In terms of sheer name recognition of its participants, the 15th edition of the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic might not move the needle more than a quiver.
But a closer inspection reveals an underrated eight-team college basketball field that boasts some conference contenders and a combined record of 53-24.
Host Hawaii (6-3) opens against Charlotte (6-4) of the American Athletic Conference at 6 p.m. on ESPN2 to cap four first-round games on Sunday. Games follow on Monday and Christmas Day on Wednesday.
“We know we have a heck of a challenge,” UH coach Eran Ganot said this week. “Eight great teams, first-class event, looking forward to it.”
The other opening matchups are: College of Charleston (8-2) of the Colonial Athletic Association versus Oregon State (8-2) of the Pac-12, 10 a.m. on ESPN2; Oakland (3-7) of the Horizon League versus Loyola Chicago (9-1) of the Atlantic 10, 12 p.m on ESPN2; and Murray State (6-4) of the Missouri Valley Conference versus Nebraska (7-2) of the Big Ten, 4 p.m. on ESPN.
In terms of KenPom rating among all 364 Division I programs the teams rank: Nebraska 55, Oregon State 62, Loyola Chicago 103, Murray State 112, College of Charleston 128, Hawaii 188, Charlotte 199, and Oakland 213.
UH aims for its second DHC title; the Rainbow Warriors beat SMU on JoVon McClanahan’s memorable 3-pointer in 2022.
No other teams in the field have a championship in the event. In fact, none of the returnees (Charleston, 2009; Oregon State, 2013; Nebraska, 2014; Loyola Chicago, 2014; Charlotte, 2018) won their opening-round game. Murray State (Murray, Ky.) and Oakland (Rochester, Mich.) are the two first-time participants.
UH has won 12 of its last 13 at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center. But the Rainbow Warriors are in for a tough game on Day 2 on Monday regardless of which side of the bracket UH lands after meeting Charlotte, with either Nebraska or Murray State.
Charlotte went 0-3 in its only previous outing in the Diamond Head Classic in 2018.
These 49ers, however, lead the NCAA in fewest turnovers per game at 8.7. Junior guard Nik Graves leads Charlotte with 16.3 points, 3.2 assists and 1.2 turnovers per game. He has scored in double figures in every contest.
“I was there (as an assistant) six years ago in that same tournament so it’ll be great to go back and revisit that and go out and try to find ways to get better,” second-year 49ers coach Aaron Fearne said after his team’s 75-70 win over West Georgia on Tuesday.
Giveaways have been an off-and-on issue for the Rainbow Warriors, Ganot acknowledged. UH is coming off its three highest turnover games of the year against Grand Canyon (20), Long Beach State (17) and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (16).
“Early it was really good, lately it went backwards a little bit,” he said. “We’re not going to get over the hump if we turn it over the way we have recently.”
Co-captain Ryan Rapp is coming off his best outing as a Rainbow Warrior, a career-high 19 points against Corpus Christi in which he nailed all five of his 3-point attempts.
In that performance, Rapp was coming off an illness that swept through the team, with point guard Kody Williams the last to get the bug. Williams has rejoined the team after some days away.
Rapp said after the game that his objective is to add a second DHC title to the UH trophy case, which would match USC for the most in the event’s history.
“We got home-court advantage, which is the best thing about it all,” Rapp said this week. “I would like to say we do have a target on our back. We did win it a couple years ago, but we like having that target … we want the best from every team possible. That just gets us better in every way for conference play.”
In a twist for all eight teams, the Stan Sheriff Center was unavailable for practices leading into the tournament because of UH Fall Semester graduation on Saturday. Sunday will be their first real chance to get acclimated. Teams practiced in UH's auxiliary gyms.
Ganot led the eighth edition of the DHC's Coaches Vs. Cancer fundraiser featuring all eight head coaches on Saturday night.
Brian McInnis covers the state’s sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.