Ostrowski, Johnson still ailing; Arnold not sure if either can play today

One would be great. Both would be better.

Coming off a surprising 74-70 home loss to Louisiana Tech on Thursday — which the starting backcourt of Miah Ostrowski and shooting guard Zane Johnson missed due to illnesses — the Hawaii men’s basketball team hopes for a quick recovery today against Western Athletic Conference co-leader New Mexico State.

The Rainbow Warriors need a win to keep pace among the teams in the league’s top half. The Aggies have won six straight and lead the WAC in scoring and rebounding.

A return by either the playmaker Ostrowski (staph infection) or sharpshooter Johnson (flu-like symptoms) would do much to bolster the ‘Bows’ chances, but UH coach Gib Arnold wasn’t confirming either. Both sat out the bulk of Friday’s closed practice.

"Miah’s very doubtful. He wasn’t cleared today (at practice)," Arnold said. "Zane came in and shot it around a little bit. But still feeling pretty queasy. So that will be a game-time decision.

"Miah, not too confident."

UH is 8-3 with Ostrowski in the lineup, and 2-5 without him. He was averaging a WAC-best 9.0 assists in league games when he went out with the staph infection near his left ankle after last week’s loss at Nevada.

"I feel definitely a lot better, a lot better. Day by day there’s been improvement," Ostrowski said. "Swelling’s about gone. Still got a pocket in there, it feels like a mini volcano. But once that’s gone, should be good to go."

And Johnson is only UH’s top scoring threat (fifth in the WAC at 15.1 ppg) and lone reliable 3-point shooter on a nightly basis.

"I got some shots up. I still don’t feel very well," said Johnson, who was hooked up to an IV during the LaTech game. "I feel a little under the weather, but I’m getting better."

If one or both cannot go, UH will likely turn to Shaquille Stokes and Bobby Miles to shoulder the backcourt load again. They helped extend a three-game streak of UH shooting 50 percent or better — but the ‘Bows are just 1-2 to show for it.

Despite having its frontcourt intact against LaTech, UH had a season-low 30 rebounds. That won’t cut it against the Aggies, who average a WAC-best rebounding margin of plus-7.6 per game to go with their WAC-best scoring margin of plus-9.4.

The biggest reason NMSU does those things comes in a (relatively) small package. The Aggies’ 6-foot-6, 230-pound senior forward, Wendell McKines, leads the WAC in scoring (18.6) and rebounding (10.5). He’s nearly doubled his scoring output from his junior year in 2009-10; the Oakland native redshirted last season because of an injury.

Even after the team’s second-leading scorer, Christian Kabongo, left the team in nonconference play, the Aggies lost little of their potency. Senior point guard Hernst Laroche (12.1 ppg, 3.6 apg), the school’s all-time leader in minutes, is a dangerous shooter and playmaker. And 6-foot-11, 245-pound center Hamidu Rahman (10.1 ppg, 6.6 rpg) eats up space in the middle.

The Aggies can bring size off the bench, as well.

"They’re huge. They’re a lot like, and bigger than Gonzaga," Arnold said. "They don’t have the (Robert) Sacre kid, but they got two guys who are bigger and stronger. They pound the offensive glass and they’re very, very physical. They’re a team we’ll have to go big against to match up, and we’ll definitely have to get them off the boards, or they’ll take advantage of that."

Much of that will fall upon junior center Vander Joaquim, the WAC’s second-leading rebounder behind McKines at 9.7 per game, and power forward Joston Thomas (5.3 rpg). Joaquim struggled against the Bulldogs’ constant double teams, fouling out with 11 points and six turnovers, though Thomas put in 22.

The highly re-tweetable McKines had this to say on Twitter after Joaquim was named WAC Player of the Week on Monday following UH’s loss at Nevada: "Never heard of somebody getting player of the week after a loss… Sounds like an excuse not to give it to me."

After a writer had second thoughts about his WAC Player of the Year candidacy, McKines tweeted: "I’m a force of energy … It’s not how you can avoid it … It’s how much can you take."

Fifth-year NMSU coach Marvin Menzies is glad to have the improved and well-rounded McKines back.

"He’s a very valuable piece, obviously, to the equation," Menzies said. "Got a lot of guys who are playing well right now, Hamidu and Hernst included. … His numbers from a rebounding and points perspective is obviously a big plus for us. It makes us deeper and better."

Following this contest, UH departs for games at Utah State and Idaho next week.