Turning the page

It’s time to write a new chapter in the Hawaii hoops history book. After 33 years in the only home it has ever known — the Western Athletic Conference — UH turns the page to a Big West Conference both rich in coaching tradition and hungry for a return to glory on the national stage.

Each member of the 10-team, California-centric league opens up play Saturday against its travel partner. The Rainbow Warriors (6-5) get the team with the best nonconference record, Cal State Northridge (9-3), at 7:30 p.m., or a half hour after UH women’s hoops finishes.

"We’re excited about going in and seeing what we can do," UH coach Gib Arnold said. "It is going to be different from what we’re used to. We’re going to be a little bit behind in that we don’t know the other teams like the other coaches do. But they don’t know us, either."

UH, picked fourth in the BWC preseason media poll, will contend with some of the old guard in trying to create a new tradition. The league boasts longtime coaches in Pacific’s Bob Thomason (25 years), CSUN’s Bobby Braswell (17), and UC Santa Barbara’s Bob Williams (16).

The 44-year Big West has one men’s basketball national title to its name. Jerry Tarkanian’s Runnin’ Rebels of UNLV were in the league when they thumped Duke by 30 for the 1990 championship.

The Dean of the Big West, Thomason, is ready to admit a few more pupils before he retires after this season and Pacific moves on to the West Coast Conference. San Diego State and Boise State are scheduled to join the BWC starting next season.

"When we started, with Vegas, Fresno State and New Mexico State, we had a great conference," said Thomason, the BWC career leader in wins. "There were three or four teams going to the NCAAs. Had two teams sometimes in the top 20. We were at the top in the West. And then people started leaving the conference, it became more of a California conference, a lot of Division II teams went Division I, came in and it kind of got watered down. And then there’s been the transition of Long Beach, not being very good, and it’s always been one of the better teams in our league. So it’s had its ups and downs. But now, I think with Hawaii coming in, and San Diego State and Boise coming in, I really think it has the chance to get back to those days."

Long Beach State, the longest-tenured member at 42 years, has been the banner-carrier in more recent years, along with UCSB. The 49ers have won two straight championships under Dan Monson, and are favored again this season. Other teams have received attention too, like Cal Poly when it upset then-No. 11 UCLA at Pauley Pavilion on Nov. 25.

Some BWC coaches feel the race is wide open for seeding in the eight-team BWC tournament in Anaheim, Calif., in March.

"The difference between the top third and the bottom third is really about five or six points a night," said fourth-year Cal Poly coach Joe Callero. "Whoever ends up being in the top three of four of conference standings at the end of the year, has likely won maybe two or three last-second games at the buzzer."

It will be an ongoing adjustment for the ‘Bows, even with relatively easy road trips compared to the far-flung WAC.

The Big West has a reputation for smallball. Plenty of zones and traps, more so than in the WAC.

Also, after Utah State and Idaho left the BWC in 2005, the BWC was confined entirely in California. In other words, no grueling road trips once conference play starts up.

"This is really strange territory for us," said CSUN’s Braswell upon arrival in the islands on Thursday. "It’s been a pretty comfortable situation (in recent years), no one’s spending time on planes flying cross-country the last few years. We’ve had to do that this year.

"But I think it’s a good thing for our league having a Hawaii in there. It adds a different dimension to our conference, a little flair. A uniqueness to what we do as a conference. Hawaii’s always been a quality basketball program. It’s going to help them, recruiting-wise, it’s going to help us, recruiting-wise."

BIG WEST CONFERENCE OUTLOOK