf Pack (17-5). USU gets to host Nevada and has just two more road games. The Wolf Pack host Louisiana Tech (14-9). The Bulldogs from Louisiana must go to New Mexico State (9-11) and Hawaii (12-8). The Warriors, who have not won on the road this season, must leave the island for four more conference games. NMSU plays at Nevada and USU this week, while the Broncos (12-9) have to play at NMSU, LTU and Fresno State (11-9, 4-5).

But anything can happen. Monday was a good example when Idaho (4-16, 1-8) ended its 10-game losing streak by beating Fresno State for its first-ever WAC victory.

San Jose State (5-16, 1-7) is now fighting with the Vandals to stay out of the WAC cellar.

BracketBusters times, dates set

The Aggies found out last week they will be hosting Northwestern State (15-6) in the fourth annual BracketBusters presented by eBay at the Dee Glen Smith Spectrum.

Tuesday they found out the day and time for the game. USU will take on the Demons on Saturday, Feb. 18, at 8:05 p.m. The game will be televised by ESPNU, which can be found on DIRECTV on channel 609 and on the DISH Network on channel 148.

Other WAC teams playing on BracketBusters include Akron at Nevada (Feb. 17, 7 p.m. on ESPNU), Louisiana Tech at Southern Illinois (Feb. 18, 8 p.m. on ESPNU) and Fresno State at Creighton (Feb. 18, 10 p.m. on ESPN).

Aggies among best shooters

USU has moved up to second in the nation in both field goal percentage (50.8 percent) and 3-point field goal percentage (42.9 percent). The Aggies trail Florida (52.5) in field goal percentage (52.5) and Indiana (43.1) in 3-pointers.

As a team, USU ranks fifth in the nation in assists per game (18.4), 14th in fewest fouls committed per game (15.4) and 30th in scoring margin (plus 10.2).

Individually, sophomore guard Jaycee Carroll ranks third in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage at 49.3 percent, trailing J. Robert Merritt of Samford (50.0) and Je’Kel Foster of Ohio State (49.5). Carroll, who set a new school and WAC record with 10 treys against New Mexico State last Thursday, is also 18th in the nation in 3-point field goals made per game at 3.3. Those 10 3-pointers by Carroll are the second-most made in a single-game in college basketball this year, behind Josh Goodwin of Belmont who drilled 11.

Other Aggies ranked among the national leaders include senior forward Nate Harris, who is seventh in the nation in field goal percentage at 62.2 percent, and senior guard David Pak, who ranks 49th in assists per game (5.0).

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Feb. 3, 2006 - NCAA Game Summary - Idaho At Hawaii

Julian Sensley posted a game-high 22 points, leading four players in double figures, as the Hawaii

Rainbow Warriors defeated the Idaho Vandals, 81-61, in Western Athletic Conference play from the Stan Sheriff Center.

Matt Lojeski added 21 points for the Warriors (11-8, 5-4 WAC) as they snapped a two-game slide. Ahmet Gueye and Dominic Waters chipped in with 11 points apiece as well.

The Vandals (3-16, 0-8), losers of 10 in a row, were paced by Tanoris Shepard who tallied 18 points before fouling out, while Keoni Watson contributed 13 points and six boards and Mike Kale nine points and seven rebounds off the bench in the setback.

Hawaii started out a bit slow in the first half but then took off, hitting a sizzling 76.2 percent from the field to take a 42-29 lead at the break.

In the second half the Warriors dipped to 53.6 percent from the floor, but the squad again converted 5-of-8 beyond the arc in cruising to the 20-point win at home.

Hawaii finished the night knocking down 63.3 percent from the field and 10- of-16 from three-point range, all while limiting Idaho to only 3-of-15 out on the perimeter.

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Jan. 31, 2006 - Ags stave off rally, put away Warriors

For slumping Jaycee Carroll, it wasn't how many baskets, but when, that made the difference for Utah State on Monday night.
    The Aggies' hard-won 20-point lead was suddenly down to seven as the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors, thanks to their offensive rebounding, caught fire.
    With the Aggies on their heels, bodies flying everywhere, and Hawaii looking to steal its first road win of the season, Carroll cut out the Rainbows' heart with two quick three-pointers. It was enough to allow USU to right itself, as it hung on for a 63-52 Western Athletic Conference victory in front of 9,540 screaming Smith Spectrum fans.
    It was also good enough for USU coach Stew Morrill's 400th career victory before a national television audience on ESPN's Big Monday.
    "If you would have seen our game in Hawaii, you would say it's a stark improvement," Morrill said. "We battled; we were pretty dang good defensively.
    "We could have rebounded the ball better."
    Utah State did shoot better, though, including Chris Huber and Carroll, who were a combined 6-for-8 from beyond the three-point line. Carroll's last two bombs came with less than eight minutes to go. They may have been his most important baskets this season.
    "I started to feel like we weren't doing anything," said Carroll, who finished with 13 points. "I felt confident. I was itching in the second half to get a three-point shot. I hadn't got many looks.
   Luckily, my teammates set some great screens."
    Utah State (15-4, 6-2 WAC), winners of six straight and 14 consecutive at home, built a 45-25 lead with barely four minutes gone in the second half. It looked as if the Aggies might blow the Rainbow Warriors (10-8, 4-4) out.
    Instead, thanks to Hawaii's physical presence inside -- and a couple threes by Julian Sensley -- the Warriors pulled to within 47-40 with less than 10 minutes to play.
    "Once our size took over, we picked up the intensity," Hawaii coach Riley Wallace said, adding that his Warriors closed the middle in the second half.
    "Defensively, other than Carroll, who can really run off those picks and is relentless here . . .we played good defense."

As Hawaii crept closer and anxiety began to grip the arena, Carroll popped his two threes and Matheus scored to push the lead back to 15. Hawaii never got closer than 11.
    "It was awesome," Carroll said of the Spectrum fanatics, who began lining up for tickets at 5 p.m. "They help with their energy."
    USU, which lost at Hawaii earlier this season, started slowly, but then began raining three-point baskets. Carroll, Huber and Durrall Peterson connected on five long-range bombs in the first half.
    With Hawaii blocking everything in sight -- the Warriors finished with nine rejections -- Utah State had to battle for every point in the paint. Harris shook off the occasional block to record 19 points and 11 rebounds.
    "It didn't feel like 19," Harris said. "It felt like they blocked more shots than I made. But we made some adjustments, shot faking a little bit to get them up in the air."
    Matheus, who recorded two blocks of his own, added six boards and six points. It was Hawaii's big men who got into foul trouble, as Chris Botez and Matthew Gipson each had three at the half. Gipson ultimately fouled out.
    Utah State's defense, the WAC's best, held Hawaii to 38 percent from the floor and 4-for-19 from beyond the arc.
    The Aggies were 9-for-19 on three-pointers and 44 percent overall.
    "It was nice to see that we had a lot of people stay up," Morrill said of the 10 p.m. start time. "We've always enjoyed being on TV, our fans enjoy it, our students enjoy it. And they should."
    martyr@sltrib.com

   *Nate Harris scored 19 points and had 11 rebounds.
   *USU coach Stew Morrill earned his 400th career win.
   *Jaycee Carroll's two three-point baskets in the second half stopped
   a 15-2 Hawaii run.