Box Score HILO, Hawaii - Three players scored in double figures and Hawaii-Hilo was able to fend off Alaska 65-61 in men's basketball on Saturday night in the Nanooks' (1-7) final game of Hawaiian trip.
“This was the third game in three nights and we had to fly today and play and it was also our sixth game in 10 days,” head coach
Mick Durham said. “I just wanted us to come out and compete and I was very surprised how we brought energy for 40 minutes.”
Terrell Mack posted a double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds, while
Zachary Wilde had 13 points and six rebounds. The Vulcans (4-1) also got 10 points out of
Mychael Hearn in the victory.
With the contest knotted up at 46-46 freshman center
Daniel Shaw (Cambridge, England/Moulton College) hit a jumper to give the Nanooks a brief lead with 9:20 to go, Mack scored six straight points in the game to give UHH a 52-48 advantage.
The Vulcans got up by six two times in the final three minutes, but Alaska wouldn't quit, as a three-pointer by sophomore forward
Stefan Tica (Belgrade, Serbia/Panola College) cut the lead to 63-61 with 25 ticks remaining. After a
CJ Brown free throw, the 'Nooks had a chance to tie it, but
Dominique Brinson's long-range jumper was no good. Mack hit one more three to clinch the victory.
For Alaska, Tica tallied a game-high 20 points and freshman
Jesse Ward (North Pole, Alaska/North Pole) contributed 12 points off the bench.
“Stefan was very efficient, six for 13 shooting and made all six free throws” Durham said. “Those are the line scores we're really looking for, somewhere where you shoot around 50-percent and fill up the stat sheet. [Jesse] struggled the first two games on this road trip, but tonight he gave us a big lift picking up 12 points.
Hilo shot 50-percent (24-48 FG) from the floor and better than 82-percent (14-17 FT) from the free throw line. Alaska struggled offensively in the second half and finished 37.7-percent (23-61 FG) for the game. The Vulcans ruled the boards by a 40-26 margin. The Nanooks forced 23 UHH turnovers which resulted in 11 steals, including a game-high four by senior guard
Nico Matthews (Twenty Nine Palms, Calif./College of the Desert).
Trailing 20-19 in the first half, Alaska scored eight of the next 10 points in the game to snag a 27-22 advantage with 2:37 to go in the first. The 'Nooks led by as many as six points but a Hilo trey cut UAF's lead to 31-28 at halftime.
Alaska led 37-33 less than four minutes into the second half, but an 8-0 Vulcan run shifted momentum to the home team and gave it a 41-37 lead with 12:42 remaining. The Nanooks were held without a point for 4:39 until Ward's three-pointer cut the lead back to one at 41-40 with 11:38 left.
“We took a step forward defensively [on this trip],” Durham said. “The first half against Hawaii Pacific on Thanksgiving Day wasn't very good, but we came out the second half and we were a totally different team defensively. We pretty much stayed the same all weekend. The last two games, we've held teams in the 60's.”
The Nanooks will look to end their skid when they return to action next weekend at the AT&T Alascom Jamboree in Anchorage, Alaska. They face Minot State on Friday and Portland Bible College Saturday. Both games are set for a 5 p.m. tip.
