Rapp’s career night powers Hawai’i past Texas A&M Corpus-Christi

Rapp’s career night powers Hawai’i past Texas A&M Corpus-Christi

Dec 14, 2024

Hawai’i G Ryan Rapp runs back on defense during a home game. The senior scored a career-high 19 points in Saturday’s win over Texas A&M Corpus-Christi. | Photo Credit: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

Rapp’s career night powers Hawai’i past Texas A&M Corpus-Christi

BY PAUL BRECHT | HONOLULU
PUBLISHED DECEMBER 14, 2024

HONOLULU – Rapp God. 

UH senior captain Ryan Rapp posted a career-high 19 points on Saturday night, helping lift the University of Hawai’i men’s basketball team over visiting Texas A&M Corpus-Christi (6-5), 71-62. The guard drilled all five of his 3-point attempts and racked up six rebounds off the bench for the Rainbow Warriors, who will wrap up non-conference play in eight days with the 2024 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic to close the calendar year. 

Rapp was one of three Rainbow Warriors to finish in double figures as Marcus Greene added 15 points in his second straight start while Gytis Nemeikša chipped in an additional 14 points on an efficient 5-of-8 shooting performance. In all, eight of 10 Hawai’i players that received time scored and the bench outscored the opponent (31-29) for the fifth time in UH’s six wins. 

It was the fourth different starting lineup in the last four games for head coach Eran Ganot, who hinted in the postgame that the tinkering to the rotation could continue due to the abundance of talent at disposal for the Rainbow Warriors. With Rapp heading back to the bench after two straight starts, fellow captain Tom Beattie re-entered the first five after a one-game hiatus. 

Nemeikša shouldered the early load for Hawai’i (6-3), scoring six straight points to push the Rainbow Warriors ahead by a bucket by the first media timeout of the evening. Four straight points by the Islanders pushed the visitors back in front, but Akira Jacobs’ first 3-pointer of the night gave an 11-10 lead back to Hawai’i with 12:52 left to play in the opening half. 

Turnovers, which had given trouble to UH during the two-game road trip too, caused the Hawai’i offense to sputter as the Islanders went up by as much as eight with under eight minutes to play in the first half.  

Enter Ryan Rapp. 

Eight straight points by the senior captain provided the spark Hawai’i needed, spurring an extended run to finish the half. Two makes at the charity stripe by junior forward Harry Rouhliadeff knotted the game up at 28 just six seconds before halftime, seeing the Rainbow Warriors shake off a brutal shooting start to make it a winner-take-all 20 minutes on the other side of the midway pause. 

Kody Williams got the party started quickly again as play resumed, drilling a three for his first points of the evening before two dunks by Tanner Christensen and a Rapp steal-and-score gave the Rainbow Warriors a nine-point lead less than two and a half minutes after the break. In all, Hawai’i raced out on a 14-3 run to take a 42-31 advantage with under 16 minutes to play. 

The visiting Islanders, who entered the night forcing 15 or more turnovers in seven of the team’s first 10 games, responded with a 10-1 run of their own to pull back within a couple of points with 12:41 to play. The teams would trade baskets for a few minutes before Marcus Greene replenished a six-point cushion for Hawai’i with a mini personal 5-0 run that was capped by his only 3-point make of the night with 7:07 remaining in regulation. 

Tempers flared after Rouhliadeff set a heavy screen in the backcourt without a whistle, sending an Islanders defender to the floor in a heap and leading to head coach Jim Shaw getting a technical foul. Greene cashed in on both free throws and Rapp hit his fourth 3-pointer right after to extend the UH lead to 11 with five and a half minutes to play.

Rapp, Nemeikša and Greene brought the win home for the Rainbow Warriors, answering every TAMU-CC basket with one of their own on the way to snapping a two-game losing streak. The trio scored the final 10 points of the night for Hawai’i, sending the team into the 2024 Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic with a solid win against a Southland Conference contender in the back pocket, 71-62. 

