OAKLAND, Calif. – The Chaminade University men's basketball team was looking to end their first Mainland road trip on a high note which would have also made some history.
Instead, they return home on a disappointing end of a stunning 75-63 loss to Holy Names Saturday at Tobin Gymnasium which ended their seven-game winning streak.
Austin Pope (Burbank, Calif./North Idaho College) scored 16 points and dished out four assists in defeat while
Brett Reed (Houston/Cabrillo College) collected his second straight double-double with a 13-point, 12-rebound outing.
Erik Scheive (Marysville, Calif./Yuba College) added 10 points and six boards..
The Silverswords fell to 12-5 overall and 7-3 in the Pacific West Conference at the midway point of league action. The loss also ended their hopes of a 4-0 Mainland conference road trip which has never happened in the history of the program since becoming an NCAA Division II member in 1986.
The Hawks (9-12 overall, 5-6 PacWest) were led by Andre Green's 18 points. Holy Names also earned its first-ever PacWest win over Chaminade in 10 meetings.
Chaminade led just once coming on the game's opening possession with Scheive's bucket. The Hawks scored 16 of the game's next 20 points in a seven-minute span to grab double-digit lead. A 9-0 CUH run towards the end of the first half helped reduce the deficit but HNU retook the momentum right before the half with six straight points for a 33-25 halftime lead.
Chaminade managed to whittle the deficit down to 46-42 eight minutes into the second half but the Hawks' 14-5 run put them up by double-digits from which the 'Swords could not overcome.
Chaminade was held to just 39.4 percent shooting from the floor, its lowest shooting percentage since facing Michigan (38.1) in the Maui Jim Maui Invitational on Nov. 21. The 'Swords also had difficulty from the free throw line, hitting just 5 of 15. Their bench was also outscored 26-17.
Holy Names shot 48.2 percent from the floor, including 56 percent (14-of-25) in the second half. The Hawks also outrebounded the 'Swords, 42-37.
Despite the disappointing finish, Chaminade still captured three of its four games in the Northern California/Central Valley region of the conference slate. They remain tied for third with California Baptist in the PacWest after the Lancers lost at Concordia Irvine on Saturday.
The Silverswords return home to McCabe Gym Thursday to face Point Loma. Tipoff is slated for 7:30 p.m. with live streaming audio coverage on GoSwords.com.
