Bolstered by stirring comeback victories, the University of Hawaii at Hilo men’s and women’s basketball teams hope to expand their successes Monday night at Hilo Civic when they host Notre Dame de Namur in a special Armed Forces and Veterans Appreciation Day event.
Bolstered by stirring comeback victories, the University of Hawaii at Hilo men’s and women’s basketball teams hope to expand their successes Monday night at Hilo Civic when they host Notre Dame de Namur in a special Armed Forces and Veterans Appreciation Day event.
The women’s team has won three in a row and four of its last five after shrugging off a slow start to topple Chaminade, 59-53. As they looked at the Pacific West Conference standings a day later, the Vulcans may have their eyes on the postseason, which suddenly seems within reach.
Coach David Kaneshiro’s team is 8-7 in the PWC (8-12 overall), in seventh place, one step removed from the final playoff berth, currently held by Point Loma Nazarene (10-5, 17-6). With five conference games remaining and Point Loma paying a visit on Feb. 23, all things seem possible.
“Our focus can’t change,” Kaneshiro said, “we’ve gotten better, they have dedicated themselves to the team commitment we always preach and it has been paying off lately.
“Nothing should change now,” he said, “just maybe dig in even more, work harder to clean up mistakes, that’s how we got to this point.”
The Vulcans will be looking to sweep Notre Dame de Namur after opening the recent Bay Area trip with a 55-46 win over the Argonauts. Meanwhile, Point Loma, after a 77-61 defeat Saturday at Azusa Pacific, hosts first place Academy of Art (15-1), Monday night, when Art U will be looking for the sweep. A Vulcans’ win, combined with a Point Loma loss, would leave Hawaii Hilo one game removed from a playoff spot with four games left to play.
The Hilo men’s team (6-10, 6-14), is coming off one of its more impressive victories of the season, a 101-99 come-from-behind effort over Chaminade in which Salim Gloyd (28), and Nate Walker (25) combined for 53 points.
They might not admit it, but Monday’s game will be a chance for the Vulcans to exact some revenge after an 82-80 overtime loss against a team that is 2-14 and 3-20 overall. Hilo was just 8-for-12 from the foul line and didn’t get to shoot a free throw in the second half or in overtime in the road loss.
“If we play the right way, we’ll take care of business,” coach GE Coleman said of the Notre Dame de Namur game. “We absolutely handed them that game (in the Bay Area).”
The Argonauts have been a nemesis for Hawaii Hilo on the road, winning all three games played there since Coleman has been coaching the Vulcans. Notre Dame de Namur is 14th and last in conference in scoring at 57.2 per game (UHH is sixth, 81.9), and also last in scoring margin, averaging a minus-18.7 deficit against opponents (Hilo is 11th, averaging minus-6.1).
Members of the armed forces, veterans and their families receive free admission to the games that start when the women tip off at 5 p.m., followed by the men’s game. The Hilo High School honor guard will be present for the Armed Forces recognition.