Just got back from Hawaii

[Billsboys]

I wanted to posts some thoughts about the game. I took a late flight friday night and got into Honolulu for the game on Sat. night. I got to see an old friend who used to coach at SLU and realy enjoyed the game.

First the refs did a great job with the game. They let the big men play and the game seemed to have a nice flow. Hawaii was dominate on the inside and shot the three well. They had many blocks and dunks and did a good job with the rebounding.

If anyone saw the game they know Sensley was dominate!!!! When he brought the basket down with a monster dunk the crowd went wild.

It was my first chance to see the new freshman play and I thought that they played a little tenative. I thought Polk and Ian played well but was dissapointed with TL. Watching the coaching staff on the bench they seemed to be in his ear everytime he sat down. I think he needs to gain some confidence and take charge on the floor. I know many posters on here have compared him to Larry, but I would say he is from from that at this point.

Drejaj can't shoot at all and VN played hard but seemed limited.

One thing I noticed was Hawaii has a small on campus gym. I think the total attendance was in the 5,500 range. It seemed much louder than that and goes to show you that a small gym can really give you a home court advantge. I think the gym holds about 8,000 but it seems good for basketball. I think this was great to see in regards to the new arena. It made my mind up that a new arena is critical for the future of the bball program and a home court advantage.

I think our lack of size will really hurt us this year. It is more than critical to get a solid 4 man with a solid body. I can see trouble ahead if we have to constanly help down low and let 3 pointers reign from the outside. Plus, teams won't have to double on us which keeps the gaurds closely gaurded. JJ was regulated to picking up towels and making sure the little seats were properly set up for timeouts. I hope he can find himself.

Overall the experience was a enlightening one for me in Hawaii. The team has potential but I don't see them as a tournament team this year. They need size that can actually move around and has some athletic ability. The gaurds need to hit some open shots and slash to the basket to open up the outside shots. I think this will be a year of foundation for the program. By the way, Hawaii was really nice. Although I have been there before I think the university does a nice job with thier facilities and the local people are so nice.