HONOLULU, Hawai'i – With 3.1 seconds counting down on the clock, Kamalu Kamakawiwoole lofted a rainbow at the basket and hit paydirt as the buzzer sounded to lift the Hawai'i Hilo Women's Basketball team past Chaminade, 67-64, Tuesday evening in Pacific West Conference action at McCabe Gymnasium.
The Vulcans started the game with a 12-2 scoring advantage and latched onto a double-digit lead for a majority of the night — leading by as much as 10 points with just over five minutes remaining in the contest — but later found themselves with their backs near the wall as the Silverswords managed to put in eight points in the final minute and a half.
With eight ticks remaining, Kamakawiwoole was called for an offensive foul before the ball was inbounded, allowing Chaminade's Morgan Escobedo to find the bottom of the net with an inside pull-up jumper on the ensuing possession to tie the score at 64 with 3.1 seconds left.
A Vulcans timeout advanced the ball near midcourt with Noelle Su'a-Godinet on the inbound. Kamakawiwoole took the ball and seemingly lost track of time as she looked to be settling with milliseconds running through the game clock, but at the last moment, the hometown Kaimuki native launched and landed the three-point splash for the win.
Kamakawiwoole finished with 24 points on 7-of-11 shooting (8-8 FT) to lead Hawai'i Hilo.
UP NEXT
Hawai'i Hilo moved to a 7-11 overall record (4-8 PacWest) while Chaminade moved to 1-13 in conference play (3-16 overall).
The Vulcans will return for four more contests at the Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium to host Chaminade (Feb. 3), Biola (Feb. 8), Concordia University Irvine (Feb. 10) and HPU (March 2).
Saturday's games will recognize the University of Hawai'i at Hilo's Division of Student Affairs.
PATH TO PACWEST CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS
The top six teams at the end of the regular season will make it to San Diego for the 2023-24 PacWest Conference Tournament set for March 7-9 at Point Loma's Golden Gymnasium.
Hawai'i Hilo continues to fight for a spot, sitting just outside the bubble at No. 7 while Chaminade is last in the standings.
Azusa Pacific remains at the top with an unbeaten record.
PACWEST HAWAI'I CHALLENGE
In an effort to elevate Hawai'i-based rivalries, the PacWest Hawai'i Challenge has awarded the top school in athletics competition among the state's Division II institutions going back to the late 1970s.
Comprising 10 sports that all three schools participate in, points are awarded from head-to-head Pacific West Conference matchups as well as final placements at conference-ending championship events. The team with the highest total gets three points while the second highest gets two and the third-place finisher receives one.
Through the first round of basketball action, all three schools are tied with a 1-1 record between one another.
