HILO, Hawai`i--For the Hawai`i Hilo men's basketball team, it was the best of times and the worst of times, all in the same night.

The Vulcans led by as many as 20 points in the first half but were outscored 63-37 after intermission in falling to Holy Names 85-77 on Monday at the Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium. UH Hilo led for about 38 and a half minutes of the game, but it was the Hawks who stormed back for the victory in front of a stunned crowd of 477.

Holy Names will head back to Oakland with a 3-3 record in the Pacific West Conference, after taking two of three games on their Hawai`i swing. They are 4-7 overall. The Vulcans fall to 1-3 in conference play and are now 3-5 overall. 

The night began with such promise, but even in that positive excitement was a moment (omen) that would come into play later.

The Vulcans jumped out to a 10-2 lead, with Jordan Graves scoring eight of UH Hilo's first dozen points. The Vulcans would soon lead 17-5 after a Cleo Cain basket, but prior to that they lost Denhym Brooke, who hurt his ankle trying to run down a full court pass. He would not return, joining leading scorer James Griffin and Damani Whitlock on the bench in street clothes. 

Nonetheless, UH Hilo continued to add to their lead. A Cain basket late in the half would give them a 20-point lead (37-17), and Kaleb Gilmore's buzzer-beater in the lane sent the Vulcans into the locker room with a 40-22 halftime margin. UHH had just five turnovers in the first half, outrebounded the Hawks 25-16, and forced HNU into 29 percent shooting from the floor.

Everything changed pretty quickly after intermission.

Holy Names opened the half on a 9-2 run, and soon after that head coach GE Coleman saw his other senior post, Devin Johnson get into foul trouble. His minutes became limited, creating more hardship for the Vulcans. 

The Hawks continued to inch their way back, eventually cutting the deficit to six points after a pair of treys by Jamie Strong (60-54) off the bench. Andre Green would give HNU back-to-back baskets as UHH missed shots or turned the ball over. Alonzo Taylor would tie the game with a trey (64-64) and the Hawks would take their first lead on a Zac Young lay-in (66-65) with just over five minutes to play. The teams would then trade baskets for the next few minutes, while Kupaa Harrison tied the game at 71-71 each with 1:32 remaining.

The game was still tied at 73-73 when the game turned for good. A tough shot by Rob Fuller in the paint gave the Hawks a 75-77 margin with just over a minute left, and then Taylor would steal a Vulcan basket and go coast to coast to lay it in (77-73). The Vulcans turned the ball over on their next possession and soon the Hawks were shooting free throws--and making them. They would make eight-of-eight in the final 30 seconds to salt away  the win.

Johnson finished with 10 points and 12 rebounds, despite playing only 23 minutes. Harrison led the Vulcans with 17 points, hitting seven-of-ten shots from the floor. Graves had16 points, five rebounds and four assists, Jalen Thompson added 15 points and Cain had 11 before fouling out. But the Vulcans had 13 turnovers in the second half and shot just 37 percent after the break. 

Taylor led the Hawks with 19 points and his team shot 64 percent from the floor in the second half. Fuller had 12 points off the bench to go with five assists and four rebounds.

The Vulcans couldn't ask for a better time to take some time off, giving them a chance to heal before their next game on Dec. 31 at Dominican.

"We will regroup, hopefully get healthier and get back at it," Coleman said after the game. "There is still a lot of season left and this can still be a very good basketball team."