HONOLULU, Hawai'i - Hawai'i Pacific made its presence felt at the Hoops in Hawai'i Tip-Off Classic, using pressure defense and a bench that would not quit to pull away from Western Colorado for a 74-63 win on Friday for their first victory of the season at Chaminade University's Clarence T.C. Ching Athletic Center.
The Mountaineers came out swinging, building a 10-5 lead early, but Hawai'i Pacific closed the first quarter on a 12-7 run. Western Colorado's Madyn Kassatly hit a three-pointer with 35 seconds left to put the Mountaineers up 17-15, but
Jalen Samuel answered at the line, knocking down both free throws with three seconds on the clock to send the teams to the second quarter tied at 17.
The second quarter is where the Sharks started to take control. A
Kaile Cruz steal turned into a fast-break layup for
Serenity Santos, and Santos followed with a three-pointer a minute later to give Hawai'i Pacific a 24-21 lead. Cruz then drilled a three-pointer off a Santos assist with 42 seconds left in the half, sending the Sharks into the break with a 35-31 advantage.
Western Colorado pushed back in the third quarter, taking a 44-43 lead on an Alyssa Eckroth three-pointer, but the lead did not last long.
Mya Hatchett tied the game at the free-throw line and then put Hawai'i Pacific back in front, and the Sharks' defense took it from there. A Samuel steal led to two fast-break free throws, and a
Kalysa Ng steal moments later led to a Samuel layup as Hawai'i Pacific carried a 53-49 lead into the fourth.
Penelope Urquhart's three-pointer cut the Sharks' lead to 53-52 early in the final period, and for a moment it felt like anybody's ballgame. What came next decided it. Hawai'i Pacific answered with a 9-2 run, with
Mia Frye, Samuel and
Cori Wilcox all scoring at the rim before Cruz added a free throw and a layup to make it 62-54 with 4:58 to play. The Mountaineers got no closer than five points the rest of the way, and the Sharks iced it from the line, going 9-of-14 in the fourth quarter. Hatchett knocked down the final two free throws with 25 seconds left.
Samuel led Hawai'i Pacific with 16 points on 5-of-10 shooting and a perfect 6-of-6 at the line, adding five rebounds and four steals. Cruz and Hatchett each scored 15 points, with Hatchett going 7-of-8 from the line. Samuel and Cruz combined for 31 points off the bench, part of a 41-3 bench scoring advantage for the Sharks.
Lucia Ricci and Ng each added six points, and Santos scored five. Eckroth led all scorers with 24 points for Western Colorado.
The defense was the difference. Hawai'i Pacific forced 21 turnovers, came up with 10 steals and turned those takeaways into 20 points, while the Mountaineers managed just four points off the Sharks' 13 turnovers. Hawai'i Pacific shot 43.9 percent from the field (25-of-57) to Western Colorado's 38.6 percent (22-of-57) and held a 40-36 edge in points in the paint, even though the Mountaineers won the rebounding battle 40-31.
Hawai'i Pacific continues the Hoops in Hawai'i Tip-Off Classic on Saturday, Oct. 31, against Winona State at 7 pm at Chaminade University.
