Back in 2012, the Hawaii basketball team was unprepared for the Miami Hurricanes. Now the Rainbow Warriors will load up for another storm at the Stan Sheriff Center.
UH opens the 2017 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic against Miami in an 8 p.m. game on Dec. 22, tournament runner ESPN announced on Wednesday. It is the second time the ’Bows were matched up with the ’Canes of the Atlantic Coast Conference in the DHC first round. Miami won the 2012 pairing 73-58 and went on to the NCAA Sweet 16 later that season.
UH will play either former WAC foe New Mexico State or Davidson on the second day of the tournament.
“A terrific field once again,” UH coach Eran Ganot said. “ESPN and the Diamond Head Classic Committee have once again done a great job in putting together a field full of postseason teams and respected programs, players and coaches.
“Miami will present a great challenge and opportunity right off the bat.”
The Hurricanes are one of five teams in the 2017 DHC field to qualify for the NCAA Tournament in March; they lost to Michigan State in the first round. They were 21-12 overall and 10-8 in the ACC in 2016-17, compared to UH’s 14-16 overall and 8-8 in the Big West.
Miami beat UH on its last visit in part because of superior size, and could pose a problem there again. Jim Larranaga’s team has four players 6-10 or taller, compared to one active player (Ido Flaisher) for UH.
The other DHC first-round matchups are Middle Tennessee vs. Princeton, Akron vs. USC and Davidson vs. New Mexico State. All four Day 1 games will be televised on ESPNU, with the semifinals (Dec. 23) and championship game (Dec. 25) on ESPN2.
Other previously reported games on UH’s schedule are Nevada on Nov. 24 and at Utah on Dec. 2.
Allen heads to Spain
Former UH wing Noah Allen has landed his first professional contract with ICL Manresa of Spain’s second tier, LEB Gold.
“It’s a good country,” Allen messaged the Star-Advertiser. He said his fluency in Spanish is “not enough … if I don’t learn while I’m there I’ll be disappointed.”
Allen, a first-team All-Big West player in his lone season (2016-17) with the Rainbow Warriors, recently got some exposure with the Golden State Warriors’ NBA Summer League team. Manresa’s website noted Allen has a one-year contract plus an option on another.
Manresa went 5-27 last season in finishing last in Spain’s top tier, Liga Endesa, according to Eurobasket.com. They will drop down a division for the coming season, Allen said.
Former UH guard Garrett Nevels was the leading scorer (16.4 ppg) for Forca Lleida in LEB Gold last year.
Ex-UH forward Isaac Fotu recently completed his third season for Zaragoza, the second-to-last team in Liga Endesa, but Fotu (9.5 ppg, 5.7 rpg last season) has agreed to a deal with Ratiopharm Ulm in Germany’s top tier.
