Even on Christmas Day the holiday spirit apparently extends only so far.

Monday that was exactly 15 feet for fans of the University of Hawaii men’s basketball team.

That’s the distance from the free-throw line to the basket but it might as well have been the width of the ʻAlenuihāhā Channel for all the difficulty the Rainbow Warriors had in getting their free throws to drop in a 77-63 loss to Princeton in the Diamond Head Classic.

The futility at the free-throw line — a season-low 45 percent — and the general letdown it led to on defense helped condemn the ’Bows to sixth place in the tournament and, for a time, the pointed displeasure of the more vocal portion of a gathering of 1,627 at the Stan Sheriff Center.

The ’Bows made nine of 20 free-throw opportunities overall and just seven of 17 in the telltale second half to see their season record drop to 8-4.

The frustration of fans grown restive shown through with 7 minutes, 48 seconds left when groans erupted as Mike Thomas missed the first free throw after UH had combined to whiff on six of nine in one stretch, including the front end of two 1-and-1 opportunities.

When Thomas, who had been deadly from the field making 10 of 14 field-goal attempts but off-target (two of seven) at the free-throw line for 22 points, made good on his second free throw attempt, fans sent up a mock cheer of celebration.

But, by then, the ’Bows, who had been tied 31-all with the Tigers at halftime, were plummeting to what would become as much as a 16-point second half deficit.

The dropoff in free-throw shooting — UH had been averaging 68 percent this season — was the latest symptom of a crisis of confidence and failure of focus that can beset the ’Bows when they slump in an element in their offense.

“We just kinda sulk,” guard Brocke Stepteau said. And, in the process, they acknowledged that they had let some of their defensive intensity and capabilities sag, a bad combination when playing the marksmen-like Tigers (6-7).

It showed as Princeton shot almost as well from the 19-foot, 9-inch, 3-point arc (41 percent on nine of 22 shooting) as UH did from the free-throw line.

“We’ll get better and learn from this, because we need to,” head coach Eran Ganot said.

Indeed, the ’Bows, who have one non-conference game (Friday vs. Howard) remaining before embarking upon Big West Conference play, can be a force in their league if they don’t drop their heads and their defense when portions of their offense slide.

Statistically, it was UH’s worst free-throw shooting since UC Davis last season, but that comes with an asterisk since the ’Bows only attempted one free throw in that one, missing it.

The pain of UH’s struggle at the free-throw line Monday was further compounded by Princeton’s mastery of the art. The Tigers made good on 76 percent, including 14 of 18 in the second half.

It did not help that the player the ’Bows sent to the free-throw line most often for Princeton was guard Devin Cannady, a 91-percent shooter, who converted 12 of 16 opportunities for nearly half of his game-high 28 points.

Eventually the ’Bows regained their equilibrium and even succeeded in closing the gap to eight points (67-59). But by then, with just 2 minutes, 9 seconds remaining, it was too late to make a game of it as the Tigers went to the free-throw line and made their shots.

And, as if adding insult to injury, Princeton made it look easy.

Reach Ferd Lewis at flewis@staradvertiser.com or 529-4820.