Over the course of the past four decades, Chaminade, Hawaii Pacific and University of Hawaii at Hilo have become the best of basketball rivals.

Now, it appears the state’s Division II schools are going to have an opportunity to become even closer, possibly playing each other five or six times each this PacWest Conference season.

With the impact of COVID-19 shutting down not only their opportunities to travel to the continent but the chances of getting mainland opponents to come here, the Silverswords, Sharks and Vulcans could end up with an 11- to 12-game, regular-season schedule composed entirely of games against each other.

“Yeah, I know, it doesn’t make a lot of sense, but this is a different world that we are living in right now,” said Hilo athletic director Patrick Guillen.

Guillen said, “I’ve gotten word, nothing official, yet, that the NCAA Division II Championship Committee is recommending that the minimum number of games played (to be considered for the tournament) be decreased to 11, which would be 50% of the maximum (22) that can be played.”

Normally, PacWest teams would play 22 conference games and 29-30 overall.

PacWest Commissioner Bob Hogue said the NCAA has declined to push back the championship tournament, leaving Division II leagues that start in January, as the PacWest proposes, with a limited window for competition.

The PacWest also is exploring the possibility of playing cross-over games against teams in their areas from the California Collegiate Athletic Association, a D-II league composed of California public schools. But while that might work for PacWest members in Northern and Southern California, it doesn’t look like much of a possibility for the Hawaii schools.

In anticipation, the PacWest this week announced that it was looking at a pod structure for when league play begins in January. Under the plan, which is intended to reduce virus exposure by limiting travel and also lowering costs, the 11-member conference would be divided into three pods consisting of a four member Northern California group, a four-member Southern California division and the three schools in Hawaii.

Teams would play the members of their pods and the top team from each pod would appear in the championship tournament to decide who gets the conference’s automatic berth in the NCAA Championships in March.

“The main thing is that we try to get through this year the best and safest ways that we can,” Guillen said.