Mostly because the math doesn't make any sense, it's not very often that a basketball coach can claim that he has six returning starters.

University of Hawai`i Hilo head coach GE Coleman, who like every other coach in America only started five players at a time last year, can make that claim as his team begins the 2017-18 season this coming weekend at the PacWest/GNAC Challenge in Belllingham, Wash.

The Vulcans return four players that started most of the squad's games last winter—Brian Ishola, Ryley Callaghan, Eric Wattree III and Randan Berinobis. The funny math comes into play next.

Two players that have started multiple seasons at other NCAA Division II schools arrived on Coleman's doorstep, an early Christmas present of the best kind. Former BYU-Hawaii standout Denhym Brooke and St. Martin's guard Trey Ingram give the Vulcans instant experience, not to mention scoring power, rebounding, blocked shots and three-point accuracy.

"It's not too often that you get two guys who have already started at the D-II level come into your program," Coleman admitted. "I've never had it happen. Denhym and Trey have already been through the grind of our schedule playing against the kind of competition that we play against. They can help our newcomers. Experience can get you through a lot. They will have a calmness in certain situations that only comes with experience."

Both are above average players, to say the least. Ingram started for three seasons at Saint Martin's, averaging in double figures each year. He shot 42 percent from three-point range last year, connecting 56 times. He scored 19 points against the Vulcans when they played last November in Lacey, Wash.

Brooke was a casualty of BYU-Hawaii dropping their program, to Coleman's gain. He averaged 10 points and seven rebounds a game last year and ranked second in the PacWest in blocked shots with 48. He also shot 57 percent from the field. Teamed with Ishola (15.5 ppg, 8.7 reb.) and Berinobis (8.6 ppg, 6.2 reb.), makes for a tough trio inside.

Ingram, with returning point guard Callaghan (11.2 ppg, 95 ast.) and Wattree (6.5 ppg) gives the Vulcans experience at that position. And that is a good thing, especially when you consider that the Vulcans are trying to find a way to replace Parker Farris' 23.3 points a contest, the highest single-season scoring average in school history.

"You can't just replace Parker of course," Coleman said. "We will have a completely different look, not depending on just one person to score. We have better balance and depth at this position than we have had for a while."

In addition to those three, Anthony Canencia, who played in a number of meaningful games as a back-up last season, returns at the point. Newcomers who look to work their way into the rotation and made the first travel roster include freshmen Will Burghardt (Longview, Wash.) and Cleo Cain (Grand Terrace, Calif.), along with transfer Mike Golden, who averaged nearly 20 points a game at Ocean County College (New Jersey) last year.

Other guards vying for playing time are Philipp Beck, who red-shirted last season, local product Maikai Gahan (Hilo HS) and Kylan Mann (Santa Fe Springs, Calif.).

"I have all the confidence in the world in our guards," Coleman lauded. "We should be much better on defense and obviously are much deeper."

The Vulcans won't be mistaken for a tall team, but they do have bulk and talent inside. Ishola had nine double-doubles last season and just missed three others by one point or rebound. Berinobis is a swing player who can play inside or out, and was second on the team in rebounds last year and third in assists. He pulled down a school record 24 rebounds against Northwest Indian.

"Randan is a fifth-year guy for us and has really had a great pre-season," Coleman explained. "He leads by example by how hard he plays every day." 6-5 and 225-pound Arnold Silva returns after playing valuable minutes last year, but will miss the first part of the season due to injury.

Jared Roffler, who red-shirted last season, adds to the depth inside, as does transfer Cameron Howell, who averaged 12 points a game last year at Skagit Valley CC (Wash.). 6-7 Devin Johnson, a two-time All-NWAC Defensive player, averaged 14.6 points and nearly nine rebounds last year at Lower Columbia CC, where Roffler came from initially.

"We are probably considered undersized inside, but these guys all hit the boards well and add a physical presence," Coleman said.

Another thing that Coleman has this season that he didn't have a year ago are numbers. By the end of 2016-17, for various reasons, he had just eight players suited up. That made it difficult to have a substitution pattern, not to mention fully productive practices.

"It's so nice to have options during the game in regards to rotations, and it's especially great from a practice standpoint," Coleman said of the full squad.

The fifth-year head coach will get to try out his rotations on a tough road trip to the state of Washington this weekend. The Vulcans will open with Simon Fraser on Friday (Nov. 10) before taking on defending GNAC champion and host Western Washington on Saturday. The following Tuesday (Nov. 14) they play at Saint Martin's again, before wrapping up the five-game, ten-day trip in Seattle against Central Washington (Nov. 17) and host Seattle Pacific (Nov. 18).

"Those are five very tough games," said Coleman, who made the schedule. "We will have a pretty good idea of where we are at by the time this trip is over. We want to play good teams to see where we are really at, to know what our strengths are and what we need to work on.

"There are different philosophies on scheduling," he continued. "I have always believed that you play the best teams that you can schedule. In the PacWest, you add the element of a brutal travel schedule, so this Washington trip gives us a taste of that kind of trip before we have to make one for real.

"Plus, when you open your PacWest season against the favorite and a top ten team, you had better be ready."

Coleman is referring to his teams' home and conference opener on Nov. 30 against California Baptist, who is ranked anywhere from tenth to 14^th in the national pre-season polls. UH Hilo then plays PWC newcomer Biola on Dec. 2 and Concordia on Dec. 4.

"Any of the teams in our conference can blow you out if you are not ready," Coleman said. "I believe that the PacWest is as good as any conference in the country."

Which makes it extremely difficult to place in the top six of the 14 teams, which is what you have to do to qualify for the Pacific West Conference tournament. In the five years that the PacWest tournament has been in existence, the Vulcans have yet to qualify.

"As a team, that is our goal, to make the tournament," Coleman confirmed. "Our guys really desire that. Since we have never gone, this team wants to be the first to do it."

That's the kind of math that is easy to understand.