NOT NIT-picking, mind you, but the National Invitation Tournament is about home-court advantages until the final four at the Madison Square Garden in the Big Apple. That's the way the tournament sets up. Home court does
have its advantagesUniversity of Hawaii coach Riley Wallace knew it. That's why he rued not playing at home in meeting UNLV for the third time this season. UNLV has a bigger arena in the Thomas & Mack Center than UH's yet unnamed place. So his Rainbows went on their sixth road trip of the season to play the Runnin' Rebels last night in Las Vegas.
Wallace knew that the Runnin' Rebels would have the home-court advantage in the NIT's second-round matchup. But who would have thought they'd have a home-clock advantage as well? I don't know how else to explain the final 4.2 seconds of the first half.
I thought I was watching a replay of the USA-Soviet Union basketball game in the 1972 Olympics. You know, the one in which time, or at least the clock, stood still. You know how that ended. The Americans got jobbed, thanks to a ham-handed timer with a sense of timing.
Well, the Rainbows weren't exactly jobbed in the same way. But thanks to a Vegas time keeper, truly a man with a slow hand, the Runnin' Rebels are catching the next flight to Arkansas, while the Rainbows are slowly realizing that their great season has finally come to an end as they head home.
UNLV beat the 'Bows for the first time this season, 89-80, in overtime before 12,800 fans.
YOU figured the third meeting would be dead even at the end of regulation. After all, Hawaii had won their earlier meetings by one and two points. It couldn't get any closer than that except for a zero-point differential after 40 minutes. Which it was, 76-76.
All season, the overachieving Rainbows defied odds to get to this point. Last night, they had to defy some physical logic as well, as the Rebels got off three shots in the final 4.2 seconds before the half. The third was a putback by Damian Smith with one-tenth of a second left, giving them a 44-43 lead at intermission.
More significantly, you might say that eventually gave UNLV the ballgame.
Without that critical basket, there would have been no overtime -- which was the worst-case scenario that could have befallen the short-handed 'Bows, who were also hampered by foul trouble.
And, without an overtime to play, Anthony Carter might not have fouled out. Nor Eric Ambrozich, who played the game of his life. Nor Micah Kroeger. Nor Danny Furlong.
But they all did.
The game -- and the season -- ended with the four on the bench. Not exactly the way they wanted to finish out a remarkable season.
THE record book will show a 21-8 season. But it will not even begin to describe the team's strength and character during a season filled with adversity.
"I'm proud of this team and I hope the state of Hawaii is, too," Wallace said. "I told these kids no one expected anything out of them at the start of the season. They proved everybody wrong."
Last night was no exception.
"These kids spilled their guts on the floor tonight," said Wallace, who told his players to walk out of the locker room with their heads as high as they want despite the painful loss.
"We'll never replace Danny Furlong and Seth Sundberg as people, but we've got to replace them as players," said Wallace, referring to his two departing seniors.
But with four returning starters, Wallace knows all he needs is a big man or two for a good shot at the NCAA Tournament in which no one can NIT-pick about home-court advantages or timers with slow reflexes.