The Hawaii men’s basketball team closed out one of the longest road trips in program history in strong fashion with a 75-73 defeat of East Carolina in the Gulf Coast Showcase fifth-place game on Wednesday.

At Germain Arena in Estero, Fla., UH (6-2) led by as many as 11 points in the second half, lost the lead entirely with eight minutes left, then reclaimed it and hit enough free throws down the stretch to hold off the Pirates (3-3) of the American Athletic Conference.

It capped a season-opening stretch of eight games in 13 days stretching from Honolulu to Wailuku, Maui, to the East Coast. 

UH went 2-1 at the Gulf Coast Showcase, losing on the first day by 15 to San Francisco then responding the next two days with victories over Marist and ECU. 

Senior guard Garrett Nevels led the Rainbow Warriors with 19 points and nine rebounds before fouling out late. Forward Aaron Valdes added 15 points and nine rebounds, Negus Webster-Chan scored 11 points and point guard Roderick Bobbitt had 10 points, six rebounds and six assists in the win.

Bobbitt hit two free throws with 13 seconds left for a five-point lead, then went 1-for-2 at the stripe with six seconds to go for a 75-71 lead to help seal the win. ECU scored on a layup at the buzzer for the final margin.

Despite playing plenty of small ball, UH outrebounded the Pirates 41-29.

Walk-on guard Dyrbe Enos hit a big 3-pointer with four minutes left for a 68-59 UH lead. The Pirates had claimed a two-point lead on a steal and dunk with 8:18 remaining. 

B.J. Tyson scored 26 points on 9-for-15 shooting to lead ECU.

UH freshman Isaac Fleming did not play at all Wednesday after playing just a single minute on Tuesday in a 62-55 win against Marist. After the ECU game, UH coach Benjy Taylor called it a “coach’s decision.”