Shilo Jackson and Garry Clark each finished with 11 points for Texas A&M Corpus-Christi, who shot 42% from the field as a team and missed seven free throws in the loss. The Islanders remained winless away from home, dropping to 0-4 on the road while all six wins have come as hosts of the game. 

Tanner Christensen scored eight points, all in the second half, and snapped up six rebounds to go with a pair of blocks in the win for Hawai’i. It marked the first of six straight games inside the friendly confines of SimplFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center for the Rainbow Warriors, playing the next three in the Diamond Head Classic before resuming Big West play in the new year at home. 

Hawai’i will face off with Charlotte to begin the tournament on December 22, closing out the opening day of games with a 6:30 p.m. HT tip-off.

Long Beach State hands Hawai’i first home conference loss in 656 days

Long Beach State hands Hawai’i first home conference loss in 656 days

Dec 7, 2024

Hawai’i goes through the handshake line after falling in overtime to Long Beach State. | Photo Credit: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

Long Beach State hands Hawai’i first home conference loss in 656 days

BY PAUL BRECHT | HONOLULU
PUBLISHED DECEMBER 7, 2024

HONOLULU – Back to the drawing board. 

The University of Hawai’i women’s basketball team fell to a Big West opponent inside the Stan Sheriff Center for the first time in nearly two years on Saturday night, seeing Long Beach State stun the Rainbow Wahine in overtime, 73-69. Savannah Tucker led the way for LBSU, scoring a game-best 23 points while knocking down 11-of-12 free throw attempts in the upset win. 

“There’s a lot of high expectations on this team,” UH head coach Laura Beeman said after the loss. “Tonight feels doubly bad because of that. It is not the end of the world [though], we will regroup, we will get better and we will be okay.” 

Lily Wahinekapu poured in 20 points, four rebounds and five turnovers in the loss for Hawai’i (5-3, 0-1 Big West), her fifth time scoring in double figures this year. Daejah Phillips, a two-time Sixth Player of the Year winner and four-time all-conference selection, ended the night with four points in 19 minutes of work before exiting the game with seven minutes remaining in the fourth quarter and not returning with an apparent injury. 

Star freshman Ritorya Tamilo returned from a one-game absence, adding 14 points, nine rebounds and six blocked shots in the middle for the Rainbow Wahine. Sophomore guard Jovi Lefotu also made her way back to the court after missing all three games of the Rainbow Wahine Showdown, scoring nine points and snatching two steals in the loss. 

Back-to-back early 3-pointers by Patricia Chung pushed the Beach (5-3, 2-0 Big West) out in front by four before Lefotu checked in for the first time and quickly got into the box sheet with a smooth left-handed finish, sparking an 8-3 run that put Hawai’i back ahead by one with under three minutes left in the opening frame. 

Four makes from distance helped push the Beach into the second quarter leading 18-14, seeing Hawai’i be whistled for eight team fouls in the opening 10 minutes of action. Savannah Tucker was at the front of the charge for the visitors, scoring eight points and making five of her six attempts from the charity stripe in the frame. 

Wahinekapu brought the Rainbow Wahine back within one before a pair of Perez free throws pushed them ahead, 26-25. Long Beach responded on the other end as Chung drilled her third 3-pointer of the first half, but Tamilo would send the game into halftime all tied at 28 as she calmly swished a pair of free throws with 40 seconds left. 

“I think on the perimeter, particularly in the first half, we lost sight of Tucker and Chung,” Beeman said of UH’s defense. “We let Chung go 3-for-3 from three and put Tucker at the free throw line five out of six time and that was the scout, not to do those things. So, the first half we let those guys get going a little bit.” 

Hawai’i came out of the second half gates swinging, opening the third quarter on an 8-2 run behind a couple of threes from Perez and Wahinekapu. Long Beach State again had the answer, countering back with a 15-6 swing to go up three with 2:20 left in the frame as they continued to get solid looks inside the paint. 

