The University of Hawa'ii men's basketball team has announced the non-conference portion of its 2024-25 season with the Rainbow Warriors playing 10 of its 11 games at home. UH will start the season with a six-game homestand, opening the season with the OUTRIGGER Rainbow Classic and finishing the non-conference slate with the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic.

The schedule is highlighted with a pair of 2024 NCAA Tournament teams in national powerhouse North Carolina and WAC juggernaut Grand Canyon. Also on the home schedule are a pair of 20-win teams last year in Weber State and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. The Rainbow Warriors enter 2024-25, having registered seven straight winning seasons, including back-to-back 20-win campaigns.

It's Back: The OUTRIGGER Rainbow Classic is back this season. The event returns after a one-year absence, with the 2023 tournament called off due to scheduling conflicts. The 58th edition of the Rainbow Classic will run from Nov. 8, 10,11 with San Jose State, Pacific and Life Pacific scheduled to make the trip to O'ahu. 

Mark Your Calendars: The Rainbow Warriors will host national power North Carolina on Friday, Nov. 22 in a much-anticipated contest. The teams were originally slated to play in November 2020, however the game was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Tar Heels, who made it to the NCAA Sweet 16 last season, will head to Honolulu for the fifth time overall and for the first time in eight years. The then-defending national champion Tar Heels defeated UH, 83-68, before a sellout crowd in their last stop in 2016.

A Stiff Road Test: Hawai'i will head to Phoenix, Ariz., on Dec. 3 to face Grand Canyon in the only road game of the non-conference schedule. The Antelopes appeared in the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year in 2024, upsetting fifth-seeded Saint Mary's in the opening round before nearly knocking off eventual Final Four squad Alabama in the Round of 32. It will be the first-ever meeting between UH and Grand Canyon. 

Long Time No See: The Rainbow Warriors will host Weber State on Nov. 17 for the first matchup between the two schools in nearly five decades. The 'Bows and the Wildcats faced each other six times between 1967-76. Weber State holds a 4-2 all-time record over UH, but Hawai'i won the last two meetings, 106-88 and 83-68 in Honolulu. UH will also welcome back Texas A&M Corpus Christi. The 'Bows beat the Islanders 100-81 in their only matchup in 2002. UH will take on TAMU-CC on Dec. 14 in the 'Bows' final non-conference game before the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic.

Intra-island Matchup: UH will host in-state opponent Hawaii Pacific on Nov. 26 for the ninth all-time meeting between the cross-town rivals. Seven of those meetings have come in the last 14 years with the 'Bows beating the Sharks on each occasion.

Christmas Tradition: The Rainbow Warriors will finish their non-conference slate with the previously announced Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic. The tournament will run during its traditional dates of Dec. 22, 23 and 25. The 'Bows will play Charlotte in the quarterfinals on Dec. 22, before facing either Nebraska or Murray State on Dec. 23. Hawai'i will then take on either College of Charleston, Oakland, Oregon State, or Loyola-Chicago on Christmas Day. The tournament features three NCAA Tournament teams from last year in Nebraska, Oakland and College of Charleston.