HONOLULU – Round 1 of the Honolulu Division II basketball rivalry goes to the visitors.
In a game that lived up to its usual billing, the Chaminade University men's basketball team dropped a tough 78-72 Pacific West Conference decision to in-city rival, Hawai'i Pacific University, Wednesday at McCabe Gym.
Lee Bailey and
Kuany Kuany each dropped 18 points in defeat for the Silverswords, who fell to 4-5 overall and 1-2 in PacWest action. But it was Justin Long, a PacWest All-Preseason Team member, who hit several free throws down the stretch, scoring a game-high 23 points for the Sharks (6-2, 3-1), who won in McCabe for the second time in three years.
Darry Jones Jr. contributed to the HPU cause with 19 points, hitting 7-of-9 shots from the floor, including a back-breaking 3-pointer with 1:30 remaining to give HPU a five-point lead.
Kuany also pulled down eight rebounds for the 'Swords while
Kevin Hu added 16 points.
The game was close in the opening minutes but Long's 3-pointer from the left wing gave HPU its largest lead at 28-18 with just under seven minutes left in the half, part of a 14-6 Sharks run. The home team went on a 7-0 run of its own, closing to within 30-27 with 4:50 left in the frame behind Bailey's five points and a Kuany layup.
Hu's two free throws brought Chaminade to within two at 28-20, but the Sharks opportunistic defense forced four straight CUH misses as they took a 40-31 lead in the waning minutes of the first half.
Kiran Shastri knocked down a triple right before the halftime buzzer to chop the deficit to 42-36 at the break.
Chaminade made a run in the opening minutes of the second half as Hu's two free throws, then driving baseline lay-up gave the Silverswords its first lead (48-47) since the opening minutes of the contest. Jones' 3-ball tied it at 52 with 13:18 left, but Shastri hit a pair of foul shots as Chaminade reclaimed the lead at 54-52.
HPU fought back behind five points from Long to give the visitors a 60-55 lead midway through the second half and eventually built the lead to 10. But like clockwork, Chaminade rallied back as Shastri's triple brought them to 67-66 with 4:44 left. Long's free throws and Jones' big 3 gave HPU a 73-68 advantage with only 90 seconds left as the Sharks were able to hold off the 'Swords in the end.
HPU shot 50 percent from the floor, hitting nine 3-pointers in the process, while holding Chaminade to less than 40 percent for the night. The Sharks out-rebounded the 'Swords, 39-29, and dished more assists (16-8). Although the 'Swords hit 20 free throws, they only converted six 3-pointers on the night.
The Silverswords return to non-conference action Friday when they face their fourth Division I this season, the University of Hawai'i-Manoa, at the Blaisdell Center, CUH's first appearance in the historic building since February 2011. Tickets are available on Ticketmaster and the Blaisdell Center box office. ESPN 1420 radio will carry the game over the airwaves throughout the state while live streaming audio around the world will be on GoSwords.com.