“I think my biggest issue was transition defense versus our press and inbounds plays,” Beeman said. “When you’re looking at the back of someone’s jersey, it’s hard to get a stop.” 

Tamilo tied the game at 45 after an and-one finish with 2:04 left in the third, but seven straight points by Jada Crawshaw put the visiting Beach ahead by as many as five just moments into the fourth quarter. Back-to-back threes in each corner by MeiLani McBee sparked the fire again for Hawai’i and Kelsie Imai twisted through a clogged lane all the way to the cup to give the Rainbow Wahine the lead with 7:16 left in regulation, 55-54. 

Rachel Loobie’s layup put LBSU back in front and a Lovely Sonnier finish in the paint gave the visitors a three-point advantage as Daejah Phillips exited for Hawai’i with some discomfort, but two straight Jovi Lefotu layups inched the Rainbow Wahine in front again with 3:21 left in the fourth. Wahinekapu’s clutch bucket with under 90 seconds to play gave UH a three-point cushion, but some shaky free throw shooting down the stretch allowed JaQuoia Jones-Brown to tie the game at 62 for LBSU just before the buzzer and send the contest to overtime. 

“Defensively, we did not play good at all,” Beeman reflected. “They exposed a lot of things that I think have been creeping up on us … I give credit to Long Beach for that.” 

Jones-Brown put the Beach in front with another bucket to start the extra period, but a clean triple from Wahinekapu put Hawai’i ahead by two with under three minutes left to play. Savannah Tucker tied the game at 66 with a couple of makes from the foul line and Patricia Chung hit a deep heave for her first points since the first half to put LBSU ahead for good, 69-68, with 1:03 left in overtime. 

Tucker iced the game at the line for the visiting Beach, hitting all four free throw chances in final 30 seconds of the game to hand the Rainbow Wahine the first loss to a Big West team inside SimplFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center since February 20, 2023, a 49-47 heartbreaker also coming versus LBSU. 

Patricia Chung added seven rebounds and handed out five assists to go along with her 12 points in the upset win for Long Beach State, who had four different players finish in double figures. Jada Crawshaw and JaQuoia Jones-Brown combined for 20 points for LBSU with 15 of them coming after the halftime break, helping the Beach stay perfect through “Bold Week” in the Big West. 

Hawai’i will return to action in a little over a week, looking to a snap a two-game home losing streak when Arkansas Pine-Bluff comes to town on December 16. The Rainbow Wahine will then close out the non-conference schedule with another challenging mid-season tournament, heading over to the San Diego Invitational for matchups with San Diego State and Georgia. 

“We’re going to bounce back from this, we’re going to be okay,” Beeman said. “Sometimes losses, as much as they hurt and you don’t want them, you have to grow from them. That is just the type of team we are, we are not going to stay stuck here, I promise you that. We will grow from this.” 

Turnovers torpedo Hawai’i in conference-opening loss at Long Beach State

Turnovers torpedo Hawai’i in conference-opening loss at Long Beach State

Dec 7, 2024

Hawai’i G Marcus Greene handles the ball during a home game. The senior had 17 points in UH’s loss at Long Beach State on Saturday. | Photo Credit: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

Turnovers torpedo Hawai’i in conference-opening loss at Long Beach State

BY PAUL BRECHT | HONOLULU
PUBLISHED DECEMBER 7, 2024

Make it 0-for-2. 

The University of Hawai’i men’s basketball team closed out the first road trip of the year on Saturday with empty hands, falling to Long Beach State (3-8, 2-0 Big West) inside the Walter Pyramid, 76-68. LBSU guard Devin Askew led all scorers, pouring in a career-high 28 points while drilling 4-of-5 of his attempts from behind the arc as the Beach won its second consecutive game after losing eight of the first nine. 

