The Hawaii basketball team is hopeful of finding a spark from a rematch.
Ten days ago, the Rainbow Warriors were admittedly lackluster in a 50-49 loss to Long Beach State in the Stan Sheriff Center. This afternoon, the teams meet again in the Walter Pyramid on the LBSU campus.
“The first thing, as coaches, we talk about and look at is what our energy and what our effort was,” said UH assistant coach Chris Gerlufsen, who serves as offensive coordinator. Of that meeting in Honolulu, “that was the only game you could look at this season where our energy and effort weren’t there. So, that was the most disappointing thing about that game. It wasn’t necessarily an execution thing. We just didn’t play hard enough. That’s not an excuse. We need to be better. … We’ll be ready to go.”
The ’Bows are peppier following Thursday’s double-comeback victory over UC Riverside to end a four-game losing streak. The ’Bows trailed 10-2, led 37-23 at the intermission, fell behind 49-43 with 7:34 left, and won it when Dawson Carper tipped in Zigmars Raimo’s missed layup with 31.1 seconds to play.
“It was one of the crazier games I’ve been a part of in terms of runs both positive and negative,” Gerulfsen said. “It was crazy in terms of the flows of the game. We just need to be a little more consistent in our play. Hopefully, that’s something that can jump-start us in the right direction. I think it will.”
That game also marked the second time in a month that the ’Bows were whole. A week ago, post Bernardo da Silva and wing Samuta Avea returned after missing five games apiece because of ailments. Da Silva was limited to 4 minutes, 40 seconds because the ’Bows wanted to counter UCR’s wide-bodied front line. But da Silva grabbed seven rebounds in half a game against LBSU in the last meeting and is expected to provide an active presence this afternoon. Avea, who can play the wing and four, did not play in the previous game against the Beach.
“It’ll be a bigger challenge this game,” LBSU coach Dan Monson said. “Avea diversifies their offense. And they missed some open shots on the island. They had some frustration a little bit. We know it’s going to be a tough for us with (the ’Bows) coming off their good win (against UCR). Hopefully, we can get enough points to come out on top.”
Monson, the dean of the Big West with 12 years at LBSU, has worked to blend 11 playing their first season with the Beach.
“We’re getting a little bit more of an identity,” Monson said. “Every season is a puzzle figuring it out. We’ve tried several different things. We’re getting a little bit of a defensive identity, and being able to control the pace a little bit. We thought we were more an open-court team, but we were turning the ball over too much, and it wasn’t working for us. We kind of slowed down a little bit, trying to value the ball, and trying to get a good shot every possession. It seems to have gotten us into a better rhythm.”
The Beach also have fortified their defense at the rim (Joshua Morgan averages 2.5 blocks per game) and point (Drew Cobb).
“One thing our team has is a lot of length, especially Josh,” Monson said. “He’s long, and has very good timing. A lot of good defensive players come out of necessity. If you want to have success, you’ve got to be good at one end of the court. We’ve got some guys who are limited offensively. To get to this level, they fought and scratched and found a niche, and that’s being able to defend somebody.”
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BIG WEST BASKETBALL
>> Who: Hawaii (15-10, 6-5 BWC) at Long Beach State (9-18, 4-7 BWC)
>> When: 2 p.m.
>> Where: Walter Pyramid, Long Beach., Calif.
>> TV: None
>> Radio: KKEA, 1420-AM
>> Streaming: ESPN3
