HONOLULU – Throw out the records when the Chaminade University and Hawai'i Pacific University men's basketball teams get together.
In the latest chapter between the two long-time Honolulu rivals of the series which dates back to 1977, the Sharks used a game-ending 14-5 run to stun the Silverswords, 100-98, Wednesday at McCabe Gymnasium in front of a spirted crowd of 326.
Chaminade's
Braden Olsen (West Linn, Ore./Gannon University/West Linn HS) and
Jalen Brattain (Shallowater, Texas/Lubbock Christian Univ./Shallowater HS) each had 26 points, a career-high for the latter. Olsen buried a career-high six 3-pointers with eight assists and six rebounds while Brattain pulled down nine boards for the 'Swords, who set season-highs of 18 triples and 25 assists.
Isaac Amaral-Artharee (Portland, Ore./Central Catholic) added 19 points while
Ross Reeves (Orem, Utah/Snow College/Orem HS) chipped in with 12 points and a career-best nine assists.
The loss dropped the Silverswords to 12-14 on the season and 7-11 in the Pacific West Conference while the Sharks, who have now won the last three meetings in McCabe Gym, improved to 9-15 and 4-10.
The defeat dropped Chaminade a half-game behind Dominican (7-10 PacWest) for the sixth and final spot in PacWest Championships with two games remaining while DUC has three more including two against Academy of Art which is currently holding on to the fourth spot. The conference tournament will be played at McCabe Gym from March 2-4. The Sharks' win also kept their slim chances of earning the final bid alive.
Marquis Moore led HPU with 25 points while Mason Landdeck added 21.
Chaminade scored eight of the game's first 10 points before HPU used a 19-3 run, going up as many as a 24-14 at the 13:38 mark of the first half. The Sharks' lead would hold for another seven minutes before Brattain's flush tied it at 38 followed by Olsen's first triple of the game on the next possession which gave the 'Swords a 41-38 lead, their first in nearly 10 minutes.
But Olsen wasn't done from beyond the arc. The graduate transfer drilled three more over the next two minutes, giving Chaminade its first double-digit lead at 54-44 with 2:51 left in the half. HPU, naturally, responded and cut the Silverswords' lead to 57-53 at halftime.
Chaminade shot a blistering 63.6 percent (21-of-33) in the first half including 10-of-17 from 3-point range. Olsen accounted for 18 first-half points while he, Reeves and
Raazhel Watkins (Concord, Calif./Sacramento State/College Park HS) combined for all but one of the team's 16 assists in the first 20 minutes. They also held the Sharks to 48.4 shooting.
But HPU kept hanging around throughout second half, even tying it at 70 near the halfway point. Later, Amaral-Artharee hit a pair of 3s, the last at 2:35 left which put Chaminade up, 98-93. However, it proved to be the 'Swords' final bucket of the game as HPU chipped away, taking a 99-98 lead on Trey Chapman's drive to the rim with 43 seconds left. The 'Swords would be denied over their next two possessions with a turnover and missed 3-pointer.
HPU would leave the door slight ajar with two missed free throws, allowing Chaminade a chance for the tying or winning basket. Olsen was fouled with just 0.2 seconds left but missed the first three throw. He deliberately missed the second which was grabbed by Amaral-Artharee but couldn't get a tip-in off in time as the horn sounded.
After their sizzling first half, the Silverswords came back down to earth, making just 13-of-31 shots in the final 20 minutes to finish with a 53.1 shooting clip. While they did make 8-of-20 triples in the second half, several of their misses came down the stretch when the team needed it the most. The 'Swords also made 12-of-19 free throws, pulled down 30 rebounds with nine turnovers.
HPU shot a solid 18-of-34 (52.9) in the second half for a game percentage of 50.7 percent. The Sharks made nine 3s on the evening and were 15-of-19 from the charity stripe with 39 boards, 19 assists and just seven giveaways. HPU outscored CUH, 54-28, in the paint and 22-6 in second-chance points.
The Silverswords will look to rebound when they face Holy Names on Super Bowl Sunday at McCabe Gym. Tipoff is scheduled for 10 a.m.
