The wait is almost over for hoops-starved Hawaii basketball fans. For the Rainbow Warriors themselves, the 2011-12 season started months ago.

"You look at it, we’ve been together for a long time," junior forward Joston Thomas said. "It’s like the middle of the season for us, if you want to say, because we’ve already been to China (in August), scrimmaged against each other every Saturday. I feel like we’re ready."

UH will find out when it hosts Hawaii Pacific in the Rainbow Warriors’ only exhibition of the season. Tipoff is set for Friday at 7 p.m., but it might start later depending on the finish time of the UH women’s basketball team’s 5 p.m. season opener vs. Hawaii-Hilo.

Expectations are on the high side, both within the team and from without, after UH posted a 19-13 record in Gib Arnold’s first year.

The green-and-white starting five is still anyone’s best guess, perhaps even to the UH coach. Arnold continues to experiment with various lineups in practices among eight players — big, small, traditional, unconventional. The only real locks are the co-captains, senior guard Zane Johnson (15.8 points per game last season) and junior center Vander Joaquim (9.5 ppg, 8.2 rebounds per game).

"We’ll probably do that (experiment) until the last game of the year," Arnold said. "I’m a tweaker, I guess you could say. If we find any little edge up until that jump ball, if we feel there’s one thing or one player to get us an extra point or extra stop based upon scout and how he’s been playing, then we’ll try to put it in."

The versatile Thomas, a starter for most of last season, was moved down to the scout/secondary team last week and has yet to rejoin the first team in practices. He realizes he has work to move back up.

"(If) that’s the only way I can play, then that’s the only way I can play," he said. "It’s like going to work every day. Your boss tells you to get him some coffee every day, that’s what you gotta do. … No ifs, ands or buts about it."

Among the UH players suiting up at home for the first time on Friday are freshman point guard Shaquille Stokes, junior swingman Hauns Brereton, sophomore guard Garrett Jefferson and sophomore center Davis Rozitis. All will be a part of an eight- or nine-man rotation. Any of those four could be in the starting lineup, as might sophomores Bobby Miles and Trevor Wiseman.

HPU already has a game in the books. It’s coming off a 99-89 overtime exhibition loss to Team New Zealand on Tuesday.

Sea Warriors coach Darren Vorderbruegge welcomes the opportunity to match up with the ‘Bows at the Sheriff, even after a 72-50 UH regular-season win there last year.

"For two schools that have Hawaii in their name playing against each other, it’s really cool," he said. "We feel so fortunate that Coach Arnold puts us on the schedule and gives us this opportunity to play in front of local fans. It has a unique feel; you feel like the visitor, but the Hawaii fans don’t treat you like an outsider."

HPU returns one of its top three scorers in senior guard LaBrent Chappell (9.8 ppg). Vorderbruegge also brought in two Division I big men in 6-foot-7 Fran Urli (Albany) and 6-foot-9 Marko Cukic (Nevada). Cukic was a scoreless reserve in the Wolf Pack’s two meetings with the ‘Bows last season.

"I think we’ll have the size advantage on them," Arnold said of Joaquim and Rozitis, "and (HPU) will probably be a tough matchup for our bigs. It’s tough for 7-footers to chase guys out on the perimeter."

The regular-season opener is 11 p.m. on Monday vs. Cal State Northridge as part of the ESPN Hoops Tip-Off Marathon.