Box Score

VANCOUVER, B.C. – The University of Hawai'i men's basketball team hung tough before eventually succumbing to No. 22 Gonzaga, 73-54,in the BC Basketball Classic Saturday night at the Rogers Arena. UH dropped to 1-1 with its first loss of the season.
 
The Rainbow Warriors were competitive for much of the game before a second-half dry spell that doomed them. UH trailed by just one point with 12 minutes left, but Gonzaga (3-0) went on a 28-9 run the rest of the way to pull of the win.  
 
 Freshman Shaquille Stokes led UH with 17 points, while Zane Johnson chipped in 12 points on four three-pointers. Vander Joaquim recorded 12 rebounds before fouling out with a little more than five minutes left.  
 
Gonzaga's Robert Sacre, a native of Vancouver, made his homecoming a success with a double-double of 16 points and 10 rebounds, while leading four Bulldogs in double-digit scoring.
 
Gonzaga out-scored UH, 34-4 in points off turnovers as the Rainbow Warriors turned the ball over 23 times. The Zags also held a distinct advantage on the free throw line as they drew 27 UH fouls and went to the line 28 times. UH, meanwhile, made just eight trips to the free throw line.  
 
The game had an ugly start with the teams going scoreless for the first three minutes combining to miss 15 of their first 18 shots through the first seven mintues. UH stayed close and trailed just 15-14 with eight minutes left in the half. The Zags, however, went on a 15-4 run to take their first double-digit lead of the game. Stokes gave UH momentum into the break, hitting a three-pointer at the buzzer to make it just a 33-27 deficit at halftime.
 
UH closed to one 45-44 on a pair of Stokes free throws with 12:11. But again Gonzaga had an answer with a 12-3 run to regain a double-digit edge, a lead they would not relinquish. The Bows did chip the deficit to just five points with nine minutes left, but failed to score a field goal in the final 7:19.
 
UH now returns home for a pair of home games beginning with a meeting versus Eastern Washington on Tuesday, Nov. 22. Tipoff is at 7:00 p.m. at the Stan Sheriff Center.