The Rainbow Warriors struggled with turning the ball over for the second straight contest, giving the ball away 17 times and seeing the Beach score 27 points off the miscues. Marcus Greene and Gytis Nemeikša, who had 17 and 14 points respectively to lead UH in the loss, were inserted into the starting lineup as Eran Ganot used his fourth different combination of players to open a game this year. 

Both teams started out hot, seeing Hawai’i lead by a point at the first media timeout behind four early points from Greene. A quick two whistles against the UH scoring guard sent him to the bench with more than 15 minutes remaining in the opening half, colling off the Hawai’i offense and allowing LBSU to rattle off an 8-2 run on the way to a 15-11 lead with just over 11 minutes left before the break. 

Nemeikša’s first make came from long range a minute later, sparking an 11-0 run for Hawai’i as Akira Jacobs scored eight straight points (2-2 3PT) to put the Rainbow Warriors in front, 22-15. After seeing the Beach pull back within two, UH was able to regain a seven-point cushion with a putback dunk from Tanner Christensen and Jacobs’ third 3-pointer of the half. 

A 17-5 run by Long Beach State to end the half ensued, seeing Askew put the exclamation point at the end of the period with a tough, rainbow-arching 3-pointer over the outstretched arms of the Hawai’i defense to take a 37-32 lead into the midway break. The Rainbow Warriors turned the ball over nine times in the first 20 minutes and failed to capitalize on a 5-1 advantage on the offensive boards with only two 2nd chance points in the half. 

Greene and Nemeikša scored nine of the Rainbow Warriors’ first 11 points out of the break, pulling UH within four with 13 minutes left in regulation but a pair of buckets from Askew that sandwiched a TJ Wainwright 3-pointer pushed the Beach’s lead to double digits for the first time all game. The two teams would trade baskets over the next six-plus minutes of game time before Askew pushed the game out of reach with back-to-back triples, giving LBSU a 69-54 lead with 4:28 left to play. 

Freshman Aaron Hunkin-Claytor checked in a timeout, sparking one last push from Hawai’i as he and Nemeikša worked a two-man game for a quick 5-0 run. Greene cashed in on a three with 1:36 to play to pull the Rainbow Warriors within seven, but that was the closest that it would come as Askew drilled a triple on the very next possession and LBSU knocked down free throws to close out a 76-68 win. 

Austin Johnson and TJ Wainwright each added 14 points in the win for the Beach, who moved to a perfect 2-0 during the new “Bold Week” implemented by the Big West to start the conference madness a little earlier than previous seasons. LBSU shot the ball well all afternoon, hitting 50% from the field and knocking down 10-of-13 attempts from behind the arc in the win. 

Akira Jacobs finished with 11 points on three 3-pointers, all coming in the first half, and Tanner Christensen recorded his second double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds in the loss. Hawai’i outrebounded Long Beach State, 32-23, but only mustered nine 2nd chance points from 10 offensive boards. 

Freshman Aaron Hunkin-Claytor chipped in four points and four assists in 15 minutes off the bench, tied for the most helpers in a single game by any Rainbow Warrior this year. 

Hawai’i returns to the islands to play host Texas A&M Corpus Christi next Saturday; part of a spaced-out December schedule that sees the Rainbow Warriors play only three games in 21 days before playing three in four days to close out the month in the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic. 

Hawai’i Pacific shoots past Hawai’i Hilo in PacWest opener

Hawai’i Pacific shoots past Hawai’i Hilo in PacWest opener

Dec 6, 2024

Hawai’i Pacific G Morgan Hawkins pushes the ball up the floor. The freshman led the Sharks with 13 points in a win over Hawai’i-Hilo to open PacWest play. | Photo Credit: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

Hawai’i Pacific shoots past Hawai’i Hilo in PacWest opener

BY PAUL BRECHT | HONOLULU
PUBLISHED DECEMBER 6, 2024

HONOLULU – Starting conference play the right way. 

The Hawai’i Pacific University women’s basketball team kicked off the PacWest conference schedule with a win over the University of Hawai’i-Hilo on Friday evening, 59-50. Freshman guard Morgan Hawkins led the way for the Sharks, scoring 13 points while tallying five rebounds and a pair of steals in the victory. 

