WILL TYLER BE READY FOR INVITATIONAL?

(Nov. 19): It was supposed to be a marquee match-up between the two most winning programs in college basketball history. Instead, it turned out to be an utter – and predictable – mismatch.

Even without reigning player of the year Tyler Hansbrough, top-ranked North Carolina had not problems in beating up on Kentucky. Doing most of his damage inside, Deon Thompson scored 20 points in leading the Tarheels to a 77-58 win.

The big question now is whether Hansbrough will be available to play in the EA Sports Maui Invitational, which tips off a three-day run on Monday at the Lahaina Civic Center.

The answer appears to be a definite maybe that Hansbrough will play Monday against Chaminade and less certain for Friday's tune-up game at UC Santa Barbara.

Hansbrough finally began to practice this week, but was held out of yesterday's game as a precautionary measure. Hansbrough is suffering from a stress reaction on his right shin.

With one big man seemingly on his way back, the Tarheels could have lost another. Freshman 7-footer Tyler Zeller suffered a wrist injury that had coach Roy Williams speaking in pessimistic tones after last night's romp past the Wildcats.

North Carolina also is without its best perimeter defender, Marcus Ginyard, until December because of foot surgery.

But even with such talented players unavailable, North Carolina is living up to its pre-season unanimous ranking as the nation's top team.

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MIL CHAMPS PREPARE FOR STATE TOURNEYS

(Nov. 14): There will be no Friday Night Lights at War Memorial Stadium this week, but they'll be back on in full force and with our full attention the following two weeks.

Next Friday, Baldwin will play host to defending Division-I state champion Leilehua, which advanced to states by spanking Waianae, 32-0, in the third-place game of the OIA tournament.

The Bears will be seeking to avenge a close loss to the Mules in last year's semifinals.

Leilehua is led by Andrew Manley, who is generally regarded to be the best quarterback in the state although still only a junior.

The following week, second-seeded Lahainaluna will face the winner of the first-round game between Radford and Kauai High in the quarterfinals of the D-II tourney.

Radford was dominated by Campbell in the OIA D-II title game, while Kauai is the state's only unbeaten team. The Lunas reached the state final last year before losing to Iolani, which is again back as the top seed.

The remaining berth in the state D-I tourney will be determined tonight, when Punahou and Saint Louis square off for the ILH title with only the winner advancing to the big show.

Remember those two big-time prep teams that visited the Valley Isle for early-season games? Both are enjoying outstanding seasons. Edison, which dominated the Lunas, is currently fifth in the Orange County rankings. Mission Viejo, which decisively beat Baldwin, is sixth in one of the nation's richest regions of prep talent.

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HOPES RISING FOR RAINBOW HOOPS

(Nov. 13): Playing pretty much with what he inherited because his late hiring prevented an effective recruiting effort, Bob Nash suffered through an 11-19 in his debut season as head coach.

Yet, despite losing seven seniors that accounted for 80 percent of the scoring and 64 percent of the rebounding, and despite there being no seniors on the current 15-player roster, there's a sense that the UH basketball team will be better this year.

We'll get a chance to see if that optimistic impression is correct as the Bows open the season by play three games in four days. UH faces USF on Friday night and then meet Cal State Fullerton on Sunday as part of the Tip Off Classic at the Stan Sheriff Center.

Hawaii will then host Idaho State on Monday in a game that will start at 11 p.m. as part of ESPN's Tip-Off Marathon, featuring 14 televised games over 23 hours.

Much of the elevated expectations at Manoa revolve around the highly-touted Roderick Flemings – billed by Nash as the best UH recruit since Anthony Carter.

The 6-7 swingman was a first-team JC all-America as a sophomore last season at Weatherford College of Texas, averaging nearly 21 points, 12 rebounds, 3.4 rebounds and 2.7 steals as a sophomore.

The top returning player – and only returning starter – is 6-9 junior forward Bill Amis, who is expected to dramatically increase on his 8.5 point and 4.6 rebound averages of last season. The top additions: Lithuanian forward Petras Balocka, forward Brandon Adams and point guard Hiram Thompson, returning from a two-year church mission.

My guess? UH, featuring a more athletic team and playing at a higher tempo, finishes with 17 wins and breaks even in the WAC. Not great. But a whole lot better than last year.

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UH GETS HEAD START IN RECRUITING

(Nov. 12): The immediate goal for Hawaii to become bowl-eligible, which will require two wins in the remaining three regular-season games.

But the coaching staff has also been busily at work in laying the foundation for the program's future by taking a proactive approach to recruiting.

For all the success June Jones enjoyed at UH, he was a less-than-enthusiastic recruiter.

UH didn't generally kick their recruiting efforts into high gear until after the end of the season, which – in the modern world of college football – is often too late. And there was a running joke about somebody giving Jones direction to the talent-rich North Shore.

