(photo of Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones courtesy of Joe Poellot/Story by Russ Blunck)

HILO, Hawai`i--It was home sweet home for UH Hilo head coach Kaniela Aiona and for 411 Vulcans fans on Friday night at the Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium during a 89-72 victory over Simpson.

It marked UH Hilo's first home game with fans since 2019, and it was the first for second-year leader Aiona. "It was great to be in the Civic in this environment," Aiona said after the game. "It was a great environment, the student section was terrific. I think as people get used to getting back out and going to public events, our crowds will grow."

If Aiona's teams continue to provide tonight's type of entertainment, the crowds will grow for sure.

The Vulcans led from start to finish. They were led by Aniwaniwa Tait-Jones' 26 points and eight rebounds. He hit 10 of 15 shots from the field and 6 of 7 from the free throw line. He had plenty of help as eight other players found the scoring column and three were in double figures.

One of those double digit guys was Jamie Strong who nailed five three-point shots for 15 points. He knocked down two to start the game to help the Vulcans bolt out to a 6-0 lead, which rolled into 9-2 and 17-5 after baskets by Tait-Jones and Kameron Ig. UH Hilo would lead by as many as 22 points in the first half (29-7) after seven straight points from Max Kunnert, before Simpson rallied back to make the count 44-28 at the break.  

Another Strong three-pointer gave the Vulcans a 51-32 lead early in the second half, but Simpson kept battling back. A late Red Hawk run cut the lead to 12 points twice in the final six minutes, but the Vulcans answered each time. A three-point play by Tait-Jones with 2:17 left made the score 85-69 and Ethan Jetter added an emphatic dunk off a pretty pass from Ig with 1:35 remaining to seal the deal.

In addition to Tait-Jones and Strong's numbers, a pair of freshman from Milwaukee had 12 points each--Donald McHenry and Kunnert. McHenry also had seven rebounds. Ig finished with nine points, Jetter had six points and seven boards and point guard Darren Williams finished with eight assists. 

Anthony Rice led Simpson, a team from Redding, Calif. that plays in the California Pacific Conference (NAIA) with 24 points. Gary Mims had a double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds. 

"Simpson is very athletic and was difficult for us in transition," Aiona added. "They will be a challenge again on Sunday."

The Vulcans, in the middle of playing six games in seven days, will travel back to Oahu tomorrow to take on Northern Colorado before returning for a Sunday game (3 pm) against Simpson again. The Vulcans will wrap up their stretch of games on Tuesday when they host Alaska Anchorage.