For one memorable evening, the Hawaii basketball team was gritty in pink.

Before 3,532 in the Stan Sheriff Center, the Rainbow Warriors pressed and harassed their way to a 70-59 victory over Cal State Fullerton.

By improving to 16-11 overall and 7-6 in the Big West, the ’Bows ensured a winning season and secured a spot in the league’s eight-team, postseason tournament.

“You check boxes, and you go for the next one,” UH coach Eran Ganot said. “This was a step forward. And now we’ll enjoy it, and go back to work.”

The game also was a celebration of the life of point guard Drew Buggs’ mother, Mary, who died of cancer in October. During warmups, the ’Bows wore pink shirts with “Mrs. Buggs” on the back. During the game, the UH players wore pink shoes.

>> Photo Gallery: Men’s basketball: Cal State Fullerton at Hawaii

“That’s our team,” Ganot said. “When this tragedy happened, everybody put their heads together to figure out how we can honor a tremendous family. Everybody is in total support. Drew has made a great impression.”

Assistant coach Jabari Trotter said it was Buggs’ idea to use “Mrs. Buggs” on the warmup jerseys’ back. “He thought ‘Mrs. Buggs’ was a good homage to his mom,” Trotter said. “She was a loving mother first and an unbelievable wife and he wanted to pay homage to her. He had a great game. It was for her.”

Buggs, a junior guard and co-captain, scored a team-high 20 points on 7-for-12 shooting. He connected on all six of his free throws and led the defensive pressure in tracking CSF’s Austen Awosika. Buggs and Awosika were club teammates growing up in Long Beach. On Thursday, Awosika was held to four points. The Titans were at minus-15 points during 38 minutes, 30 seconds that Awosika was on the court.

“That was the main goal we had, to get back to defending and rebounding and taking care of the ball,” Buggs said. “We did that tonight.”

The teams had met 49 days earlier, and in the time since Brandon Kamga averaged 19.7 points for the Titans. To slow the trifecta of Kamga, Awosika and 6-foot-7 Jackson Rowe, the ’Bows opened with a three-guard lineup, with wing Samuta Avea playing the four and power forward Zigmars Raimo sliding to the five.

“We’re trying different things, trying guys who can get us off to faster starts,” Ganot said.

The plan was better than the execution. The Titans raced to a 7-2 lead before Ganot brought in 7-foot Dawson Carper to return to a more traditional lineup. The Titans led 9-4 and, at the first media timeout, 15-8. That is when the ’Bows were reminded of the initial strategy.

“We started small because we wanted to get ourselves playing harder,” UH defensive coordinator John Montgomery said. “We decided to pick up our pressure a little bit.”

With heat-seeking pressure that attacked shooters and ball screens, the ’Bows forced 14 turnovers in taking a 38-36 lead at the intermission. The ’Bows scored the first eight points of the second half to seize the momentum. For the game, the ’Bows forced 22 turnovers that were recycled into 18 points, 13 on fast breaks. The ’Bows made eight steals.

While the Titans finished with decent 48.8% shooting, the stat was deceptive when it came to points per possession. “It’s impossible to overcome 22 turnovers,” CSF coach Dedrique Taylor said. “Twenty-two opportunities that you don’t get a shot on goal. And then they scored 18 off those turnovers, so it’s impossible to overcome that, I don’t care who you are.”

Montgomery said: “We pressed more than we pressed in one game. It was more of getting ourselves to play hard and take them out of their rhythm a little bit. It obviously worked.”

CSF post Johnny Wang scored a career-high 21 points, unveiling a jump hook. “I’ve been working on that for a while,” Wang said.

But the night belonged to UH’s defense and the ’Bows’ affinity for Buggs’ family.

“It was special how my teammates supported me,” Buggs said. “We’re like a family out here.”