But new head coach Greg McMackin has taken a different approach. As a result, 16 athletes have already made verbal commitments to sign with UH – and a high percentage of those being local kids.

The team remained on the mainland between recent games at Utah State and New Mexico State, allowing UH coaches to attend practices in SoCal, the Bay Area and Las Vegas to further assess some of their recruits. And some have remained on the mainland, taking advantage of the team's bye week.

The persistence paid off this week when Kevin Williams, a highly-touted cornerback from Los Medanos JC in the East Bay, accepted an offer from UH. Williams was widely recruited and will bring sub-4.4 speed to Hawaii's secondary.

UH also has landed commitments from two standout defensive players from nationally-ranked Long Beach Poly.

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BALDWIN STAGES ANOTHER COMEBACK

(Nov. 10): How many lives does a Bear have? Based on this year's prep football results, we can safely assume at least four.

That's because the Baldwin Bears staged their fourth unlikely comeback of the season – twice at the expense of King Kekaulike and once each against Kamehameha-Maui and Lahainaluna..

After suffering an earlier heart-breaking loss to the Bears at War Memorial Stadium, Na Alii appeared to have Baldwin on the ropes in Saturday's Upcountry rematch by capitalizing on a pair of turnovers for a 14-0 lead less than five minutes into the game.

But Kekaulike also paid for its mistakes, letting the Bears back into the game and to escape with an eventual 30-27 victory that extended Baldwin's run against MIL opponents to 36-0-1 since 2004.

A 14-yard scoring pass from Buta Wilhelm-Ioane to Sheldon Leong with 3:59 left gave Baldwin the lead and the Bears' defense barely held on as Kekaulike's game-tying field goal attempt was well off the mark to cap a game featuring five lead changes in the second half alone..

Baldwin tailback Kainalu Garso rushed for 140 yards on 21 carries, helping the Bears to finish the regular season with marks of 8-1 overall and 7-0 in the MIL. Baldwin's only loss of the year came against visiting SoCal powerhouse Mission Viejo.

For all of their late-game heroics, you have to seriously wonder if the Bears can continue pulling off miracle comebacks against the likes of Leilehua in the state Division-I football tournament.

Baldwin will host the defending state D-1 champs in a Nov. 21 quarterfinal game at War Memorial Stadium. Leilehua advanced by routing Waianae 32-0 in the third-place game of the OIA tournament.

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BALDWIN, LUNAS SET FOR STATE TOURNEY

(Nov. 4): They don't yet know exactly who they will be playing, but Baldwin and Lahainaluna do know when and where they will begin their bids for state football titles.

The good news for local fans, in these days of expense air fares, is that both teams will open their bids before the home folks at War Memorial Stadium.

Baldwin was seeded third in Division-I and will meet the winner of the OIA third-place game between defending state champion Leilehua and Waianae in a first-round game on Nov. 21. The Bears have lost in the semifinals of the previous two state tournaments to the eventual state champion.

The top seed in D-I went to the ILH champ – either Punahou or St. Louis – and second seed to the OIA champ – either Farrington or Kahuku. Kealakehe of the Big Island was seeded fourth.

In D-II, Lahainaluna received the second seed and will draw a bye in the opening round before facing the winner of the Kauai High vs. OIA No. 2 team – either Radford or Campbell – in the semis on Nov. 28.

The top seed went to ILH champ Iolani, which defeated the Lunas in last year's D-II title game. Kauai High was seeded third and the OIA champ fourth.

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DISMAL PERFORMAN BY UH

(Nov. 3): It was supposed to be one of those stepping stone games – albeit on the road --for Hawaii in its bid to post a winning record and earn an accompanying berth in the hometown Sheraton Hawaii Bowl.

Utah State, after all, has been a perennial have-not since joining the WAC and came into the game amid rampant speculation that Brent Guy was on his last lap as head coach despite having one year left on his contract. Guy had compiled a dismal 7-36 record, including 1-7 this season.

So much for recent history and anticipated victories, as well. UH faltered badly on Saturday in suffering a 30-14 to the Aggies.

Trailing 20-7 going into the final period, Hawaii managed to pull to within a TD on QB Greg Alexander's 9-yard run with 7 minutes left in the game. But the Aggies added a field goal and a final TD to seal the deal.

Indicative of UH's frustrations was a miscue that took place late in the game. Malcolm Lane appeared headed for a TD on a return when he inexplicably lost the ball with no one within tackling distance. That mistake didn't have a bearing in the final outcome, but reflected the kind of day it was for Hawaii in Logan, Utah.

By falling to 4-5 overall, Hawaii must win three of its remaining four games to become bowl eligible.

UH remains on the road this week, facing another WAC weakling at New Mexico State. Hawaii will then have a bye, followed by home games against Idaho, Washington State and Cincinnati.

UH would appear to be favorites in its next three games, for sure, but Hawaii can't afford to take anything for granted. Not after its dismal performance over the weekend.

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