HONOLULU – Hawai'i Pacific University opened with a 18-4 run and had to withstand a furious comeback attempt as HPU defeated Alaska 92-77 on Saturday afternoon in the PacWest/GNAC Challenge at McCabe Gymnasium.
 
The Sharks (1-1) never trailed in collecting their first win of the season. The Nanooks (0-2) cut a 23-point second half deficit to nine before the Sharks extended it to the 15-point difference.
 
"We had good intensity today, much better than yesterday (against Alaska Anchorage)," said HPU head coach Darren Vorderbruegge. "We still have to learn to sustain our energy, but we are growing every game."
 
PacWest Preseason Player of the Year Jonathan Janssen, a senior forward from Noosa Heads, Australia/Mountain Creek, paced the Sharks with a game-highs of 22 points, eight rebounds, four assists and a blocked shot. Janssen was 8-of-9 from the floor, 2-of-2 from the 3-point arc and 4-of-4 from the foul line. Junior forward Ronald Blain, a junior from McDonough, Ga./Union Grove posted 13 points before leaving the game with an injury, while senior forward Spencer Vering of San Diego/Mater Dei added 11 points and junior guard Neema Namda of Sandy, Utah/Alta added 10 points. Senior guard Darnell Bettis of Los Angeles/University also had eight rebounds to go with eight points.
 
The Nanooks were led by Aushanti Potts-Woods with 19 points and Spencer Sweet with 17 points. Alex Baham had 15 points, going 5-of-10 from the arc before fouling out. Jalon McCullough added 11 points. Michael Kluting led UAF with six rebounds.
 
The Sharks shot 57 percent for the contest, hitting 30-of-53 shots, including 12-of-26 (46 percent) from the 3-point arc. HPU hit 20-of-27 shots (74 percent) from the foul line. Alaska hit 44 percent (25-of-57) from the floor, with 13-of-35 (37 percent) from the arc. The Nanooks hit 14-of-17 (82 percent) from the free throw stripe. The Sharks outrebounded UAF 36-24, with both teams turning the ball over 15 times.
 
The Sharks opened the game on an 18-4 run that included four consecutive HPU 3-pointers by Blain, Namdar twice and  Janssen. HPU the advantage to 25-8 on a second Blain triple with 9:11 to go in the opening half.
 
A 12-0 run in later in the half, capped by a Blain layup with 3:25 in the frame, gave HPU its largest lead of 24 points at 40-16. Alaska made a late 10-4 run after that to close the halftime score to 44-26.
 
An 11-4 Nanook run pulled UAF to within 11 with 16:37 to play on McCullough's 3-ball. The Sharks answered, taking first extending the lead back to 18 on a jumper by Janssen, then using an 8-1 run to go back to a 23-point lead on free throws by junior forward Daniel Melifonwu of San Diego/Lincoln with 6:33 to play.
 
After swapping points, HPU led by 23 at 77-54 with 5:44 to plan before the Nanooks started to make a run.
 
Using a combination of free throws and 3-point shots, UAF worked the Sharks lead to just nine when Potts-Woods hit a jumper with 56 seconds to play to make it 86-77. But that field goal would be the last points for the northern visitors.
 
UAF needed to foul and the Sharks went 4-for-4 from the line down the stretch and capped the game with a leaning jumper from sophomore guard Lorenze Gordon-Haynes to win 92-77.
 
The Sharks have extended time before hitting the competitive hardwood again. HPU plays again on Tuesday, Nov. 20, when Oakland City (Ind.) visits Oahu. The game is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at the Moanalua High School gym.