UC Irvine will test Rainbows’ mettle

In its first road test in the Big West Conference, the Hawaii men’s basketball team will be met with … fear and loathing before a raucous crowd? Apathy in an empty gym? Gratitude for expanding a league?

"You know, I don’t know. It’s something that we’ll witness for the first time," UH coach Gib Arnold said thoughtfully of today’s game at UC Irvine’s 5,000-seat Bren Events Center.

The Rainbow Warriors made good on a favorable start to the league schedule over the past two weeks, winning all three games at home against Cal State Northridge, Cal State Fullerton and UC Riverside. UH sits tied atop the Big West standings along with Cal Poly.

Meanwhile, the Anteaters — picked third in the Big West preseason poll to UH’s fourth — are coming off disappointing road losses at UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly.

"This is a big game for us because we’ve gotten into a little hole and it’s a big game for them," third-year Irvine coach Russell Turner said. "They’re in a great position having won their first three games. I respect that."

In the old Western Athletic Conference, the road always loomed as the gatekeeper standing between a remarkable UH season and a mediocre one. Teams that could win at places like Utah and New Mexico, and more recently Louisiana Tech and Fresno State, stood a better chance of making a postseason run.

The ‘Bows have been to the mainland once, a 77-63 loss at then-No. 24 UNLV on Nov. 20. They arrived in Los Angeles on Monday and practiced in Irvine on Tuesday.

"I think these guys are going to be fine," Arnold said. "Young group, but a pretty serious group. We haven’t had any issues that would lead me to believe this can’t be a really good road team."

UH’s Big West opponents have each had fairly obvious strengths and weaknesses. The Anteaters, however, are proficient in just about every facet of the game.

Irvine is 15th nationally in field-goal percentage defense (.373), 15th in assists per game (17.0) and 17th in assist/turnover ratio (1.39). It’s also the best in the Big West in scoring defense (63.8). It can play either big or small and is capable in rebounding, 3-point shooting, shot blocking and ball pressure.

"They’re really solid. Straight across the board, they’ve got talented players at every position," Arnold said. "We gotta continue to do what we do best, which is rebound, and continue to play inside-out."

UC Irvine, unlike most other teams in the guard-oriented league, will not be daunted by UH’s big front line of Vander Joaquim, Christian Standhardinger and Isaac Fotu, who combine for 41.4 of UH’s 74.9 points per game. The Anteaters can answer with three players 6-10 and taller.

"We’re clearly going to have to deal with the interior players that Hawaii has," said Turner, who has his top five scorers back from last season. "But the nice thing for us is we’ve played teams bigger than they are. So it’s not going to be a shock to us, I don’t think. We can put big lineups on the floor, and can also play small. I think it’s important in the Big West to be able to do both."

The ‘Bows got some balance in their last game with a breakout performance by reigning Big West Player of the Week Brandon Jawato. The freshman hit on all seven of his 3-point shots to tie a league and UH record. Jawato’s old teammate at El Segundo High in Orange County, 6-foot-10 center John Ryan, is a sophomore for UC Irvine.

UH, behind point guards Manroop Clair and Jace Tavita, must also cut down its turnovers to have a chance on the road. The ‘Bows give it up a Big West-worst 16.1 per game, a crippling 4.8 more times than their opponents.

The Anteaters, too, have kicked themselves for missed opportunities — six of their losses have been within six points — most notably an 80-79 overtime defeat at then-No. 13 UCLA. But they’ve also come through against the Pac-12, with a 61-54 win at USC on Dec. 20.

They’ve only played five games at home so far (compared to 12 for UH), but are 4-1 at Bren.

"We’re in position now where we think we can win every night we play," Turner said. "And that’s a fun feeling, but we’ve got to turn that into some results."

Top-scoring senior guard Daman Starring (13.6 ppg) has gone 15-for-27 on 3-pointers over Irvine’s past five games. Freshman point guard Alex Young is one of the league’s most efficient distributors, boasting an assist/turnover ratio of 2.7.