Confidence is a habit Brocke Stepteau intends to keep.

Whether he’s on a basketball court or in a recording studio, Hawaii basketball’s smallest player is getting used to making himself heard.

The 5-foot-9 walk-on has improbably emerged as the Rainbow Warriors’ best option at point guard going into the nationally televised Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic. UH (4-5) opens up against Illinois State (6-3) of the Missouri Valley Conference at 8:30 p.m. Thursday at the Stan Sheriff Center.

In UH’s last five games, Stepteau, a former end-of-the-bench player, averaged 9.6 points and 3.6 assists. Over that span, he’s played stronger off the bench (13.3, 4.3) in three appearances than in his two starts (4.0, 2.5). But the sophomore still has been the most consistent backcourt option among a young group that includes sophomore Sheriff Drammeh and freshmen Matt Owies and Leland Green.

“I’m still learning, but I think I’m getting more and more confidence every game I play,” the third-year sophomore said. “I’m getting better every practice, every game, so hopefully it’ll continue to trend upward for me.”

Stepteau’s rise to prominence on the court comes in the same calendar year he made an out-of-nowhere debut as an aspiring hip-hop artist. The first track, “B$tep,” posted to Soundcloud in February. “Habits,” has more than 80,000 listens.

He has six tracks posted on the free site and plans to release an album of 12 songs at the turn of the year.

Making music is something Stepteau had never seriously considered until he started casually freestyling with friends last fall. Soon he applied a gift for writing and wordplay, previously used mainly for school assignments, to a new medium. Teammate Mike Thomas, a longtime music enthusiast, prodded him and Stepteau committed some lyrics to paper just before the 2015-16 ’Bows went on their March postseason run.

He recorded “Habits” in a Kalihi studio.

“It’s just a habit, ain’t no secret man I know I gotta have it / Wake up every day I’m on a mission see it all right in front of me I reach out gotta grab it,” goes the chorus.

“Being slept on all my life, man, imagine that / I took it on the chin, I said enough, so I ain’t having that” is another line in the song about a drive for success and respect.

He wasn’t sure if he’d get much of a response. Then the calls and texts of encouragement came in from everybody from loved ones to distant acquaintances. Now he spends much of his free time crafting new lyrics.

Thomas, UH’s redshirting senior veteran, gave Stepteau credit for taking feedback in stride and opening himself up to various types of music.

“He’s starting to get a lot more range, and find his own personal sound,” Thomas said. “So once you do that, you can get a lot better in a little amount of time.”

At first, Stepteau, a communications major, found it difficult to step up to the mic in a vacuum and deliver on cue.

“Part of it is being confident,” Stepteau said. “You have to deliver it in the proper way in the studio. That’s been the toughest part for me. I’ve gotten better recently and I think you’ll hear that if you listen to the new stuff.”

Finding the courage to step into the booth for the first time felt akin to the blind leap the Dallas native took walking on at Manoa without so much as a visit prior to the 2014-15 season.

“Same thing,” he said. “Exact same thing.”

Before this season, Stepteau (Step-TOE) was best known as a faithful member of the “Hawaii 5-O” bench mob. He was the guy teammates hoisted horizontally as a flying “Superman,” complete with towel as waving cape.

Behind the scenes, he’d take on veterans Roderick Bobbitt, Quincy Smith and Isaac Fleming as a member of the scout team. A daunting task, but he was used to talented competition in the Dallas AAU circuit. There he played with the likes of Myles Turner and against Justise Winslow and Kelly Oubre Jr., future NBAers all.

Along the way, the only child of Torrence and Kristi Stepteau learned to deal with his distinct size disadvantage.

“It’s not like he used to be 6-2 or played center,” said Torrence, also his son’s former AAU coach. “He’s always been the small point guard and had to figure out how to get those shots off over the bigger guy. So it’s not new to him.”

This fall, he cultivated a reputation as a deadeye practice player. It was just a matter of translating the shooting and play-making to games, while improving his build and knowledge of defensive schemes.

Stepteau is shooting 50 percent from the field (17-for-34), including 40.9 percent from 3 (9-for-22). He’s still got to work on keeping turnovers down (16 to his 22 assists).

“You should be judged on what you do, not what you can do, and be rewarded for that,” UH coach Eran Ganot said. “It doesn’t always happen that way, where guys are rewarded for their efforts. Maybe they practice well and can’t do it in games.”

Stepteau was quiet in his first start against Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Nov. 27 (1 point, 1 assist). His best success came in a Dec. 6 loss to Seton Hall in the Pearl Harbor Invitational, recording 17 points on 5-for-8 shooting off the bench.

“Some guys need those breakthroughs,” Ganot said. “It’s a credit to him for the work and the effort.”

Right now, the proverbial mic is his.