LAS VEGAS –  The University of Hawai'i men's basketball team was knocked out of the Air Force Reserve Big West Championships with a 62-52 loss to UC Riverside Thursday night at Michelob ULTRA Arena.
 
The Rainbow Warriors battled hard but found themselves playing catchup for the majority of the game and could never get over the hump. The game was tied with less than seven minutes remaining and it was just a two-point game with less than four minutes left. But UC Riverside ended the game on a 13-3 run to hand UH its fourth straight loss in the conference tournament quarterfinals.
 
UH concluded its season with an 11-10 overall mark. The third-seed Highlanders (14-7), meanwhile, won their fourth straight game and advanced to the tournament semifinals to take on No. 2 UC Irvine.
 
Junior Madut led UH with 13 points, while adding five rebounds and three assists. Mate Colina was the only other Rainbow Warrior in double-figures, scoring eight of his 10 points in the first half.
 
The first-ever post-season meeting between the squads was a defensive slugfest with both teams shooting less than 40 percent. The Rainbow Warriors, held just one lead in the early minutes, but remained in striking distance for much of the game. UH started 4-of-16 from the field and fell behind by as many as eight point in the first half.  But the 'Bows went on a 12-6 run and trailed just 26-24 at the break.
 
The Highlanders built their lead to eight points again with 12 minutes left, but UH wouldn't fold. A 13-5 run punctuated by consecutive three-pointers by James Jean-Marie and Madut drew UH even, 49-49, with 6:42 left. However, the Highlanders scored seven of the game's next 10 points and held UH without a field goal in the final 5:06 to the seal the game.