Akira Jacobs scored a game-high 20 points and grabbed six rebounds Saturday evening to help Hawai’i hold off Chaminade, 85-80, in men’s college basketball exhibition action at Kamehameha Schools – Maui in Pukalani.
Newcomer Marcus Greene added 16 points and Tanner Christensen chipped in with 13 points and a game-high 17 boards, as the Warriors overcame a 63-62 deficit with nine minutes remaining and withstood a late rally by the Silverswords. Tom Beattie also had 13 points for UH, which scored eight of the game’s final 12 points.
The Warriors led by as much as 50-36 four minutes into the second half, but saw Chaminade chip away and eventually take a 63-62 lead after Jackson Last’s two free throws with 8:56 left. Hawai’i quickly grabbed the lead back, and eventually pushed it to 74-65 after two free throws by Jacobs with 6:23 still to go. The Silverswords clawed back and drew to within one point (77-76) on Amound Anderson’s layup with 2:54 showing on the clock.
But Christensen answered with a dunk to give the Warriors some breathing room, and his free throw with 33 ticks remaining effectively sealed the victory by pushing the lead to 85-78.
UH outscored Chaminade, 40-18, on points in the paint and committed only 10 turnovers compared to the Silverswords’ 27. But the Warriors missed 14 free throws (24 for 38) and shot 63.2 percent from the line.