In an effort to win more games next season, the University of Hawai'i men's basketball team will play more games.

The Rainbow Warriors will play 30 regular-season games during the 2006-07 season. Home games against Northwestern State and Oregon State, and road trips to Las Vegas and Alaska are among the highlights.

"We want to get 20 wins, and so we tried to get as many (opponents) on there as possible," Hawai'i coach Riley Wallace said.

Hawai'i will open the season on the road against UNLV on Nov. 10. It is the first time the 'Bows will open a season with a road game since 1993.

As part of a "home-and-home" agreement, UNLV will play Hawai'i in the Stan Sheriff Center on Dec. 5.

Hawai'i also secured a home game with Oregon State of the Pac-10 Conference. As part of the agreement, the 'Bows will play the Beavers in Corvallis, Ore., in 2007.

"We have a lot of Oregon kids with us now, so that's one of the reasons why we did it," Wallace said of returning guard Dominic Waters and new recruits Riley Luettgerodt and Alex Veit.

Northwestern State, which upset Iowa in the first round of last season's NCAA Tournament, will return to the Stan Sheriff Center for a game against the 'Bows on Dec. 16. Hawai'i beat the Demons in last season's Rainbow Classic.

Among the other road games, Hawai'i will play in the Great Alaska Shootout, Nov. 22-25. Other teams in the field include host Alaska-Anchorage, California, Hofstra, Loyola Marymount, Marshall and Missouri-Kansas City.

The 'Bows will play 14 non-conference games, and 16 Western Athletic Conference games during the 2006-07 season. They will also get at least one game in the WAC Tournament.

Hawai'i played 27 regular-season games last season, and finished 17-11 after a first-round loss in the WAC Tournament. Wallace said one more victory could have earned Hawai'i a spot in the National Invitation Tournament.

The 'Bows upset then-No. 4 ranked Michigan State in last season's opener, and Wallace said the so-called "big names" did not want to play in the Stan Sheriff Center next season.

"We asked Memphis and Kentucky because they're both going to be in (the Maui Invitational), but they both said no," Wallace said. "It was really hard to get any teams to come out and play us, let alone the big names."

Wallace and associate coach Bob Nash said Washington State of the Pac-10 also declined to play a regular-season game against the 'Bows.

Derrick Low, the three-time Hawai'i player of the year out of Iolani, is the starting point guard for the Cougars.

Nash, who is in charge of scheduling, said he offered to play the Cougars in either November or December.

"We wanted to play them just for one game here, because we had some openings at the time," Wallace said. "And they said they couldn't fit us in. But we asked. That's all we can do."

The full schedule has yet to be released because some WAC dates may be shuffled.

Tentative non-conference 2006-07 schedule:

NOVEMBER

10—at UNLV. 13—Coppin State. 19—Oregon State. 22-25—at Great Alaska Shootout (Alaska-Anchorage, California, Hawai'i, Hofstra, Loyola Marymount, Marshall, Missouri-Kansas City, one team TBA). 29—at Santa Clara.

DECEMBER

5—UNLV. 16—Northwestern State. 20-23—Rainbow Classic (Charlotte, Creighton, Hawai'i, Houston, Nebraska, San Francisco, Valparaiso, Wyoming). 28—Tennessee-Martin.

FEBRUARY

17—ESPN Bracket Buster Saturday.

A.C. TO APPEAR AT CAMP

Anthony Carter, the only former Hawai'i player currently on an NBA roster, is scheduled to appear at the 2006 UH Rainbow Boys and Girls Basketball Camp.

Carter, who is a point guard with the Minnesota Timberwolves, was an All-WAC player for the 'Bows from 1996-98.

"It's a chance for the kids to meet him and talk to him," Wallace said. "And he usually signs a lot of autographs."

The camp is open to boys and girls ages 5 through 17. The first session is June 9-11; the second session is June 12-14. Children can attend one or both camps.

Daily sessions run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the UH athletics complex. Instruction is provided by the Hawai'i coaches, as well as former and current players.

Entry fee is $150 per child, per session. For information, call the UH basketball office at 956-6501.

Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com.