A late rally gave Hawaii a stunning 67-63 victory over UTEP in a first-round game of the Diamond Head Classic at the Stan Sheriff Center tonight.

The Rainbow Warriors play No. 22 Washington in a semifinal round game Monday at 6 p.m.

Bernardo da Silva led UH with 17 points, and Samuta Avea, who scored 16, ignited Hawaii’s second-half comeback in front of a crowd of 4,292.

Bryson Williams tied his career high with 33 points for the Miners (8-3), who had led by nine points in the second half.

FINAL: #HawaiiMBB 67, UTEP 63

UH (8-3) advances to the @DiamondHeadClsc semifinals for the first time since 2015.

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No. 22 Washington awaits at 6 pm Monday night on ESPN2. pic.twitter.com/VE1GM6aRRc

— Hawaii Warrior World (@hawaiiwworld) December 23, 2019

UH (8-3) is now 4-7 in first-round games of the DHC. It had not won a first-round game since 2015, over Northern Iowa; that is the season the Rainbow Warriors advanced to the NCAA Tournament and won a game there for the first time in school history.

UTEP plays Ball State in a consolation game at 8:30 p.m. Monday.

Da Silva scored in the paint to give UH the lead for good, 62-60, with 1:15 left.

Drew Buggs, who led Hawaii with eight assists, made a free throw with 11 seconds left for the final score.

Here’s #HawaiiMBB’s shot of the night from point guard Drew Buggs.

Double clutch layup to beat the shot clock for a 64-60 lead with 37.8 seconds left. pic.twitter.com/N2IRtBqFbh

— Hawaii Warrior World (@hawaiiwworld) December 23, 2019

Two free throws by Avea made it 60-all at 2:20.

UH got its first lead since early in the first half, 54-53 with 5:44 left, after a 3-pointer by Avea.

The winner of the Hawaii-Washington game plays the winner of the other semifinal, Houston against Georgia Tech, in the tournament’s championship game on Christmas Day.

Avea scored seven consecutive points to put Hawaii within 51-50 with about nine minutes left. He followed a 3-pointer with a breakaway dunk and then an 18-footer while falling down.

Williams responded with a jump shot to give the Miners some breathing room.

Eddie Stansberry, who entered the game averaging 19.7 points to lead UH, scored just seven.

Washington beat Ball State 76-58 to advance. The Huskies used an eight-point first-half run to take control.

Jaden McDaniels led Washington with 22 points. Isaiah Stewart scored 19 points and added 10 rebounds.

Quade Green scored 13 of his 21 points for UW (9-2), in the first half. The Huskies made eight of 12 3-pointers before the break as they took a 51-40 lead.

Ball State (6-5) cut into the lead early in the second half, but Washington got it back up to 64-51 with less than 11 minutes left on consecutive dunks by Nahziah Carter and Hameir Wright.

Tahjai Teague lead the Cardinals with 20 points and 11 rebounds.

Houston and Georgia Tech also advanced with victories in today’s early session.

Quentin Grimes scored 18 points to lead Houston past Portland 81-56 in the tournament’s opening game. Then Moses Wright and Jordan Usher scored 18 each to lead Georgia Tech over Boise State 74-60 in the second game.

The Cougars (8-3) and Yellow Jackets (6-5) play Monday at 2 p.m. in a semifinal. The Pilots (8-5) and Broncos (5-5) meet in a consolation bracket game at 11:30 a.m.

After Monday’s semifinals, the tournament concludes on Christmas Day, following a day off Tuesday.