Warrior Insider

The University of Hawai’i basketball team will get one warm-up test before the 2016-17 regular-season begins. It will come in the form of an exhibition game against Brigham Young-Hawai’i on Thursday night (November 3) at the Stan Sheriff Center.

The game is scheduled to start at 7:00 p.m., and the final result and statistics will not count for either team.

Indications are the youthful Warriors can still make good use of the warm-up game because rotations and playing time are still being determined throughout the roster.

As has already been well-documented, second-year head coach Eran Ganot is in search of five new starters this season. The Warriors made a historic run to the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season, but sophomore guard Sheriff Drammeh is the only player on the current active roster who saw action in that second-round loss to Maryland.

Ten newcomers have arrived, including five true freshmen. There is only one senior on the active roster, and he is also a newcomer – 6-foot-7 guard/forward Noah Allen, who is a transfer form UCLA.

Allen led all players with 23 points and 10 rebounds during a 30-minute intrasquad scrimmage on October 22. Drammeh added 15 points, five rebounds and four assists, and junior college transfer Gibson Johnson contributed 13 points.

It seems safe to assume that those three players – and redshirt sophomore Jack Purchase – will see significant action in the exhibition game, but the rest of the main rotation remains a work in progress.

Although it is just an exhibition game, the Warriors can’t expect any sympathy from the NCAA Division II Seasiders, who are in their final season of competition. The school previously announced that it will not compete in intercollegiate athletics after this season.

Ken Wagner, who was the head coach at BYUH for 26 seasons and more than 500 victories, has already departed the program. Longtime assistant Gabriel Roberts is the head coach for this season, and he has only one assistant listed on the roster – Darrell Matsui.

BYUH returns two starters from last season’s 15-12 team, including 6-2 senior shooting guard Cory Lange, who led the team in scoring (18.0 per game) and 3-pointers (81 in 27 games).

But the Seasiders also have eight freshmen and three sophomores among the 15 players on the roster.

Hawai’i’s regular-season opener is scheduled for November 11 against SIU-Edwardsville. That will be followed shortly after with games on November 13 (Texas State) and a late-night game on November 14 (Florida Atlantic).

HAWAI’I VS. BYU-HAWAI’I (EXHIBITION)
When: Thursday, Nov. 3, 7:00 p.m.
Where: Stan Sheriff Center (10,300)
Television: None
Radio: None
Livestats: HawaiiAthletics.com
Tickets: All seats general admission ($10 – adults; $8 – senior citizens; $5 – youth).