Box Score

IRVINE, Calif. – In their first road outing of the season, the University of Hawai`i Rainbow Warrior basketball team got down big early and staged a second-half rally before ultimately falling to UC Irvine, 80-70, Wednesday night at the Bren Events Center. The Rainbow Warriors dropped to 2-4 overall with their fourth straight loss.

 

Roderick Flemings scored 18 of his season-high 25 points in the second half as UH nearly erased a 20-point deficit. Brandon Adams added a career-high 15 points, while Hiram Thompson posted 15 points and a career-high eight assists.

 

But it wasn't enough against the Anteaters (4-3) who shot 59 percent from the floor and hit a whopping 31 of its 34 free throws, including its first 18 attempts, to win their second straight game. Pavol Losonsky scored a team-high 15 points to lead a balanced UCI attack.

 

In just their second visit ever to Irvine and first in nearly 40 years, the Rainbow Warriors could not got off to a worst start. The 'Bows missed 14 of its first 15 shots from the field and shot just 27 percent in the first half. UH was down 17-2 barely five minutes into the game and UC Irvine built its lead to as many as 20 points before taking a 37-22 lead into the locker room.

 

UH went on an 11-4 run after the break and cut the lead to eight just minutes into the second half. The 'Bows, who shot 55 percent in the second half, continued to claw away and when Flemings nailed back-to-back 3-pointers, UH pulled within three points, 55-52 with 7:22 left in the game.

 

That would be as close as UH would get as the Anteaters scored the next seven points to build its lead back to double-digits. UC Irvine took just 15 shots from the field in the second half, but made nine of them, including their last field goal—a Patrick Rembert 3-pointer—at the 5:19 mark that gave UCI a 62-52 lead. The Anteaters went on to score their final 18 points from the free throw line and went 24-of-27 from the line in the second half.

 

UH now returns to Honolulu where it will play nine straight home games, beginning with a date against Lamar on Sunday, Dec. 6. Tip-off is set for 5:05 p.m. at the Stan Sheriff Center.