HILO, Hawai'i – The Hawai'i Hilo Men's Basketball team capped the 2023 Big Island Holiday Classic by capturing victory over San Francisco State, 72-65, Tuesday evening at the Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium.
On a rainy and cold Hilo night (below 70 degrees), the Vulcans came out the gates red hot to take a 10-0 lead, highlighted by two of Jake Kosakowski's four early three-point splashes.
"Energy doubles when you're doing good on both sides of the ball — the last two games we did really well on the defensive side early. Tonight, we were able to get a complete first half. We only had four turnovers," fourth-year Vulcans head coach Kaniela Aiona said.
Charles Elzie III snagged a last-second steal for a buzzer-beating banked-shot to give Hawai'i Hilo a 40-18 lead heading into halftime, but the Gators outscored the Vulcans, 34-12, through the middle portion of the second half to make the score just a three-point game with under five minutes remaining.
However, the Vulcans stood strong and finished out the game shooting 3 of 4 from the field and 6 of 7 at the free throw line while the Gators made just one more basket and went 5 of 10 at the charity stripe.
"Every game was close in the Big Island Classic. They were all slugfests. It just shows the level of competition here is really high," Aiona said. "We just feel great about bringing college basketball here to Hilo. Some of these teams traveled really well. It was a chance for us to spread the aloha and have people see what we're about here."
Carlos Ramsey Jr. led Hawai'i Hilo with 18 points followed closely by 16 points (6-9 FG) and five rebounds from Kalique Mitchell, who was named to the All-Classic Team after averaging 15.0 points (.612 shooting) and 5.6 boards through three games.
Tuesday's victory also marked Aiona's 50th win as Hawai'i Hilo head coach.
ALL-CLASSIC TEAM
#10 Sam Emich
Olivet Nazarene
#22 Tristan Smith
Concordia Nebraska
#23 Demarcus Hall-Scriven
Alaska
#11 Kalique Mitchell
Hawai'i Hilo
#23 Jailen Daniel-Dalton
San Francisco State
UP NEXT
Hawai'i Hilo moved to a 9-3 overall record (3-0 Pacific West Conference) while San Francisco State moved to 7-5 (1-3 California Collegiate Athletic Association).
The Vulcans will return to PacWest Conference action to close out the calendar year on the road in Southern California against Biola (Dec. 30). The Vulcans will follow with matchups at Concordia University Irvine (Jan. 2), Azusa Pacific (Jan. 4) and Point Loma (Jan. 6).
BIG ISLAND HOLIDAY CLASSIC
Winter 2022 marked the return of the Big Island Holiday Classic, bringing many men's and women's collegiate basketball programs to the Big Island of Hawai'i for competition and fun at the Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium.
The event, put on by TItleTown Events (previously Malika Sport Tours) and hosted by the University of Hawai'i at Hilo, is a modern reiteration of the Big Island Invitational Tournament from the 1990s, which featured many NCAA Division I programs with the likes of Oklahoma, Oregon State, Iowa State, Arkansas, Creighton, Purdue, Stanford and UConn among others.
The Big Island Classic moniker was also previously resurrected in winter 2016 when current Hawai'i Hilo men's basketball head coach Kaniela Aiona was at the helm of the Menlo College men's hoops program where they played games at Kealakehe High School on the west side of the island.
More information is available at HiloAthletics.com/BIC.
AMONG THE BEST IN THE WEST
In the latest D2CSC Division II Week 6 Media Poll released Tuesday, Hawai'i Hilo came in at No. 5 in the West Region.
Saint Martin's (ranked No. 4 in the national poll) came in at the top spot followed by Cal State Dominguez Hills, Cal State San Bernardino and Cal State East Bay.
PacWest Conference mates Point Loma and HPU also landed in the region's top 10 at No. 9 and No. 10, respectively.
SEASON TICKETS
Single-game and season tickets are now available to be purchased online through Hawai'i Hilo Vulcans Athletics' recently launched online ticket platform in partnership with AudienceView Campus.
The 2023-24 slate will feature 28 total home contests at the Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium with a package price of $130 for adults and $65 for seniors (ages 65-plus) and middle/high school students.
Both can be accessed at HiloAthletics.com/tickets.
VIDEO STREAM PACKAGES
The Hawai'i Hilo Men's Basketball team will have 14 home games available to be viewed online through our video stream broadcasts in partnership with Out of the Sea Media Arts Inc.
Single-game viewing will be priced at $10 with a season-package offering of $105.
More information is available at HiloAthletics.com/LiveStream.
