Here’s the good news for the University of Hawaii basketball team.

The Warriors get to play a team they will probably beat today.

And that’s about it.

Sure, Brandon Jawato broke out with some excellent long-range shooting and UH has another weapon that might come in handy in future games. Coach Gib Arnold said he will consider starting him after Jawato led UH with 12 points.

Yes, 12 points. The math is pretty simple — you’re probably on the wrong end by a lot when your leading scorer has a dozen.

Saturday against Miami in the Diamond Head Classic, the freshman guard had very little help from his more established teammates and the Hurricanes won 73-58, going away.

Forward Christian Standhardinger was one of the underachievers, scoring just seven points —10 below his team-leading average — and zero in the first half.

It didn’t matter that Miami was shorthanded as it played without its star, center Reggie Johnson. Well, it kind of did in the first half, after which the Hurricanes led just 22-21 after 20 minutes of basketball that was as ugly for both teams as the bright green shoes some of the Miami players wore.

There were more Jays sitting behind the Hawaii bench (new athletic director Ben and his family) than J’s made by the Warriors before the break.

"Both teams played pretty good defense in the first half," Standhardinger said. "They held the ball and slowed down the game, and that was a smart tactical move.

"Our strength is running."

But regardless of that, 29 percent from the floor wasn’t going to cut it, unless Miami went 1-for-10 from 3-point land again after the break.

Perhaps most disturbing for UH fans was Miami’s 6-0 start of the second half, with two buckets coming off putbacks. Jawato’s bomb was the only interruption in a 12-3 Hurricanes run that gave the guests a control of the game they never relinquished.

You can’t get out-hustled and expect to beat a talented team on a six-game winning streak.

"I don’t know," Standhardinger said. "They got a couple of offensive rebounds and then No. 1 got hot."

That was Durand Scott, who UH’s scouting had identified as a slasher, not a shooter. By the time someone got a hand in his face, he’d hit four from beyond the arc in the second half alone to make the lead insurmountable.

Then there was the other Miami guard, Shane Larkin. He fills up a basketball stat sheet like his dad, Hall-of-Famer Barry Larkin, did a baseball box score.

"Once they got on that rhythm …," Arnold said. "It’s a good team, a real good team."

East Tennessee State is not, and fortunately for the Rainbows that is who they play today.

Reach Dave Reardon at dreardon@staradvertiser.com or 529-4783.