UH routs Fullerton in Big West quarterfinal
DARRELL MIHO / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER
UH Rainbow Warrior Aaron Valdes beats Cal State Fullerton Titans’ Jamar Akoh to the ball and slams down a missed shot during a quarterfinal game at the Big West Tournament this afternoon at the Honda Center. UH won the game 75-44.
DARRELL MIHO / SPECIAL TO THE STAR-ADVERTISER
UH Rainbow Warrior Quincy saves a deep pass during a quarterfinal game against Cal State Fullerton Titans at the Big West Tournament today at the Honda Center. UH won the game 75-44.
ANAHEIM, CALIF. » Top-seeded Hawaii overcame some sloppy play in the first half and pulled away for a convincing 75-44 win over eighth-seeded Cal State Fullerton in a Big West tournament quarterfinal today at the Honda Center.
Despite foul trouble for Big West Player of the Year Stefan Jankovic, UH (25-5) launched into a game-breaking 28-3 run to counter a brief lead by the Titans (10-20) at the start of the second half.
UH outscored CSF 48-18 in the second half, shooting 52.2 percent in the period compared to 24.0.
“Obviously pleased with the performance, particularly in the second half,” said Eran Ganot, who became the Big West’s leader for wins by a rookie head coach. “I thought even the first half, we had some turnovers but we were defending, and we were rebounding. And so I thought that would serve us well, it continued in the second half. We just started sharing the ball more and taking care of the ball a little better in the second half, and that was the difference.”
UH led just 27-26 at halftime when CSF closed the first half on a 9-2 run. But the Rainbow Warriors committed only two of their nine turnovers in the second half, while recording eight of their 10 steals in the period. UH improved to 5-0 this season coming off a loss, and ran its winning streak over the Titans to 10 games.
The ’Bows play No. 4 UC Santa Barbara in the semifinals. The Gauchos beat UC Davis 87-61 in today’s opener. UC Irvine and Long Beach State meet in Friday’s second semifinal.
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UH’s semifinal is at 4:30 p.m. Hawaii time Friday and will be televised on ESPNU at 9 p.m. It will be available live online on ESPN3.
UH’s Aaron Valdes scored a game-high 18 points on 7-for-10 shooting, forward Mike Thomas notched the first double-double of his career with 12 points and 12 rebounds, point guard Roderick Bobbitt scored 14 and Jankovic added 12.
“The first half didn’t go the way we wanted it to, but we stuck with it and did what we needed to do on the defensive end, and stayed disciplined,” Bobbitt said. “We played our defense that we’ve been playing all year.”
Bobbitt had four steals and passed Tom Henderson (160) for the UH career record, setting the mark at 163 and counting.
31 responses to “UH routs Fullerton in Big West quarterfinal”
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I hope that we get better competition.
Crybaby!!
I guess you did not see the first half of the game.
Just stay off the athletics area and stick to trolling politics.
Truly!
hey!
I hope you become more informed rather than offer your inane comments. You were the very one to criticize Ganot’s selection as head coach. Care to retract your opinion?
Do you ever do anything positive? Seems like all you do is complain.
Better than losing!
We hope you just go away alkiy!
I enjoyed watching a very good second half. Hawaii’s defense was outstanding and better attacking inside instead of bombing with 3 pointers. Sending positive energy for their next game tomorrow.
Way to go Bow Warriors Basketball team!!! Keep up the fight and the pedal to the metal! The islands are behind you all the way!!!
like Curran said, Bobbit has to quit jumping to pass.
he had so many turnovers because of it.
that is a basketball no no.
Awesome effort! Way to pull away in the 2nd half. This UH team is really fun to watch! Just two more wins in the next two days! Go ‘Bows!
We will know more when they play better competition. Fullerton is really a very minor program.
So is your man Trump.
So is your intelligence!
Whew. I was sweating that first half. Nice comeback by the ‘Bows. I hope they carry that “mo” into the rest of the tourney.
Yeah. Had some nifty plays in that half.
Do you think it was nerves? Even veteran teams can get the yips when there is so much on the line. At any rate, Go Bows!
Fab job in the 2nd half. Four guys in double figures. All of them big parts of the game. So great to watch! GO BOWS!!!
Coaching has a lot to do with it and I was completely surprised that UH won by 31 points. Considering the 27-26 edge at halftime, the thought of an upset was real. AD David Matlin better take care of Eran Ganot, so that he doesn’t go coach at a Power Five School. Hopefully next year the Warriors could go to postseason play, however if not, then we need to root them on to the NCAA big dance and if not, definitely the NIT.
Don’t bother worrying about Ganot because one or more years close to this year means he’s gone because what UH can offer monetarily won’t be even a third of what big boys can offer. We should regard such possibilities as a positive for UH as it will establish them as a desirable place for young, up and coming coaches This is the path UH needs to establish in all sports, including Wahine volleyball where Shoji is way past primetime. But of course, Shogun Shoji and his blind followers don’t see it that way (actually they’re not seeing at all). And, of course, Shoji is not going to give it up until he’s got a fellow cult member as his prime replacement candidate (mark my words, that’s what will happen because it’s his obligation to nominate a fellow cult member).
He’s not LDS. Jeez you’re such an ignorant, racist individual. Shoji is still one of the top coaches in the nation. Not that you would know. Don’t comment here, man up and contact me at jimmyhouse67@aol.com. You’re just an overweight, lonely coward maiking inane comments anonymously. Try not to be afraid of your own shadow.
whoa, take it easy there.
Shoji’s ship sailed a long time ago. He’s now rowing upstream with one finger plugging the leaking hole. He WAS the greatest coach in UH history, as I’ve stated many times. He’s now emperor with no clothes on. When was the last time UH was relevant on the national stage? Even with his gaudy records, UH gets absolutely no respect anymore because his wins now are against pathetic competition while rest of the country, especially the power conferences, play at the highest level day in, day out. Wake up, face the light instead of living in the dark.
Beat a team with 20 losses, with a team that already won 20 games last year, and just missed out winning the tournament and the guy deserves a raise? That’s the kind of thinking that led to Norm Chow’s hiring. What has he got for us in the future, Sheriff who averages 1 point a game? None of his recruits other than Sai, who came here for Med School, are even seeing any significant playing time. Talk about this same time next year after Janks, Valdez, and the other old recruits are gone.
Nobody was thinking when they hired Chow, except that he is a member of a certain sect.
You know why the players you mentioned may be gone? Because the previous cult member was a conmen who conned people like you into believing his BS. Ganot can win no conference games next year and he still will be a far superior coach then your beloved conmen.
The Heart Attack Kids pull-out another one in the 2nd half! The real work starts tomorrow, as UCI is taking care of business, UCSB is in, and I anticipate that LBS will be better than UC Riverside. Slow starts and foul trouble on Janks and Bobbitt are worrisome. Free throw didn’t affect this game, but the Bows only shot 5 for 11. How about a game where they stat and finish strong? Go Bows!
End of the line is at tomorrow’s game, ……sorry……the crystal ball doesn’t lie!