The Vulcans had eight total active players for team’s first road game of the year as early-season injuries have piled up, seeing senior forwards Erica Ingram and Noelle Su’a-Godinet and junior guard Kalie Cruz not make the trip to face off against the Sharks. After missing the season opener against HPU, a rare non-conference matchup between the PacWest programs, Keirstyn Agonias made her presence felt with 11 points to help keep UH-Hilo competitive until the final buzzer sounded in the loss. 

The Sharks started slowly, seeing the visitors take an early 4-0 lead behind UC Irvine transfer Caiyle Kaupu’s back-to-back buckets. Ella Berge and Hawkins each would split trips to the free throw line before Iowa State transfer MaryKate King swiped the ball and took it in for a breakaway layup to knot the game at four. 

Back-to-back triples from Serenity Santos and King gave HPU (3-2) a five-point lead with 5:35 left to play in the opening quarter, continuing to display the improvement from long range for the Sharks this season. Erika Glenn drilled the team’s third triple of the frame a few minutes later as Hawai’i Pacific took a 17-10 lead after 10 minutes of play. 

Hawai’i-Hilo sprinted out of the gates in the second quarter, using a 6-1 run over the first two minutes of the frame to pull back within a basket, but a three from Ella Berge and fastbreak finish by Hawkins quickly restored the seven-point advantage for Hawai’i Pacific. Freshman forward KeanuMarie HuiHui answered back with a 3-pointer of her own for the Vulcans, trying to keep the visitors afloat after Kaupu picked up two early fouls. 

The Sharks would outscore the Vulcans by five points to close out the first half, taking a 31-22 lead into the locker room by drilling all six free throw tries and holding UH-Hilo without a made field goal for the final 4:31of the half. 

Hawkins came out in a hurry to start the third quarter, scoring the first six points for HPU as the lead extended to double figures for the first time all game. Seven straight points from Serenity Santos and another Berge 3-pointer extended HPU’s lead all the way to 16 by the end of the frame, taking a 48-32 advantage into the final 10 minutes as the Vulcans made 2-of-15 shots in the period. 

The shooting stayed hot for Hawai’i Pacific into the fourth, keeping Hawai’i-Hilo at a distance for much of the final frame before one final push from Agonias and HuiHui brought the Vulcans within single digits before the final buzzer, 59-50. 

KeanuMarie HuiHui led the Vulcans with 15 points, hitting 5-of-11 of her shots as the freshman displayed reasons for fans to be hopeful about her future in a Hawai’i-Hilo uniform. Agonias and Caiyle Kaupu each chipped in 11 points in the second straight loss to the Sharks for UHH. 

HPU senior Ella Berge added 10 points and seven rebounds as she continued her hot start to the 2024-25 season. Sophomore wing Serenity Santos chipped in 10 points, the second time in three games that the San Joaquin Delta (CA) transfer has broken double figures. 

The Sharks will be back in action on December 14, taking the short trip over to Chaminade to face the Silverswords in the first game of a men’s and women’s basketball doubleheader. Tip-off for the women’s game is scheduled for 2 p.m. HT with the men’s game set to take place right after around 4 p.m. HT. Both games will be broadcast live on the Hawaii Sports Radio Network, 95.1 FM, AM 760 and streaming on hawaiisportsradio.com and will be posted for on-demand listeners. 

Hawai’i comeback falls just short in first-ever meeting with Grand Canyon

Hawai’i comeback falls just short in first-ever meeting with Grand Canyon

Dec 3, 2024

Hawai’i G Kody Williams during November 26 home game against Hawai’i Pacific. | Photo Credit: Michael Lasquero, HSRN

Hawai’i comeback falls just short in first-ever meeting with Grand Canyon

BY PAUL BRECHT | HONOLULU
PUBLISHED DECEMBER 3, 2024

Ran out of time. 

