Players & coaches greet fans with haka
Weeks of preparation created some crowd-pleasing moves for the Hawaii basketball team at the ‘Ohana Hoopfest on Oct. 15, and it had nothing to do with basketball.
The Warriors spent several weeks practicing a Tahitian haka, and it came to fruition at the ‘Ohana Hoopfest.
“I would say we were about an 8 (out of 10),” junior Zane Johnson said. “It wasn’t perfect, but we did it. If you asked me a couple weeks ago, I never thought we’d get it.”
Following the players’ haka, head coach Gib Arnold and his staff performed their own version of a Tahitian haka, with assistance from the dancers of Ia Ora O Tahiti Nui. Arnold amused the fans with a prepared skit before commencing with the haka.
“I hope I never have to take my shirt off like that again in front of thousands of people,” Arnold said with a laugh. “It was embarrassing, but it was all in fun, so it was worth it. The guys did a great job and the coaches did a great job, and the crowd seemed to like it, that’s the main thing.”
Coaches win!!!
“Even the Russian judge wouldʻve voted for us on that one.”