Box Score

SAN JOSE, Calif. – In a roller coaster of a game, the University of Hawai'i men's basketball team pulled off a dramatic 83-81 overtime win over San Jose State Saturday night at the Events Center. The Rainbow Warriors (13-9, 5-3 WAC) overcame a 14-point second half deficit en route to their third win in the last four conference games.
 
Joston Thomas scored a career-high 29 points on 12-of-16 shooting—including 11 points in a crucial 16-0 run—to help lift UH to victory. That total surpassed his previous high of 27 points in UH's win over San Jose State last month. The junior forward also added 12 rebounds for his fourth double-double of the year.
 
With the win UH maintained its hold of third place in the Western Athletic Conference, just a game behind second-place New Mexico State. The Spartans (7-16, 0-8 WAC), meanwhile, remained winless in league play.
 
The game continued UH's trend of close contests. Eight of the team's last nine games have been decided by six points or less. It was UH's second overtime road WAC win (also at Fresno State) as the team improved to a perfect 3-0 in overtime games this year.
 
For a while though, it looked like the 'Bows would get blown out by a Spartan team hungry for its first WAC win. UH trailed by seven at half and fell behind by 14 points, 54-40, with a little more than 13 minutes left in regulation. Turnovers were the team's bugaboo as UH committed 18, leading to 20 SJSU points.
 
However, there was no quit in the 'Bows. UH scored 16 unanswered points—punctuated by a Thomas dunk—to take a 56-54 lead with seven minutes left. The 'Bows shot 61 percent in the second half, however defense saved the day as UH held the Spartans without a field goal for more than a 10-minute stretch.
 
UH actually extended its lead to six points with three minutes remaining but couldn't hang on as the Spartans were able to extend the game into overtime on a Keith Shamburger free throw with 3.8 seconds left.
 
UH took the lead for good on a Zane Johnson three-pointer with 2:17 left in overtime but survived only after a series of adventures on the free throw line and a missed desperation half-court heave by James Kinney at the buzzer.
 
Johnson scored all 19 of his points after halftime and finished 5-of-10 from three-point range. With 165 career treys, Johnson moved to second all-time at UH in the category. Vander Joaquim finished with his eighth double-double of the year (17 points, 10 rebounds) while Hauns Brereton chipped in 10 points.
 
UH shot 54 percent for the game, including a scorching 61 percent in the second half and 57 percent in overtime. The Spartans, meanwhile, were held to just 39 percent shooting for the game and just 33 percent in the decisive overtime period.
 
The Rainbow Warriors now return to Hawai'i for a three-game homestand, beginning with a showdown against first-place Nevada on Thursday, Feb. 9. Tipoff is at 7:00 p.m. and all fans are encouraged to wear black for a “Blackout” at the Stan Sheriff Center.