Down a key rotation player, the Hawaii basketball team went on the road and swept two Big West opponents.
Again.
“We got exposed in some areas against Long Beach and credit to the guys for putting in a concerted effort to fix it, just to give us a chance to do what we did this week.”
Eran Ganot
UH basketball coach
With wins at UC Santa Barbara on Thursday and Cal Poly on Saturday, the resilient Rainbow Warriors (18-3, 7-1 BWC) moved into a tie for first place with UC Irvine heading into Thursday’s matchup with the Anteaters at the Stan Sheriff Center.
UH has rarely enjoyed success on the mainland to that degree, and had never before won its first four conference road games.
The previous trip, the Rainbows did it against UC Riverside and Cal State Fullerton with Aaron Valdes sidelined with a toe injury. This time it was guard Isaac Fleming, the team’s top reserve who wasn’t even on the trip as he dealt with a sprained ankle.
Following the 75-60 win over the Mustangs in San Luis Obispo, coach Eran Ganot called it “a collective effort” for the week. It was a major morale boost for the team coming off a 14-point home loss to Long Beach State. UH first paid it forward at UCSB, 76-64.
“The common theme in both games were, we won the boards (plus-five in each) and I think we held both teams under (43) percent (shooting),” Ganot said. “We got exposed in some areas against Long Beach and credit to the guys for putting in a concerted effort to fix it, just to give us a chance to do what we did this week.”
Forward Stefan Jankovic came a rebound shy against Cal Poly of posting double doubles in both games. Valdes drew the toughest defensive assignment in each, UCSB’s Michael Bryson and Poly’s David Nwaba, and held them in check while averaging 16 points himself.
The backcourt of Roderick Bobbitt and Quincy Smith came up with big plays when necessary, and forward Mike Thomas was his usual steady self.
Without Fleming, the bench came up big at Cal Poly anyway; guard Niko Filipovich and forward Sai Tummala provided a spark.
The team was to arrive home late Sunday. The swing through the Central California coast is the most daunting among Big West road trips, travel-wise, because of the added component of busing up and down the coast several hours from Los Angeles.
Ganot said with even an opponent the caliber of Irvine (18-6, 7-1) looming, UH will break down its own play first today, as is the staff’s custom at the start of a week.
“We go right to the film and watch ourselves, even in a tight turnaround,” he said. “We’ll follow that formula; I think it’s important. If you’re not careful, you’ll skip some steps. And we don’t want to skip any steps. I think we know we have a great challenge coming up in Irvine, and we know we gotta watch ourselves first, continue to get better ourselves, then lock in on those guys. I think that’s served us well, and we’re going to stick to that.
“Just proud of our guys’ approach this week, proud of the way they traveled, which I think is a big reason you give yourself a chance on the road. Obviously pleased with them being rewarded for their efforts.”
