It was a true Rainbow classic.

Hawaii players and coaches, some sleepless, walked around in a daze Tuesday, still processing their thrilling 76-75 victory over Nevada for the Outrigger Resorts Rainbow Classic title early that morning. That it was a late-night (11 p.m. start Monday), nationally televised game in the ESPN College Hoops Tip-off Marathon only added to the wild scene at the Stan Sheriff Center.

Point guard Roderick Bobbitt replayed the game’s frantic final sequence in his mind over and over. He didn’t need to; it was on all forms of media.

The senior’s game-winning drive — a sprint up the court with the ball, then an improbable scoop layup past the outstretched fingertips of Wolf Pack forward Cameron Oliver with 1.4 seconds left — instantly became part of tournament lore.

Bobbitt’s momentum carried him crashing into the stanchion, but the freshly minted Big West Player of the Week (who was 3-for-14 to that point in the game) was money. He got up and let out a primal scream, drowned out as the “Blackout” crowd of 2,143 did the same.

“Honestly, I couldn’t see that the ball had went in,” Bobbitt said later Tuesday. “And when I laid it up and I was falling, I just heard the crowd go nuts. I knew that it went in. I looked up at the clock and there was one second left and we were up one. It was a surreal moment. It was crazy.”

Nevada’s desperation halfcourt heave coming out of a timeout was late and well short. UH players dogpiled on Bobbitt, a first in the Oakland native’s hoops career.

Nevada guard Marqueze Coleman, who threw his team on his back with 32 of his career-high 34 points after halftime, walked off, as stunned as anybody else. Were it not for Bobbitt’s shot, Coleman’s basket with 5.7 seconds left would have capped a rally from 16 points down to win. Hawaii and Nevada, two old WAC rivals, swapped the lead five times in a breathless final 1:03.

UH coach Eran Ganot said his players “added to the legacy” of the storied Rainbow Classic, formerly a top-tier eight-team nonconference tournament.

He also thanked the rowdy crowd for sticking it out well into Tuesday morning. UH improved to 3-0 for the first time since 2012, also the last time it won the Rainbow.

“That was really inspired and unbelievable,” Ganot said. “Our guys fed off it. I think we can really use that moving forward. We hope that can happen on Sunday (next game against Nicholls State). There’s a great product and a great group of kids who really appreciate representing this school.”

UH was led by Aaron Valdes’ 19 points. Bobbitt, Quincy Smith and Sai Tummala added 10 points apiece, while Isaac Fleming chipped in nine points and four steals. Big men Stefan Jankovic and Mike Thomas contributed big baskets late; Thomas also hit Bobbitt in stride on the final inbounds pass, allowing the point guard to beat most of the Wolf Pack upcourt.

Bobbitt was named tournament MVP. Valdes (16.0 points per game) and Tummala (9-for-13 on 3-pointers) were also named to the all-tournament team. Coleman and forward AJ West were honored for Nevada.

UH nearly squandered a game it controlled most of the way. Coleman (9-for-14 field goals and 15-for-18 free throws) was nearly unstoppable on forays into the paint, and he even stuck a rare four-point play.

At the other basket, UH withstood some very shaky free-throw shooting — 14-for-27. Nevada dropped to 2-1 despite going 23-for-26 at the line. Ganot said pressure foul shots will be a point of emphasis this week, and acknowledged he should have gone to a zone defense sooner than the final few minutes to better corral the explosive Coleman.

“Nevada did a really good job in the second half, making the comeback,” Tummala said. “We kind of had a comfortable lead and they kept coming at it. I mean, at the end of the game when they made that layup and Rod came back and made that big shot, you go from such a low to such a high so quickly. It was just a great experience.”

There was a minor verbal altercation between Fleming and Nevada players at the buzzer, raising the ire of coach Eric Musselman. Pack players initially walked through one of the Sheriff tunnels off the court without shaking hands, but eventually returned to the handshake line with their coaches.

“I think it’s just the emotions, everyone got caught up in it. It’s tough to lose a game like that,” Tummala said. “I can understand the other side. It was just, at the end of the game emotions are running high. There’s a lot of trash-talking from the crowd, there’s probably some trash-talking on the court. There was a lot going on. I think it over-spilled for a second, but it wasn’t anything abnormal.”

Musselman and the Pack departed the arena quickly before they could be interviewed. Ganot said he and Musselman, an old friend, later exchanged text messages wishing each other luck.

Hawaii 76, Nevada 75

Key — fg-a: field goals made-attempted; ft-a: free throws made-attempted; r: rebounds; pf: personal fouls; pts: total points; a: assists; to: turnovers; min: minutes played.
Halftime — Hawaii 40, Nevada 28
3-points goals — Nevada 2-10 (Coleman 1-1, Fenner 1-4, Criswell 0-1, Oliver 0-1, Cooper 0-3). Hawaii 4-19 (Tummala 2-4, Fleming 1-2, Valdes 1-5, Jankovic 0-2, Bobbitt 0-6). Steals — Nevada 5 (Fenner 2, West, Coleman, Criswell). Hawaii 8 (Fleming 4, Smith 2, Bobbitt, Valdes). Blocked shots — Nevada 6 (West 3, Oliver 2, Criswell). Hawaii 4 (Jovanovic 3, Valdes). Turnovers — Nevada 14 (Coleman 5, Cooper 3, West 2, Criswell 2, Fenner 2). Hawaii 10 (Bobbitt 3, Tummala 2, Thomas, Jankovic, Smith, Valdes, TEAM). Technical fouls — Nevada 1 (Coleman). Hawaii 1 (Fleming). Officials — Mark Fulton, Ian Caldwell, Jeremy Dente. A—5,471.