HONOLULU— The University of Hawai'i men's basketball team (7-2) hosts the 2023 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic, Dec. 21, 22 & 24 at the SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center. The Rainbow Warriors claimed their first-ever tournament title last year and begin their quest for a repeat with an opening round matchup against Portland (6-6) on Thursday, Dec. 21 at 6:00 p.m. 

This year's tournament starts a day earlier than normal and will conclude on Christmas Eve for the first time in tournament history. Joining UH and Portland in this year's field are Georgia Tech, Nevada, Old Dominion, Temple, TCU and UMass.

For those attending games this week, please be sure to visit the Game Day information page, which includes important information on, digital ticketing, parking, clear bag policy, and more.
  

GAME 10: Hawai'i (7-2) vs. Portland (6-6)
Opp. | Date | Time				Portland | Thursday Dec. 21  | 6 p.m. HT
Location				Honolulu, O'ahu  - SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center
Television				ESPN2
Live Stream				ESPN.com
Radio				ESPN Honolulu / Sideline Hawaii App
Live Stats				StatBroadcast.com
Game Notes				Hawai'i | Portland
Social Media				@HawaiiMBB  | #HawaiiMBB | @HawaiiBasketball  | Facebook
Tickets				ETicketHawaii.com
Tournament Info				Website | Bracket | Record Book

  HEAD COACH ERAN GANOTOverall record: 146-92 (10th season)
At Hawai'i: 143-90 (9th season)

ALL-TIME RECORD vs. PORTLANDOverall: UH, 13-8
In Honolulu: UH leads, 11-6
Last meeting: Nov. 9, 2018 - UH, 82-64

ALL-TIME RECORD IN THE DIAMOND HEAD CLASSICOverall: 17-18 (3 wins vacated)
Best Finish: Champions (2022)
GAME STORY LINES

• UH begins its title defense of the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic with an opening-round matchup against Portland.
• UH returns eight players from last year's squad that won the DHC, including last year's tournament Most Outstanding Player JoVon McClanahan, who hit the game-winning shot vs SMU in the title game, and Noel Coleman who was picked to the all-tournament team.
• This will be the second straight year UH opens the tournament against a WCC squad after defeating Pepperdine in last year's edition.
• UH and Portland are among the most diverse programs in the country. They are the only two schools with players from six different continents. Arizona joins UH and Portland as the only schools with players from eight different countries.
• UH is coming off its first home loss of the year, a 72-66 setback to Nevada on Sunday. Dating back to the 2021-22, UH is 12-2 coming off a regular-season loss. 
• UH ranks 34th nationally in effective FG% (.552), while Portland ranks 289th in effective FG% defense (.529).    
• Following the Diamond Head Classic, UH will open Big West play on Dec. 30 at home against Cal State Fullerton. 

TOURNAMENT NOTES

• Four teams will be making their first appearance in the HADHC (Nevada, Old Dominion, Temple and UMass).
• Among the return teams is TCU, which claimed the 2018 title.
• The Horned Frogs are led by Jamie Dixon who served as a Hawai'i assistant coach under Riley Wallace from 1992-94.
• UMass head coach Frank Martin brings his third different team to the tournament.
• Martin led Kansas State to the 2011 DHC title and South Carolina to a 3rd place finish in 2013.
• UH head coach Eran Ganot has been a part of eight of the previous 13 DHC tournaments - six as a UH head coach, and once each as a UH and Saint Mary's assistant.