Closing up shop
In a somewhat expected move, Hawaii coach Gib Arnold said after team practice today that the remaining UH practices this week would be closed to media and the public.
Tuesday’s session in Gym 1, the team’s first coming off its 0-2 Big West road trip was also closed.
Arnold has closed UH practices in the past three years when his teams have hit difficult stretches of losses, as well as during one preseason while new players got accustomed to things.
However, not including gameday walkthroughs, the only previous practice to be closed this season was on Thanksgiving.
UH (11-5 overall) trailed wire-to-wire in a 77-65 defeat at Cal Poly last Thursday, then was unable to muster the go-ahead basket in the final minute of a 79-78 loss at Cal State Northridge on Saturday.
“First day back, we usually work on ourselves, what we gotta work on to get better at,” Arnold said. “We’ll spend the next three days on (UC) Riverside (Saturday’s opponent). It was about UH and about us getting better. You learn a lot on the road. Saw some weaknesses of some things. Tried to emphasize that and get a little bit better.”
Due to there being no outside eyes inside the practice, Arnold was asked what specific things the team tried to address Tuesday.
“I thought there was parts of one of our presses that we did that wasn’t as efficient, and so we worked a lot on one of our presses,” he said. “One press was really good, especially against CSUN near the end of the game. Worked on that, (and) I thought our transition basketball wasn’t as aggressive offensively as I’d like to see. So we did a lot (of that) too. A lot of getting up and down, a lot of running and playing at a higher pace, both offensively and defensively.”
In final minute of the Northridge loss while trailing by a point, UH had a missed front end of a 1-and-1 free throw by Brandon Spearman, a missed layup by Keith Shamburger and an errant 16-foot jump shot by Christian Standhardinger at the buzzer.
“One of those go in, obviously it’s a great road trip,” Arnold said. “But that’s part of the road, and part of the learning curve. I thought we got better from Thursday to Saturday. So you’re always looking for that improvement. I’m hoping this Saturday we’re even better than we were last week.”
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UH newcomer Stefan Jankovic, the ex-Missouri forward, was at Tuesday’s practice, though he wasn’t suited up in a practice uniform and isn’t yet on the Rainbow Warriors’ roster. He’s enrolling at Manoa this semester (this is the first week of spring classes) and is expected to be eligible to play in December.
Arnold said Tuesday he could not comment on Jankovic.
Listening to Curran this a.m. on his radio sports talk show was just sickening and I’m hoping he reads this as he was trying to mitigate how difficult it is for any team to lose on the road ..of course, his reference was to the UH men’s basketball team losing their first 2 games on the road but, yet, last year, and even the year before when it was announced that Hawaii would be in the Big West, he kept chiming that now it would be easier for the basketball and baseball but esp. the basketball teams to win on the road and even last year in early January he kept spinning the typical platitudes of how UH should be able to win on the road and when it wasn’t happening, of course, he reverts back to the UH propaganda that its always tough to win on the road and this morning he comes out with that same spin by having a guest call in to say its always tough to win on the road and, of course, now we should feel sorry for the UH basketball team losing the first 2 games on the road…just damm sickening…JUST A DAMM MOUTHPIECE FOR THE UH trying to keep his job…the animals and even Josh Pacheco in his afternoon talk show says it like it is e.g. no excuse for Chow losing this many games and next year should be his do or die year…I mean, at least, Josh and even the Animals take the opposite view and tell it like it is but Curran is damm nauseating if I may say….now my comments will be submitted for further review..
You’re correct as voice of the warriors he will always sugarcoat everything all the way even till a coach is fired. Ie Bob Nash. Dave Reardon will give you opinions Bobby won’t go that far.
you all know how Curran is, why get upset?
it IS, what it IS
Shoots, the only thing Gib and team have to do, is start winning again, get that first BWC win against Riverside, playing really well on offense and defense, with whole team focused. Then get ready for another run at BWC 2 game road swing. Get as many wins as possible, and be up there in top 4 or better, hard to do, however not impossible, the BWC is up for grabs for any of the 9 teams. Then the media guys can say whatever they want, any angle, go back and forth, for or against, we fans, just want to see UH win right? And win championships, or go to big Post Season dances!