Tomorrow, the University of Hawai'i men's basketball team will begin its journey into the unknown — also known as the 2009 Western Athletic Conference season.

With virtually every WAC team in rebuilding mode, the race to construct a champion appears to be an unpredictable one.

The Rainbow Warriors like to think they have as a good a shot at it as the other eight teams.

"The league is wide open," Hawai'i head coach Bob Nash said. "I think anybody can win it this year. We want to put ourselves in position to win it, and that starts (tomorrow)."

The 'Bows will host defending WAC Tournament champion Boise State tomorrow at 7:05 p.m. at the Stan Sheriff Center.

Utah State had the best non-conference record among the WAC teams at 12-1. Idaho, Louisiana Tech and New Mexico State had the worst non-conference records, as each went 6-7.

"If you look at it, every team got their share of wins," Nash said. "That means every game is going to be tough because every team believes they can win it."

None of the WAC teams is close to breaking into the Top 25 rankings, but the apparent rise of the bottom of the conference should make it interesting.

"Idaho has really improved; San Jose State is the only team with a lot of guys back; Louisiana Tech brought in some talented transfers," Nash said. "Nothing's going to be easy."

Hawai'i went 8-4 through November and December, including victories in five of its past six games.

"I think that's a pretty good record," junior forward Adhar Mayen said. "I think we're doing better than what a lot of people expected from us. We just have to keep improving."

The 'Bows were picked to finish seventh in the WAC by the league's coaches during the preseason.

As usual, Hawai'i will be challenged by both its opponents and its isolation. The 'Bows will make six road trips over the next nine weeks.

"The travel is always going to be tough," junior forward Bill Amis said. "But it's not just that. All the teams know each other in the WAC, so you have to be at your best every game."

There is only one new head coach in the WAC this season, Don Verlin at Idaho.

"I think that's what makes it fun," Amis said. "You play every team twice, so you see a lot of the same players over and over. It's a challenge."

The 'Bows do not have any seniors on their roster this season, and no player has more than one year of WAC experience.

"Other teams might know our stuff better than we do," Nash said. "We have new guys who still don't know all our stuff, where some of these other teams have guys who have been around three or four years and know what we do."

But the 'Bows have tinkered with their flex-motion offense, and are playing with a more aggressive style than in years past.

What's more, Hawai'i has been difficult to scout because several players have rotated in and out of the starting lineup. Nash has so far used five different starting lineups in the team's 12 games.

"We want to keep competition alive the whole season," he said. "If one guy takes a week off, the next guy is going in there. I think it keeps everybody working."

Amis and Roderick Flemings are the only Hawai'i players who have started every game.

"I think that's good," Amis said. "You need depth in the WAC, and we've shown that we can have different guys step up on different nights."

The entire All-WAC first team from last season is gone, as are 11 of the top 12 scorers from a year ago.

New stars are emerging, including Flemings, who currently leads the WAC in scoring with 17.9 points per game.

"I don't know who the best team is," Mayen said. "But I think we have a great shot at winning the WAC."