Even in the offseason, Mountain West Conference nemesis Boise State manages to be a thorn in the Hawaii’s side.
A mere 48 days after being hired as the Rainbow Warriors’ offensive coordinator, Zak Hill is leaving to take a similar position with the Broncos.
“Zak made the decision in the best interest of him and his family and we wish him well,” first-year head coach Nick Rolovich said in a university release. “Our focus is now on finding a replacement and moving forward. We recruit coaches and players the same way. We want people who want to be here and who fit into the Live Aloha, Play Warrior mold.”
Hill was plucked from Eastern Washington, where he guided one of the most prolific offenses in the Football Championship Subdivision.
According to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser, whomever Rolovich tabs as Hill’s replacement will become UH’s eight coordinator since Rolovich held the title in 2011.
Signs point to March Madness: The Rainbow Warriors (16-2, 5-0 Big West) will look to match their best conference start in men’s basketball since 2002 when they host Long Beach State on Saturday night at Stan Sheriff Center in an 8 p.m. tipoff on OCSports.
The last time UH was 16-2 was 1972, the year it made the first of its four appearances at the NCAA tournament. Hawaii’s last trip was 2002.
Fans are starting to take notice that this might be more than just another season.
A crowd of 9,289 – it’s highest since 2013 – watched Hawaii beat UC Davis 78-62 last Saturday for its eighth win in a row.
“This is a special place,” coach Eran Ganot said on the OCSports telecast. “Our guys deserve it, but this is a special place. This is a special team. This venue … when it’s like this it’s electric.”
Ganot also said junior guard Aaron Valdes was “getting closer” to returning to the lineup after missing his third consecutive game with a toe injury.
Behind Stefan Jankovic (15.6 points per game), Valdes (14.8) and Roderick Bobbitt (13.2), UH leads the Big West in scoring, averaging 80.4 a game.
The Beach (9-12, 3-3) does a lot of its damage from behind the arc. Long Beach leads the league in 3-pointers, averaging nine a game.
Wahine need consistency: After following each of their past four wins with a loss, the sixth-place Rainbow Wahine (10-9, 3-3 Big West) will try to gain midseason momentum during a two-game home set against struggling women’s basketball teams.
Cal State Fullerton (2-17, 0-5) visits Thursday for a 7 p.m. contest on OCSports, and the Wahine play UC Irvine (4-16, 1-5), which just snapped an 11-game losing streak, on Saturday in a 5:30 game that precedes the men’s game.
Hawaii is the top rebounding team in the league, but it’s in the middle of the pack offensively, shooting 40.7 percent from the field. Only senior Destiny King (10.0 points per game) averages in double-figures.
Easy pickings ahead?: The UH men’s volleyball team moved up to No. 5 in the rankings after sweeping Grand Canyon last weekend as senior outside hitter Sinisa Zarkovic became the 16th player in school history to reach 1,000 kills for his career.
The Rainbow Warriors (6-1, 1-1) step back into Mountain Pacific Sports Federation play, hosting UC San Diego (2-5, 0-4) at 7 p.m. Friday (OCSports) and 5 p.m. Sunday.
If history is any indication, UH will be 8-1 when the weekend is over. The ‘Bows are 49-4 all-time against the Tritons.
Help from down under: Freshman Julia Barton of Australia on Wednesday was named the Big West women’s water polo Player of the Week. Barton scored in each game as UH went 5-1 at the season-opening UC Santa Barbara Winter Invitational. With four wins against team ranked in the top 20, the Wahine rank fourth in the latest national poll.
