Warriors win; will host again on Saturday
The Hawaii basketball team won its first postseason game since 2004 on Tuesday night, and the Warriors will get a chance at another one on Saturday.
The Warriors relied on a balanced offense and a solid defense to defeat Portland, 76-64, in a first round game of the CollegeInsider.com Postseason Tournament on Tuesday. An energetic crowd of 4,431 at the Stan Sheriff Center watched Hawaii improve to 19-12.
The Warriors will get to host a second round game on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Sheriff Center. The opponent has yet to be determined, but it will be either San Francisco or Air Force.
San Francisco is hosting Idaho in a first round CIT game on Wednesday. If the Dons beat Idaho, they would travel to Hawaii for the Saturday game. If San Francisco loses, then Air Force will travel to Hawaii for the Saturday game. Air Force defeated North Dakota in a first round game on Thursday.
Tickets for the Saturday game will be available at the Sheriff Center box office, and online at www.hawaiiathletics.com starting at 9 a.m. on Wednesday.
Zane Johnson scored 19 points to lead four Hawaii players in double-figure points in the win over the Pilots. Miah Ostrowski added 17 points, four assits and six rebounds; Bill Amis had 14 points, 11 rebounds, five steals and three blocked shots; Vander Joaquim contribured 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Hawaii trailed by as many as seven points early, but rallied to take a 38-32 lead at intermission. The Warriors then broke away in the second half, and led by as many as 17 points.
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NOTE: Please check WarriorInsider.com again shortly for an updated story with quotes and video highlights and interviews.
Great win! The came out to play last night. Hawaii played with lots of energy, especially Miah. Let’s keep it going, man. Go Warriors!