‘Bows will take any help they can get

The Hawaii men’s basketball team isn’t above asking for a hand to get off the canvas.

"We definitely need all the help we can have," junior forward Hauns Brereton said Friday, the day after UH absorbed an 82-63 home loss to Idaho, its fourth straight defeat. "Whether it’s from the fans or something, we’ve got to get this energy back. We’ll take any kind of help we can get."

But will a "Whiteout" crowd on senior night be enough to coax the Rainbow Warriors out of their severe funk? Tonight’s Western Athletic Conference opponent, fourth-place Utah State, has been masterful at keeping the ‘Bows down in recent years; it won its seventh straight in the series with a 77-72 decision over UH in Logan, Utah, in January.

Then there’s the fact that fifth-place UH has surrendered 93.8 points per game over the skid, losing by an average margin of 23.3. To UH coach Gib Arnold, correcting the defensive lapses comes down to heart and desire.

"This time of year, you get knocked down a few times, you just gotta keep getting back up," Arnold said. "That’s the whole thing. We’ve been knocked down. We’ve been knocked down hard. We gotta get back up. We still got a lot of ball left in us."

And, despite recent criticisms about heart and energy, they possess pieces talented enough to string a few games through the WAC tournament next week in Las Vegas.

Thursday night’s performance notwithstanding, UH isn’t ready to call it a season. But it will bid farewell to senior captains Zane Johnson and Miah Ostrowski. Johnson eclipsed Predrag Savovic for the UH career 3-point record (179) with four treys in the loss to the Vandals. Ostrowski is eighth in the country in assists per game at 6.8.

Ostrowski made Utah State’s last trip to the islands extremely memorable; just days after the death of his father, the point guard had 15 points and six assists. But the Aggies edged the ‘Bows 89-84 in double overtime.

"I really hope it’s packed and people come watch us, support us, because it’d be huge not only for me but for our team in general," Ostrowski said. "It was memorable for me last year, (and) obviously going to be a memorable one (today), the last one for me in this arena. So, it’s almost like, the tables are set. It’s the same situation. Utah State, I try to always remember that team."

With a win over the Aggies, UH would earn the fourth seed in the WAC tourney and a rematch with fifth-seeded Utah State in the first round — provided regular-season champion Nevada takes care of business at home against Louisiana Tech today. But if the Wolf Pack falter or UH drops its fifth straight game, UH will slide to the sixth seed and face Idaho or New Mexico State — Idaho is the likelier — on Wednesday.

In a somewhat surprising move, the ‘Bows eschewed a full, on-court walkthrough of the Aggies on the day between games. After a film session, Arnold told the team it was free to shoot or have an open gym session.

"I think it’s pretty normal this time of year, especially when you’ve played a team before and I think now it’s (about) legs," Arnold said. "You want to have legs and have some energy there. When we talked about it today, that’s one thing the guys said: ‘We need some more energy.’ To have that energy, you want to conserve it best you can this time of year."

Most of the team took shots and ran some shirts vs. skins, 5-on-5.

Utah State is not the same team it was in winning the WAC regular season the previous four years, but is still dangerous and efficient under Stew Morrill. It has won three straight in Honolulu, and 10 of the past 11 in the series. The Aggies are coming off a 71-61 win at last-place San Jose State on Thursday.

In the meeting in Logan, UH outrebounded Utah State 48-28 and turned the ball over only 10 times, and still fell short.

Preston Medlin (16.5 ppg) was a big reason why. The sophomore guard scored 25 in that game and has emerged as a team leader.

"Hawaii had a tough weekend last weekend, but they are back on the island where they’re at their best," Morrill said this week. "It will be senior night … Obviously their size and their rebounding advantage they had on us in Logan will certainly be huge factors in (this) game. We’ve got to do a better job of rebounding to have a chance."