HONOLULU – The Chaminade University men's basketball team rebounded from Thursday's disappointing loss to Biola by rolling past Westmont College, 90-78, at McCabe Gymnasium.
The Silverswords, who trailed at halftime, outscored the Warriors, 46-32, on 53.6 percent shooting to help close out their five-game homestand.
Nathan Medina (Long Beach, Calif./Biola University/Valley Christian HS), coming off a frustrating performance against his former team, rebounded by knocking down six 3-pointers for a game-high 24 points for the Silverswords, who improved to 10-6 and 8-2 in the Pacific West Conference. The win, combined with Point Loma's loss at Vanguard earlier in the afternoon, vaulted them back into first in the conference standings.
The 'Swords, who lost by 19 to the same Warriors squad back in December, avenged the defeat and enjoyed their largest margin of victory in a conference game this year.
Kent King (Washington, D.C./Vincennes University/Fork Union Military Academy) and
Fletcher MacDonald (Wollongong, Australia/Lubbock Christian Univ./Newington College HS) each added 13 on the scoreboard while MacDonald also ripped down nine rebounds.
Roland Banks II (Bakersfield, Calif./Fullerton College/Cathedral HS) added 11 points, including a big four-point play with 3:45 remaining to help the 'Swords thwart any hope of a Westmont comeback. Banks also had four boards and five assists while
Kris King (Washington, D.C./Vincennes University/Fork Union Military Academy) dropped six dimes, a career high, while adding eight points.
Brycen Shackelford (Folsom, Calif./Folsom) was also a big contributor off the bench, hitting 4-of-5 for eight points.
Aidan Mandel had 21 points for Westmont (10-8, 7-5 PacWest) which lost the final game of its Hawai'i trip and saw their four-game winning streak snapped.
Offense was the name of the game in the first half with both teams shooting over 50 percent with seven ties and 10 lead changes. Neither squad had more than a three-point lead after the first 10 minutes before CUH was able to build a seven-point lead. Westmont posted the final five points of the stanza to take a 46-44 lead at the break.
It was more of the same to start the second half with the Warriors jumping back ahead two minutes in. Medina's triple sparked the game's biggest surge, a 15-4 run over the next five minutes with Shackelford's wing jumper giving the Silverswords its first double-digit lead of 63-53.
The Warriors got to within five but a layup from
Nate Sasser III (West Palm Beach, Fla./Casper College/Suncoast HS) and Medina's fourth 3-ball helped the 'Swords get back to a 10-point advantage. Westmont got to within eight but Banks' four-point play all but sealed it for Chaminade.
The 'Swords had their second-best shooting night of the year of 54.2 percent while burying a season-high 13 triples on 48.1 percent from behind the arc. Two nights after missing 14 free throws, CUH found its target at the charity stripe, making 13 of its 14 tries. After Westmont made over 56 percent of its shots and 10 3s in the first half, the 'Swords held them to just 33.3 and just 4-of-14 from long range in the final 20 minutes.
Despite being out-rebounded by a 37-to-29 count, they converted 12 Westmont giveaways to 16 points and dished out a season-best 21 assists with just eight turnovers.
The Warriors finished with a 44.1 shooting percentage and was 12-of-36 from 3-point range with 16 assists.
The Silverswords will hit the road back to Southern California for a three-game trip, starting Thursday at Point Loma in a matchup of the PacWest's top two teams in the conference. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Hawai'i time.
