Box Score

HONOLULU - The University of Hawaii men's basketball team used a strong second-half effort to defeat conference rival Fresno State, 75-62, Saturday night at the Stan Sheriff Center. The Rainbow Warriors improved to 7-10 overall and 3-2 in the Western Athletic Conference with their second straight home win.

The victory marked the first time all year that Hawai`i has won back-to-back contests. UH handed the Bulldogs (9-10, 2-3 WAC) their second straight road loss, while defeating Fresno State for the fifth time in the last six meetings.

UH got a balanced attack with four players in double figures led by Jared Dillinger's 15 points. Bobby Nash finished with 13 points and a career-high eight assists, while Matt Gibson and Riley Luettgerodt each had 12.

Kevin Bell led the Bulldogs with 21 points and five assists while Hector Hernandez and Nedeljko Golubovic each chipped in 13 points.

It was back in forth in the first half with the lead changing hands 12 times. But after leading by six at halftime, UH opened it up after the break with at three-point barrage. The 'Bows hit a three-pointer on four straight possessions, three by Nash and one by Gibson, to build a double-digit lead, 50-38 midway through the second half.

UH never looked back after that. The Bulldogs got no closer than eight points as the 'Bows maintained its lead with precision offense. The Bulldogs out-rebounded UH, 37-27, but couldn't overcome the hot-shooting Bows who shot 62 percent in the second half. UH was deadly from behind the arc, hitting 9-of-18, including 7-of-11 after the break. The 'Bows registered 20 assists, 16 coming from Nash and Gibson, while committing just five turnovers, a season-low.

UH now hits the road to face Boise State on Saturday, Jan. 24. Tipoff is 7:00 p.m. MST (4:00 p.m.HT) at the Taco Bell Arena.

 

 

 

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