78
Four Hawaii players scored in double figures and the Rainbow Warrior basketball team pulled away from Western Michigan for a 78-68 win in the Outrigger Hotels Rainbow Classic Saturday at the Stan Sheriff Center.
Held scoreless in the game’s first 32 minutes, UH guard Quincy Smith sparked the Rainbow Warriors with 10 points in a span of 5 minutes, 44 seconds to help UH take control of what had been a tight contest.
Forward Christian Standhardinger and point guard Keith Shamburger finished with 17 points each, combining for 27 points in the first half.
Forward Isaac Fotu scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half and grabbed 10 rebounds and Smith’s late surge helped UH turn a two-point edge into a double-digit lead. Smith hit all four of his shots from the field and finished with 13 points.
The Rainbows (2-0) also shot 79 percent (23-for-29) from the free-throw line, hitting 13 of 15 in the second half.
WMU forward Kellen McCormick tied for team-high honors with 14 points. He went 4-for-4 from the field in the first half and gave the Broncos (1-1) a 27-21 lead when he banked in a 3-pointer.
Shamburger responded by draining three 3-pointers while scoring 13 points in the final 3:35 of the half. His third came with just over 2 seconds left and gave the Rainbows a 39-36 lead at halftime.
UH held a 58-56 lead with 8:18 left before breaking away with a 10-1 run. Smith hadn’t scored before driving in for a layup while drawing a foul with eight minutes left in the game.
He then scored in transition off an assist from Shamburger and nailed a 3-pointer to extend UH’s lead to 66-57. Smith then fed Standhardinger for a layup to give UH an 11-point cushion.
WMU chipped away from the free-throw line, but Smith’s driving layup with 3:16 left pushed UH’s lead back to 70-62.
New Mexico State pulled away from Tennessee State in a 70-55 win in today’s first game.
The Rainbow Classic ends early Tuesday morning with UH taking on NMSU (1-1) in a game that tips off at midnight.
