LAHAINA, Maui, Hawai'i – For 20 minutes, it appeared that Maui Magic could be happening again.
But UNLV had other ideas, turning a bevy of Chaminade second-half turnovers into points as the Runnin' Rebels reversed a four-point halftime deficit to a 93-73 win over the Silverswords in the second day of the Maui Jim Maui Invitational at the Lahaina Civic Center Tuesday.
Rohndell Goodwin led the 'Swords (0-4) with 18 points on 8-of-16 shooting from the floor.
Kuany Kuany was a rebound shy of a double-double with 13 points and nine boards while
Kiran Shastri also had 13 points off the bench.
Kevin Hu contributed with 11 points and nine rebounds.
The Runnin' Rebels (4-1) were led by Derrick Jones Jr. with 26 points and 10 rebounds while Patrick McCaw had 25. The duo went 23-for-34 from the floor.
Chaminade committed 10 second-half turnovers that UNLV parlayed into 16 points while also being out-scored 17-0 on second-chance points.
The 'Swords opened the contest with a Kuany layup and two
Sam Daly buckets for a 6-1 lead to start the game as they started 4-for-4 from the floor and later extended their advantage to 15-7. However, a 12-4 run capped by McCaw's 3 tied it at 19, but Goodwin's layup a minute later put CUH ahead 21-19 with seven minutes left in the half.
Ike Nwamu's layup with 3:23 left gave UNLV its first lead of the game at 29-28, part of a 7-0 run that gave them a 31-28 advantage. But the 'Swords counted with two
James Harper free throws and three Goodwin buckets – on of them a deep triple from the left wing – which put them up 37-31 with 37 seconds left to play as Chaminade led 37-33 at the half.
The 'Swords managed to weather the storm and shot 15-of-33 (45.5 percent) from the floor and attempted only seven 3-pointer, hitting four. UNLV was 11-of-30 (36.7 percent) and was only 9-of-17 from the free throw line. Chaminade, which attempted 18 first-half 3-pointers on Monday against Kansas, took only seven shots from beyond the arc, hitting four.
Goodwin had 16 first-half points on 7-of-11 shooting for Chaminade while the Runnin' Rebels had balanced scoring with all eight players who saw floor time getting in the scorebook.
UNLV opened the second half taking advantage of several Chaminade turnovers and turning them into points as a Jones and McCaw scored all 10 of its points during the game's critical 10-0 which put the Rebs up 54-43.
The Silverswords made a run as Hu's corner triple narrowed the margin to 59-54. But another 10-0 Rebels' run extended their advantage to 74-54 to help seal it.
The 'Swords shot 42.6 percent from the floor while UNLV was 37-of-76 for 48.7 percent but the Runnin' Rebels shot 56.5 percent in the final 20 minutes. Chaminade ended the game hitting 10-of-19 from 3-point range while holding them to only 4-of-16. The 'Swords dished out 17 assists to UNLV's 15 but they were also out-rebounded 47-37.
The game was also a reunion of sorts for reserve guard
Dantley Walker who attended UNLV last year as well as in 2011-12. Walker did not score but dished out three assists, had a rebound and steal in 16 minutes of action.
Meanwhile, Shastri connected on three 3-pointers, giving him 172 career triples. He needs three more to break the school's career record of 174 set by George Gilmore (1990-92).
The Silverswords wrap the Maui Jim Maui Invitational Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. when they face St. John's in the seventh-place game. The game will be televised live on ESPNU.
