Hawaii’s skid continues despite strong start against CSU Bakersfield

CSU Bakersfield controlled the boards, tempo and eventually Hawaii in Saturday night’s 83-72 basketball victory at the SimpliFi Arena.

The Rainbow Warriors scored the first nine points, but could not sustain the momentum or defensive consistency in suffering their third loss in a row. The ’Bows fell to 3-3 overall and 1-3 in the Big West.

The Roadrunners’ 10-player depth, athletic inside-out-inside attack, and 94-foot pressure helped them — beep, beep — sprint away to a sweep of this two-game series.

“Disappointing loss,” UH coach Eran Ganot said. “Disappointing week here.”

Justin Webster led the ’Bows with 23 points, the final two coming with nine-tenths of a second remaining, but that was not enough against the CSUB’s share-the-wealth offense and pestering defense.

James Jean-Marie contributed 14 points and seven rebounds but was limited to 18 minutes because of foul trouble. Jean-Marie was assessed only six fouls in the first five games.

“We played without James before,” Ganot said. “Mate (Colina, the 7-foot understudy) has given us a lift. But, obviously, James presents some matchup issues. … For a stretch, we were able to hang in there defensively. But we really struggled in scoring. He gives us something different. Hopefully, we can do a better job of keeping him out of foul trouble.”

The Roadrunners justified their reputation as volume rebounders. They amassed a 39-20 edge on the boards, including 13-4 off the offensive glass. For the ’Bows, it was a statistical U-turn from the previous night, when they constructed a three-rebound advantage.

“Our defense, which is a hallmark for us, and the rebounding were a huge difference,” Ganot said.

Justin Edler-Davis, who scored a game-high 22 points, rebounded Shawn Stith’s missed free throw and scored on a lay-in during a late stretch. When the ’Bows closed to 72-65 on Webster’s driving layup with 2:43 to play, Edler-Davis answered with a 3 from the top of the key.

“We didn’t get off the board twice, and a free-throw rebound,” Ganot said, detailing missed opportunities. “You go from plus three or four on the boards (on Friday) to minus (19), and particularly in the second half, you don’t give yourself much of a chance to fight back.”

The ’Bows opened the game with the intent of creating separation anxiety for the Roadrunners. The ’Bows spaced their one-in, four-out offense, leading the way for clear looks from beyond the arc. Junior Madut drained two 3s and Webster was true on another to stake the ’Bows to a 9-0 lead just 1 minute, 50 seconds past tip-off.

But that UH lead was created in smoke. The Roadrunners came firing back, trimming the deficit to 11-5, and then going on a 16-1 tear to seize control.

The Roadrunners crafted the advantage despite early foul trouble to two post scorers. Stith, a 6-8, 265-pound space eater, was assessed his second foul with 13:42 left in the first half. Ronne Readus picked up his second foul with 11:58 to play, and then exited two minutes later with his third foul.

But the Roadrunners used a spread-and-shred attack to disrupt the ’Bows’ man-to-man defense. The ’Bows tried to defend out of a zone for a few possessions to slow the Roadrunners.

With Jean-Marie in early foul trouble, the ’Bows went to their bench for answers. Justin Hemsley was beckoned twice in the first half. Benardo da Silva, who played 16 minutes in the first five games, logged 6 minutes, 39 seconds before the intermission.

“We tried a lot of different combinations to find some consistency,” Ganot said.

The Roadrunners, in their first Big West season, are the most experienced member with five senior starters.

“Hopefully, we can learn from this,” Ganot said. “I’ll continue to believe we will. It’s certainly tough at this moment.”