Matadors Fall to Hawai'i on Last Second Shot

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HONOLULU, HI---

A last second 3-pointer with 0.9 seconds remaining gave Hawai'i (8-9, 2-2 BWC) an 80-77 win over CSUN Men's Basketball (7-11, 3-2 BWC) on Wednesday evening at Stan Sheriff Center. Junior Kendall Smith scored 20 points and registered four rebounds and three assists. Tavrion Dawson posted 18 points and six rebounds while Darin Johnson scored 15 and Aaron Parks had 13.

In a game with 22 lead changes and 14 ties, Wednesday's contest would be decided on the final possession. Tied at 77-77 and seconds remaining, Brocke Stepteau found Leland Green on a game-winning 3-pointer with less than a second on the clock. Smith attempted a long 3-pointer from beyond half court as the final buzzer sounded but his shot fell short giving the Rainbow Warriors the victory.

Hawai'i shot 47.5 percent from the field in the game and CSUN finished shooting 42.1 percent. The Matadors earned 34 trips to the free throw line, converting on 25 attempts while Hawai'i went 16-of-18 for the night. The Rainbow Warriors also held a 36-28 edge in the rebounding department.

The teams traded 12 leads in the first half as neither team led by more than five points. CSUN trailed 17-14 at the 12:54 mark of the first half but a jumper from Dawson along with a steal by Smith on the ensuing possession and a layup the other way put CSUN in front 18-17.

Noah Allen led the way for the Rainbow Warriors in the first half, scoring 17 points. At the 9:14 mark of the first half, Allen knocked down a 3-pointer to give Hawai'i its biggest lead of the half at 25-20.

The Matadors would respond with a 13-5 run to take a 33-30 lead. To cap off the run, Dylan Johns delivered an emphatic block on a drive from Green leading to a jumper from Dawson in transition.

CSUN held a 39-36 lead after a free throw by Smith but the Rainbow Warriors owned the final 1:30 to take a 40-39 lead into intermission. The tandem of Johnson and Parks each scored 10 points to lead the Matadors.

In the opening minutes of the second half, Hawai'i scored on three of its first four possessions to take a 46-41 lead before CSUN answered right back with a 9-2 spurt to go back in front.

The seesaw battle continued as Dawson gave CSUN a 52-50 lead with 14:20 remaining but the Rainbow Warriors took the lead right back on a 3-pointer from Stepteau. Moments later, with the Matadors trailing 55-54, Smith hit a shot from beyond the 3-point arc to give his team a 57-55 advantage.

CSUN continued to find success on the offensive end, generating a 13-5 run to extend to a 67-60 lead. Dawson punctuated the run with five-straight points including a 3-point play on a drive to the rim.

Hawai'i battled back with a 9-2 run of its own to pull to within 71-69 with 3:10 to play. The Rainbow Warriors would take the lead moments later on a 3-pointer from Jack Purchase. However, on the ensuing the possession, Smith earned his way to the line and gave CSUN the lead right back at 76-75.

After empty possessions on both sides, Allen drew a foul and knocked down a pair of free throws to again put Hawai'i ahead by a point. Earning 18 trips to the charity stripe in the second half, the Matadors again found their way to the line with 28 seconds left. Dawson hit 1-of-2 free throws to tie the game, but the Rainbow Warriors would hit the deciding shot on the next play down the floor.

Smith extended his double-digit scoring streak to 13 games with his 20 points. From 3-point land, Smith went 3-for-3 in the game and he also finished 5-of-7 from the free throw line. Smith has scored 20 or more points in four of five conference games.

Parks moved into sole possession of fifth place in the Matador record books for free throws made. With 379 converted free throws, Parks needs 17 more to tie Andre Chevalier (1990-94) for fourth place.

For the Rainbow Warriors, Allen scored a game-high 30 points and he went 10-of-12 at the free throw line.

The Matadors return home on Saturday evening against UC Irvine. Tip off from The Matadome is slated for 7 p.m.

Matadors Fall to Hawai'i on Last Second Shot

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Team Stats

Kendall Smith

Tavrion Dawson

Darin Johnson

Aaron Parks

Players Mentioned

Tavrion Dawson

Dylan Johns

Darin Johnson

Aaron Parks

Kendall Smith