HONOLULU – Fresh off their Midwest exhibition road trip to three Division I powers, the Chaminade University men's basketball team dived into regular season action against fellow Division II foes in the PacWest/GNAC Challenge on Friday.
 
Opening against Alaska Anchorage, the Silverswords led by as many as 22 points then hung on for dear life in the final seconds, escaping with an 82-77 win at the Hawai'i Pacific University Shark Tank. The victory was Chaminade's 11th straight in the Challenge against their Alaskan counterparts – and their sixth straight over UAA – dating back to 2015.
 
Ross Reeves (Orem, Utah/Snow College/Orem HS) hit four 3-pointers and made 7-of-13 from the floor for 22 points while ripping down 11 rebounds and dishing out five assists. Scott Ator (Murphy, Texas/College of the Sequoias/Wylie HS) made all seven of his attempts to contribute with 16 points. Jalen Brattain (Shallowater, Texas/Lubbock Christian Univ./Shallowater HS) added 16 points and nine boards for Chaminade (1-0).
 
Raazhel Watkins (Concord, Calif./Sacramento State/College Park HS) had 11 points and nine rebounds and Isaac Amaral-Artharee (Portland, Ore./Central Catholic) added 10.
 
The Seawolves (0-1) were paced by Da'Zhon Wyche's 29 points. Sawyer Storms, who wore a Chaminade uniform from 2020-22, added 12 for Alaska Anchorage.
 
The Seawolves either led or was tied in the game's opening six minutes. Brattain's layup at the 14-minute mark put Chaminade ahead 11-10 which was the beginning of an 18-2 surge over the next six minutes. Reeves accounted for five points while Watkins and Ator had four each.
 
Chaminade's lead eventually swelled to 43-21 with under a minute remaining with their halftime lead at 43-23.
 
However the Seawolves methodically chipped away at the deficit, getting to single digits at 59-50 midway through the second half. After the 'Swords increased their lead back to 13 at 76-63 with three minutes left, UAA made its move.
 
An 8-0 run got them to within 76-71 with 1:43 left. A minute later, Storms' tip-in made it a one-possession game at 78-76. A series of Chaminade missteps then occurred including two missed front ends of 1-and-1 free throws, which gave the Seawolves an opportunity to tie the game. But Jaedon Bradley's chance to tie the game went up in smoke when he made just one of two from the charity stripe.
 
On the ensuing possession, Chaminade turned it over in their own backcourt but Wyche's potential go-ahead 3-pointer was air-balled out of bounds. The 'Swords turned it over again where Bradley had a chance to also give UAA the lead but his driving layup was off the mark. The Silverswords, however, kept giving the Seawolves opportunities by making just two of four free throws, giving them an 80-77 lead with 13 seconds left. Wyche's off-balanced triple to send the game to overtime wasn't even close then Amaral-Artharee closed it out with two free throws as the 'Swords could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
 
Chaminade made 47.2 percent of its shots, making six of its 25 attempts from long range while Alaska Anchorage made 41.4 percent from the floor. The 'Swords mauled the Seawolves on the boards by a 54-to-30 count.
 
The Silverswords return to the Shark Tank on Saturday when they wrap up the PacWest/GNAC Challenge against the University of Alaska. Tipoff is set for 4:30 p.m.