Huff’s hobby wasn’t helping her hoops progression

If you are a fan of all University of Hawaii sports, Megan Huff’s decision to focus on one team instead of splitting time between basketball and volleyball is good in the big picture.

What Huff can bring to hoops by being all-in from day one will likely help that team much more than her absence will hurt volleyball.

Was she a valuable member of the volleyball team? Certainly. If you saw her against UCLA, you know she was key in a fourth-set surge that nearly forced a decisive fifth in Hawaii’s only loss this season.

But, as volleyball coach Dave Shoji noted often, Huff had the misfortune of being the backup to Nikki Taylor, an All-American who is also the reigning national player of the week.

Also, Shoji believes Tai Manu-Olevao has turned a corner, and her stellar play in UH’s victory over No. 2 Florida put any thoughts about moving Huff to her position on hold.

"I don’t think there’s any doubt that (Manu-Olevao) will play up to her capabilities on most nights," Shoji said. "We knew she had it in her and were patient enough to let it happen. She’d been frustrated and knew she could play better."

Losing Huff is a hit to Hawaii’s depth, but it’s unlikely to change how far this team goes.

Basketball is a different story. The 6-foot-3 Huff was named the Big West’s Sixth Player of the Year award and also made the conference’s All-Freshman team last season. She may be that team’s best player, and a key to repeating as Big West champions.

She could have played both sports, as she did last year. Shoji and basketball coach Laura Beeman had worked out a schedule for the overlap.a

Others have done it before, most recently Kalei Adolpho. But the transition was never easy.

"It’s logical that the more time you put into something the better you’re going to be," Adolpho said. "There’s a feeling like you’re always behind and not as good as you could be."

This year she’s playing only basketball, as a grad student. Last year as a senior, Adolpho played volleyball exclusively.

"I enjoyed playing both in the same year, but a year to devote fully to each makes me feel closer to my teammates and better with the system," she said.

Many others have been on UH teams with overlapping seasons, like Chris Walz, who played basketball and baseball from 1989 to 1993.

"For me, the difficulty was scholarship loyalty. Once I joined basketball, my scholarship moved from baseball to basketball," Walz said. "After getting beat up my first year in hoops, I felt it was a priority to improve my strength in the offseason versus returning to baseball. It wasn’t until after my final year in hoops that I met with Coach Les (Murakami) to ask for an opportunity to earn a return to the baseball team."

Which he did. He played three seasons in each sport, both of them in his senior year.

As for Huff, a return to volleyball doesn’t look likely. But while it is the sport of choice over basketball for most Wahine fans, she made a decision she deemed best for her. And it will help a growing program.

Reach Dave Reardon at dreardon@staradvertiser.com or 529-4783. His blog is at Hawaiiwarriorworld.com/quick-reads