U.H. GOES BACK TO OLD HOOPS FORMULA

(April 10): Now we know where Bob Nash spent the couple of weeks immediately following Hawaii's early exit from the WAC basketball tournament that ended a highly disappointing 11-19 debut season for Bows' head coach.

He spent some time in Florida. He didn't go to Disney World. But he did take an "it's a small world after all" approach to his recruiting efforts.

Reverting to a familiar formula, Nash recruited a pair of international players from American junior colleges to replenish a roster that lost seven seniors and four starters, including leading scorer Matt Gibson and the versatile Bobby Nash.

Two such players – who spent last season competing for Pensacola Junior College in Florida -- apparently are headed to Manoa.

One is a big, strong power forward from Lithuania. Petras Balocka averaged nearly 14 points and more than 11 rebounds per game. The 6-8, 250-pounder reportedly has a funky-looking but accurate shot.

The other is a 6-2 shooting guard from the Republic of Georgia. Lasha Parghalava averaged 11.4 points, 2.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists during the past season. He also led Pensacola with 45 3-pointers.

UH won back-to-back WAC titles in 2001 and 2002 with a nucleus of European players that included Predrag Savovic. Nash hopes the international approach works again.

Hawaii earlier signed Adam Jesperen, a 6-7 forward from Canada, and is holding a scholarship for point guard Hiram Thompson, who is returning from a two-year church mission.

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