The first-ever meeting between the University of Hawai’i men’s basketball team and Grand Canyon University came down to the wire, seeing a frenetic second half comeback by the Rainbow Warriors fall just short, 78-72. Senior forward Gytis Nemeikša led the comeback effort for the Rainbow Warriors, scoring 17 of his career-high 24 points after halftime. 

After shooting 32% from the field and turning the ball over 13 times in the opening 20 minutes of action, Hawai’i (5-2) found itself down 16 at the halftime break as Grand Canyon (5-2) shot 53% and scored 16 points directly off of UH’s turnovers. Tanner Christensen struggled to post his usual scoring numbers for the second consecutive game, hitting three of his six free throw attempts in the first half before finally making his first shot in the regular flow of action after halftime in a six-point, six-rebound performance by the typically steady Hawai’i big man. 

The Lopes rattled off the first eight points of the night before Harry Rouhliadeff finally got Hawai’i on the board with a baseline floater two and a half minutes into action. The Rainbow Warriors would pull within six by the first media timeout of the night after Marcus Greene checked in for the first time and finished a difficult up-and-under layup.  

Grand Canyon burst out of the timeout with a 10-3 run, extending the early lead to double figures as guard Tyon Grant-Foster knocked down a pair of free throws with just under 12 minutes to play in the first half. Seeing the margin balloon to as large as 17 points with 7:55 to play, Nemeikša attempted to get going off the bench with seven straight points for the Rainbow Warriors but didn’t get any scoring help in the meantime. 

An alley-oop dunk for GCU forward Lok Wur with 1:07 remaining before half put the exclamation point on a dominant opening 20 minutes for the Lopes, winning nearly every statistical category other than rebounding against the Rainbow Warriors on the way to a 43-27 lead at the break. 

After seeing Grand Canyon match a game-best 18-point lead a little over four minutes into the second half, Hawai’i head coach Eran Ganot pulled the same lever that has sparked the Rainbow Warriors multiple times already this season and inserted Nemeikša back into the contest. The Lithuanian forward immediately responded with a bucket just 35 seconds after checking in, reawakening a Hawai’i offense that had just drilled 15 3-pointers against HPU one week prior. 

Greene drilled a jumper to pull UH within 12 before Nemeikša made it a 9-point game on the next possession with 10:04 left to play, forcing a timeout from Grand Canyon after seeing the margin get cut in half in less than five minutes of game time. The stop in the action didn’t break Greene or Nemeikša’s focus as the duo scored ten in a row for Hawai’i to pull UH within one with 7:21 remaining, 58-57. 

The teams traded buckets back-and-forth over the next few minutes, seeing Hawai’i down one after Ryan Rapp’s layup with 2:29 to go made it a 67-66 game. Another Lok Wur dunk was the answer from GCU on the other end, giving the Antelopes the momentum needed to close out the sweaty 78-72 win over the Rainbow Warriors. 

Tyon Grant-Foster finished with 23 points to lead the way for Grand Canyon, hitting 6-of-17 shots (11-of-15 FT) as he continued to work his way back from an early season injury. Ray Harrison added 15 points and seven rebounds for the Lopes, who will host Life Pacific (NAIA) on Saturday before hitting the road next week to face Georgia.  

Marcus Greene was the only Rainbow Warrior other than Nemeikša to tally double figures, scoring 17 points off the bench while hitting 6-of-8 shots from the field after halftime. Kody Williams, who celebrated his 22nd birthday on Tuesday, added eight points while hitting a pair of threes in the loss for Hawai’i. 

UH continues its two-game road trip on Saturday, taking on Long Beach State in an early-season Big West Conference matchup as part of the inaugural “Bold Week” that was introduced to the scheduling for men’s and women’s basketball this year. It will be the first look at former Hawai’i assistants Chris Acker (head coach) and John Montgomery (associate head coach) in their new roles with the Long Beach State men’s basketball program.