IRVINE, California – Hawai'i Hilo maintained control of a tough battle with the Golden Eagles, but the Vulcans answered back when called upon to take down Concordia University Irvine, 79-75, in Pacific West Conference play Saturday evening at CU Arena.
CUI made a 10-0 run a quarter of the way through the second half to briefly take a five-point advantage, but it wouldn't be enough Darren Williams answered with two 3-pointers to start a 19-5 response over the next five minutes of play.
With under five minutes to go, the Golden Eagles crept in with a 9-2 run to make it just a two-point game with under 15 ticks to go, but the Williams sank two final free throws before the Vulcans caused a turnover on CUI's final possession to seal the victory.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Darren Williams and Carlos Ramsey Jr. each posted 22 points to lead the Vulcans in scoring.
- Kalique Mitchell made his third start of the season and posted his first double-double on 15 points and 10 rebounds.
- Cameron Wall scored a season-high 10 points off the bench.
- Hawai'i Hilo got to the free throw line 23 times, making 18 of them (78.3 percent) while CUI finished 7 of 10 (70.0 percent).
- Neither team could seemingly miss in the second half as the Vulcans shot a blistering 76.2 percent from the field (16 of 21) while the Golden Eagles shot 18 of 28 (64.3 percent).
- The Vulcans took just nine shots from beyond the arc, splashing on three of them — all by Darren Williams. Hawai'i Hilo has finished only three games with single-digit three-point shot attempts and all them have been wins.'
- Jackson Tucker led the Golden Eagles with 19 points (8 of 11 FG) with Cameron Fini following with 18 points off the bench on four 3-pointers.
WHAT'S NEXT
Hawai'i Hilo improved to 13-5 PacWest (17-6 overall) while CUI moved to a 4-14 record (5-18 overall).
The Vulcans will continue on the road with their regular season-ending slate against Biola (10-8 PacWest) on Feb. 21 and No. 8 Point Loma Nazarene (19-0 PacWest) on Feb. 23.
The six-team PacWest Championships postseason tournament is set for March 2-4 at Chaminade University of Honolulu. Joining the Vulcans will be Point Loma Nazarene, Academy of Art, Biola and Chaminade.
AMONGST THE BEST IN THE WEST
In the first NCAA Division II men's basketball regional rankings released, Hawai'i made the list of top 10 schools under consideration for best in the west.
In addition to the three conference champions out of the PacWest, Great Northwest Athletic Conference and the California Collegiate Athletic Association, five other teams will qualify for the NCAA Division II Men's Basketball National Championship West Regional based on these rankings.
In the latest Division II Sports Information Directors Association (D2SIDA) West Region Media Poll released earlier on Monday, the Vulcans came in at No. 7.
At the top was unbeaten Point Loma Nazarene with Azusa Pacific slotted at No. 5. Academy of Art followed at No. 8 and Biola in a tie for No. 9 with Seattle Pacific.
