Warrior Insider

A shooting swell from the University of Hawai’i basketball team wiped out Sacramento State, 74-61, in the opening game of the Patty Mills North Shore Classic on Friday afternoon.

The Rainbow Warriors shot 60 percent from the field, including a momentum-seizing 74 percent in the first half, to advance to the championship game of the two-day, four-team tournament.

An announced crowd of 1,225 at the Cannon Activities Center on the Brigham Young-Hawai’i campus in La’ie, O’ahu, watched the Warriors improve to 4-1 with their second consecutive win at the CAC. The Hornets dropped to 3-3.

Hawai’i will face Texas State for the tournament title on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. at the CAC. Sacramento State will play Southern Utah for third place at 4:30 p.m.

“The two big things were great energy and great balance,” Hawai’i head coach Eran Ganot said. “Balance on both ends of the floor against a team that’s really hard to score on. They’re good defensively and a team that’s really good on the boards.”

Junior guard Noel Coleman led the Warriors with 20 points, including 4-of-7 shooting from 3-point range. Hawai’i attempted a season-low 14 3-pointers, but made seven for a season-high 50 percent.

Junior forward/center Bernardo da Silva added 16 points on 8-of-12 shooting, and also grabbed five rebounds. Senior forward Samuta Avea shot 4 for 6 from the field, and finished with nine points; freshman forward Harry Rouhliadeff contributed nine points on 4-of-5 shooting in 16 minutes off the bench.

The Warriors and Hornets each grabbed 26 rebounds, and Hawai’i was just 1 for 3 on free throws. But the Warriors were otherwise on target from start to finish. 

Hawai’i hit four of its first five shots to open the game and raced to an 11-5 lead. By halftime, the Warriors hit 20 of 27 shots, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range, and held a 44-30 lead.

“I don’t know if that’s ever happened,” Ganot said of the Warriors’ prolific first-half shooting. “And that was really fun because it was so many different guys.”

Da Silva had 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting in the first half. Most of his shots came on mid-range jumpers, with 7-foot-1, 280-pound Sacramento State center Callum McRae opting to stay closer to the basket.

“I looked at the basket and he was pretty far away,” da Silva said. “That’s a shot I feel comfortable shooting, so I just shot it.

“I didn’t know we were shooting it that well. I guess it’s just hard work paying off.”

The closest the Hornets got in the second half was 11 points (50-39) with 15:06 remaining. The Warriors then put it away with a 19-8 run over the next seven minutes to increase their lead to 69-47. Coleman scored eight of his points during that surge.

“I think it also had to do with just being poised and reading the defense,” said Coleman, who recorded the ninth 20-point game of his UH career, including two this season. “We knew they were going to be aggressive, so Coach told us to just take our time and get them on the shot fake and read the defense after that.”

It also helped that the Warriors put in extra shooting time at the CAC. A week ago, they practiced there the night before a 79-55 win over Hawai’i Pacific. This week, they practiced in the CAC on Thursday, then had a team Thanksgiving meal at the Turtle Bay Resort, where they are staying throughout the tournament.

“We shot around (Thursday) for a little bit, for about 30 minutes,” Coleman said. “But we also played here before, and I think that helped us a lot to get used to the gym, get used to the rims and stuff like that.”

Now the Warriors will turn their attention to Texas State, which defeated Southern Utah, 78-65, in Friday’s late game. Mason Harrell scored 18 points to lead the Bobcats, who improved to 4-2.

“This is our second tournament,” Ganot said, citing the season-opening Outrigger Rainbow Classic. “We played a tournament and we earned the right to play in the championship game against a team that’s been in the NCAA Tournament in Yale. To get back there only a week or two later … it’s a blessing and a privilege.”

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Patty Mills North Shore Classic
Friday’s Results
Hawai’i 74, Sacramento State 61
Texas State 78, Southern Utah 65

Saturday’s Games
4:30 p.m. – Sacramento State vs. Southern Utah for third place
7:00 p.m. – Hawai’i vs. Texas State for championship

HAWAI’I (4-1) vs. TEXAS STATE (4-2)
When: Saturday, November 26, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Cannon Activities Center, La’ie, O’ahu
TV: Spectrum Sports (channels 12/1012)
Video streaming: bethebeast.com
Radio: ESPN Honolulu (92.7 FM, 1420 AM, espnhonolulu.com, Sideline Hawaii app)
Live stats: statbroadcast.com
Tickets: eTickethawaii.com