By KEVIN JAKAHI
Tribune-Herald sports writer
The Gary Coleman show was a hometown hit on Wednesday night.
No, not the “Diff’rent Strokes” television star Gary Coleman, but GE Coleman, who prefers GE to Gary, the new University of Hawaii at Hilo men’s basketball coach.
His Vulcans put on a rebounding-and-running scoring clinic to flatten Western State of Colorado 88-62 in a nonconference game at UHH Gym in Coleman’s hometown coaching debut.
Jamario Clayton, bidding for a starting spot, came off the bench and scored 16 points on 5 of 10 shooting, including 3 of 4 from long distance, to lead UHH (2-1).
Darnell Williams was equally effective, going 6 of 12 from the field, for 14 points. Jeff Perkins, another new starter, added 12 points, also on 50 percent shooting (5 of 10) for the Vulcans, who made 48 percent from the field.
Mason Biddle, who knocked down 4 of 11 shots, scored 13 points and Jordan Adams also had 13 points for the Mountaineers (0-2), who hit 38 percent from the floor.
Like the 4-foot, 8-inch actor Gary Coleman, who passed away in 2010, GE Coleman, who’s 5 feet, 5 inches, isn’t that tall and neither is his team. Most of fellas for Coleman, the coach, are 6 feet, 6 inches or shorter.
However, the Vulcans seemed to hold the athletic trump card and often dribble-drived for open kick-out looks, and smothered the slower Moutaineers, who often found a hand in their face and struggled with their ball-handling (five assists to 14 turnovers).
The Vulcans kept building on their 43-24 halftime lead, putting a sizable 30-point distance between their fellow NCAA Division II competitor when the defensive play turned into some semblance of pickup ball.
Brandon Thomas, who had nine points, made one of two free throws to stake UHH to an 82-52 cushion with under seven minutes left, concluding a short 7-0 scoring spree.
It almost got ugly with 13 minutes remaining when several players got tangled on the floor. The referees separated the teams. On a following in-bound possession before the ball was in play Thomas got in Western point guard Biddle’s face.
Thomas was immediately subbed out for Kevin Dancer, who was recently made eligible. Thomas is listed at 6 feet, 6 inches. Biddle is listed at 6 feet, 1 inch and is about 20 pounds lighter. There was no incident during the post-game handshake.
The Vulcans contained Biddle, who scored 28 points in Western’s 75-65 loss to Hawaii Pacific on Sunday in Honolulu, putting Williams, who’s listed at 5 feet, 11 inches but looks a little shorter, on him.
The Mountaineers, who finished 11-15 last season, were picked to finish 10th in the 11-team Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference by the league’s coaches.
The NCAA instituted defense restrictions for all levels (Division I, II and III) this season, likely in response to the low-scoring NCAA Tournament games, including tighter calls on hand-checks, to protect ball-handlers.
“You can’t call 13 fouls in five minutes,” Western coach Mike Moskowitz barked at the local referee crew of Mason Souza, Patrick Santiago and Mike Daugherty.
The NCAA also required all coaches to watch a DVD explaining the new basketball officiating regulations.
The Mountaineers finished the first half with 15 personal fouls; the Vulcans were charged with 14 fouls. Each team took advantage of their free throw attempts. Western sank 8 of 15 from the line, while UHH went 9 of 14.
For the game, the hometown team sank 20 of 27 free throws while the visitors were 14 of 28 from the stripe.
The Vulcans manufactured a 16-1 run on quick ball-movement and inside scoring to grab a 35-17 lead with under five minutes left until halftime.
Clayton fired in two 3-pointers and Williams, who had 10 points in the first half, sank a layup at the buzzer to help UHH to a 43-24 lead.
The Vulcans scored 14 points in the paint, dropping in four layups and four dunks, contributing mightily to a 50 percent shooting from the field in the first half, relying and showing off their athleticism.
