Norfolk State turned a corner as a basketball program. Hawaii feels it’s rounding the bend.

The Rainbow Warriors seek their eighth win in nine games when they take on the Spartans of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference tonight at the Stan Sheriff Center.

It is the first of two stand-alone nonconference home games for UH this week before the start of Big West Conference play on Jan. 9.

"It’s very important," senior Christian Standhardinger said of today’s matchup. "We’ve got to get ready for conference, the most important part of your season."

Coming off a 2-1 showing for the consolation championship in the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic, the ‘Bows cracked the top 100 (97) in national RPI. UH’s 9-3 record through 12 games matched its best start under fourth-year coach Gib Arnold.

The ‘Bows have played well of late but can’t afford a lull in play against two under-the-radar teams.

The Spartans (8-5), of Norfolk, Va., dropped their past two contests after the best start through 11 games in their relatively brief Division I history. UH follows up against Nebraska-Omaha (10-4) on Friday.

"I tell the guys all the time, the most important game of the year is the one you’re playing," Arnold said. "And so I want to make sure that we approach these games with energy and with intelligence. I loved how they practiced this week. I thought these guys really answered the call. These are all important games, obviously. You want to play your best every game."

College hoops diehards will remember Norfolk State from the 2012 NCAA Tournament. The Spartans burned brackets everywhere when they became the fifth 15 seed to upset a 2, 86-84 over Missouri.

They followed that up by running the table in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in 2012-13, 16-0, and earning an automatic berth to the NIT when they could not defend their conference tournament title.

Those two postseason appearances were the first two in Norfolk State history. Robert Jones assisted on those teams and stepped in as interim head coach when former top man Anthony Evans resigned to take the head coaching job at Florida International.

Jones, 34, is now focused on getting the interim tag lifted from his title.

"We turned a corner as a program," he said. "We’ve only been Division I now for 16 years. It comes to a point in every program that it finally turns a corner. I think we’ve done so. Even in the short time I’ve got here as an assistant, you know, we used to go through long losing streaks on the road, guarantee games and things like that. Now it’s not quite the same. We’re competing and we’re winning a lot of nonconference games over the last few years."

The Spartans will have a size advantage on UH in some key spots. The battle-tested and senior-laden squad takes its cues from an imposing backcourt in 6-foot-5 guard Malcolm Hawkins (17.6 ppg) and 6-6 Pendarvis Williams (16.5 ppg, 3.1 apg). They also have size in the post; 7-foot center Brandon Goode (10.9 ppg, 7.1 rpg) blocks nearly three shots per game.

Hawkins and Williams have combined to hit 50 of 127 3-point attempts (.394). Hawkins has scored in double figures in every game this year. Williams has won conference player of the week twice this season.

Like UH, Norfolk State is known to press and switch up its defenses on the fly. UH expects 1-2-2, 2-3 and 3-2 zone variations. And like UH, the Spartans average more than 80 points per game.

"Norfolk State is a very talented team," UH assistant Brandyn Akana said. "They have a whole bunch of seniors, so they’re mature. Their top seven out of eight are seniors. They’re mature, they’re experienced, they’re a well-balanced team, inside-outside. They got good big guys, some excellent big guards. They do a lot of things well."

While each member of the UH starting five averages double figures, the ‘Bows continue to rely on Standhardinger (17.5 ppg) for big nights. Standhardinger has attempted 95 free throws this season, a record-setting pace for a UH player, while converting 72.6 percent, up from 64.4 percent last season. He attempted 22 foul shots against Chaminade and 17 more against Saint Mary’s.

"I just want to make the right-handed layup because it’s the only thing I can do," Standhardinger said. "(If) they foul me in the process, that’s their thing."