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Saturday, December 23, 2000

Islanders ride wave back home
Men warming up to Coliseum court
By Mark Zuckerman
Caller-Times
Life as a Division I independent doesn't afford you the opportunity to produce a favorable schedule for yourself, and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi has learned this the hard way.
   Last year, it meant a midseason stretch of 10 out of 11 games on the road. This year, it meant six straight games away from home.
   Thus you can imagine the Islanders' excitement in finally returning to Memorial Coliseum today to face Portland State, the team's first home game in nearly a month.
   "It's been so long since we've been home that the 'Cold Dome' felt warm," said head coach Ronnie Arrow, referring to the usually chilly climate inside the Coliseum. "I'm serious. It felt warm the other day when we practiced there."
   That warm feeling might also be a product of A&M-Corpus Christi's play last week during a road trip that resulted in a near-upset of Texas and an 86-80 win over Texas Tech. After a disastrous two-week stretch that included five straight losses, the Islanders (4-6) turned their season around by playing near-perfect basketball against the Big 12's Longhorns and Red Raiders.
   It remains to be seen, though, if they can carry that momentum over to today's 2 p.m. game with Portland State (2-7), which doesn't carry quite the name recognition of Texas or Texas Tech.
   "I think we can," said forward Michael Hicks, currently the fourth-leading scorer in the nation with 24.0 points per game. "We were pumped because we were playing big-name teams. Now it doesn't matter who you play, you have to play hard. If we play like we played those last two games, we can get a win."
   Hicks raised some eyebrows in both Austin and Lubbock last week, rising to the level of the competition to score 33 points in each game.
   "I had some people call me and say they're going to nominate him for the Big 12 all-conference team," Arrow joked.
   A&M-Corpus Christi is hoping to get an added boost sometime within the next week when guard Armond Wainright is declared eligible to play.
   The 6-foot-2 junior from West Hills Junior College in California was originally signed by A&M-Corpus Christi in April, but did not meet academic standards. He apparently has cleared the matter up, according to officials, and has been practicing with the Islanders for the last few days.
   Once his official transcript arrives, Wainright should be eligible to play, possibly in time for next weekend's inaugural Koch Petroleum Islander Invitational.



Staff writer Mark Zuckerman can be reached at 886-3747 or by e-mail at zuckermanm@caller.com

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