HILO, Hawai'i – The Vulcans trailed by double digits midway through the first period of play, but an 18-2 run spanning the end the first half through the opening minutes out of halftime helped spark the Hawai'i Hilo Men's Basketball team past Chaminade, 69-65, Saturday night in Pacific West Conference play at the Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium.
Still, much like the first matchup, this contest came down to the wire. Through those first three minutes of the second half, the Vulcans piled on 11 quick points while the Silverswords shot 1 of 7 from the field. But from that moment on, it was pretty much dead even between the two squads.
Jake Kosakowski hit his fourth 3-pointer of the evening (14 total points — all in the second half) with just over a minute remaining in regulation to put the Vulcans up by seven at 66-59. Chaminade's Isaac Amaral-Artharee managed to respond with one of two succeeding three-point baskets to make it just a one-possession score, 68-65, with 15.5 ticks to go.
After missing out on a one-and-one opportunity at the free throw line, Cameron Wall gathered his own bounced-around shot and flipped the ball over to Charles Elzie III who was fouled and proceeded to sink a free throw to seal the victory.
The two teams previously met last November with Hawai'i Hilo claiming a 90-86 victory in overtime.
UP NEXT
Hawai'i Hilo moved to a 13-9 overall record (7-6 PacWest) while Chaminade moved to 3-12 in conference play (7-16 overall).
The Vulcans return for four more contests at the Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium hosting Biola (Feb. 8), Concordia University Irvine (Feb. 10) and HPU (March 2).
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 now sits at a tie for fifth with Concordia University Irvine. Chaminade is last in the conference standings.
Academy of Art is at the top with a 10-3 record closely followed by Point Loma at 10-4.
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.
After the first round of basketball action, all three schools were tied with a 1-1 record between one another.
