On the road … to recovery
The road to recovery for the Hawaii basketball team will begin in Las Cruces, N.M., and Ruston, La.
The Warriors departed Honolulu on Tuesday night for a two-game Western Athletic Conference road trip. They will play at New Mexico State on Thursday, then at Louisiana Tech on Saturday.
Hawaii is 9-7 overall and 0-4 in the WAC after two inadequate home losses last week. New Mexico State is 8-9 overall and 2-1 in the WAC; LaTech is 9-8 overall and 0-3 in conference play.
“I think this team will bring effort and I think if we can just execute a little bit more on a few things, then we can turn this thing around,” head coach Gib Arnold said.
If so, the Warriors will have to do it a long way from home. In order to get to Las Cruces, they will fly from Honolulu to Dallas, then Dallas to El Paso, followed by a bus ride from El Paso to Las Cruces.
To get to Ruston, the Warriors will have to bus back to El Paso, fly back to Dallas, then fly to Shreveport, then take another bus ride from Shreveport to Ruston.
“I understand it’s an adventure just to get there,” Arnold said. “And then you have to play against two pretty good teams, so it’ll be a challenge.”
Hawaii will have 11 players available on this road trip, and only three of them have done the Las Cruces/Ruston road swing in previous years.
“It’s not too exciting out there; not too much to do,” senior point guard Hiram Thompson said. “It’s a good thing we’re playing basketball because I wouldn’t go out there for any other reason.”
There is actually one Warrior looking forward to visiting Las Cruces. Freshman Trevor Wiseman said one of his good friends from high school is a student at New Mexico State.
“I probably won’t get a chance to hang out or anything like that, but it’ll be cool just to see a good friend over there,” Wiseman said.
Mostly though, the Warriors want to re-establish their winning ways on the trip.
“We know we have to pick it up here, and we know we can play better than we have been,” Wiseman said. “Hopefully it’ll start with these games on the road.”
Okay, it’s time to toughen up and suck it up, man!!! Show us what you’re made of!!!
They’re not made of much, apparently.. Last game, it was an air ball free throw by Bobby Miles.. This week, it is a corner 3-ball that bounced off the side of the glass by Trevor Wiseman.. Somewhere in Las Vegas, Riley Wallace is laughing it up because he was right all along..