Warrior Insider

The University of Hawai’i basketball team is home for the holidays. After a rough one-game road trip to Oregon last week, the Rainbow Warriors will play their next five games at home.

Up first is a Sunday afternoon game against Samford. This Sunday’s game is scheduled to start at 3:30 p.m. at the Stan Sheriff Center. It is part of a UH basketball doubleheader, and the Rainbow Wahine will play Hope International at 1:00 p.m. Fans with tickets to the UH men’s game can arrive early to watch the women’s game.

The Warriors are 6-3 following an 89-64 loss at Oregon last Saturday The Ducks were ranked No. 13 last week, and are up to No. 10 this week.

The Warriors returned to Honolulu on Sunday, and will have a full week to prepare for Samford … and finish up the current Fall semester classes. Final examinations are next week.

Samford has a 6-5 record and feature a dynamic point guard in 5-10 senior Josh Sharkey. He is averaging 16.3 points, 9.6 assists, 3.9 steals and 3.3 rebounds per game.

After the Samford game, and completion of final exams on December 20, the Warriors will then be able to full focus on the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic, December 22, 23 and 25. Hawai’i is scheduled to face UTEP on the opening night.

Washington is the only team in this year’s Diamond Head Classic field that could potentially be ranked in the AP Top 25 when the tournament starts, and Hawai’i might face the Huskies in the second round.