HONOLULU – The University of Hawai'i men's basketball team's bid for a spot in the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic title game was denied by No. 21 Washington in a 72-61 semifinal loss Monday at the Stan Sheriff Center.
 
UH (8-4) could never find its stroke against Washington's zone defense, shooting just 28 percent from the field. The 'Bows particularly struggled form long-range, missing its first 12 three-point attempts before finishing 9-of-39 for the game.  The 39 three-point attempts were the most in school history.
 
UH fell to 0-4 in Diamond Head Classic semifinal games and will now play for third-place against Georgia Tech on Christmas Day. Tipoff time for that game is 1:30 p.m. and will be followed by the tournament championship featuring Washington and Houston.
 
Zigmars Raimo notched his second double-double of the season with 15 points and 15 rebounds. Freshman guard Justin Webster,  who went scoreless a night ago against UTEP, set a new career-high with 16 points, including 11 in the second half.  
 
Isaiah Stewart was a force inside for Washington (9-2) finishing with 26 points and 13 rebounds and was a big reason for the Huskies out-scoring UH 40-18 in the paint.
 
UH scored the first two points of the game but after that Washington led for the rest of the game with UH playing catch-up. It took the 'Bows more than seven minutes to score their first field goal and UH trailed 37-22 at the break. It was a season-low point total at half for the 'Bows, who shot just 23 percent in the first frame, including 1-of-14 on three-pointers.
 
The 'Bows showed signs of life in the second half, continuing to stay in the game despite their offense struggles. UH cut the deficit to just six points on a pair of occasions, but would get no closer.  The loss was just UH's second in 10 home games this season, ending a string of seven straight home wins.
 
Day 2 Results
Boise State 85, Portland 69
Houston 70,  Georgia Tech 59
No. 21 Washington 72  Hawai'i 61
 
Dec. 25 Schedule
7th Place Game: Ball State vs. Portland, 8:30 a.m.
5th Place Game: UTEP vs. Boise State, 10:30 a.m.
3rd Place Game: Hawai'i vs. Georgia Tech, 1:30 p.m.
Championship: Washington vs. Houston, 3:30 p.m.