No. 21 Washington beats Hawaii to advance to Diamond Head Classic championship game
Washington dominated the paint, and Hawaii’s top shooter was ice-cold from outside, leading to a 72-61 victory for the Huskies in a semifinal game of the Diamond Head Classic at the Stan Sheriff Center today.
No. 21-ranked Washington outscored the Rainbow Warriors 24-8 in the lane and UH made just 1 of 14 3-pointers as Washington built a 37-22 first-half lead.
The Rainbow Warriors (8-4) got as close as 51-45 with about 5 minutes left, as Zigmars Raimo scored two of his 15 points. But Washington (10-2) regained a double-digit lead with 3:55 left when Isaiah Stewart, who led the Huskies with 26 points and 13 rebounds, scored in the low post. Jaden McDaniels also had 13 rebounds for Washington before a crowd of 4,419.
Justin Webster led UH with 16 points, 11 of them in the second half.
>> Click here for photos of Washington vs. Hawaii
Acting #HawaiiMBB head coach Chris Gerlufsen on what he expects as his team’s response to a frustrating loss to No. 21 Washington for a third-place matchup with Georgia Tech on Christmas. pic.twitter.com/kem0g5Dswy
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Eddie Stansberry, who entered the game averaging a team-high 18.5 points, missed all nine of his first half shots. They were all from 3-point range. He finished the game with 5 points, going 1-for-17 on 3-pointers and making two free throws.
Washington plays Houston in the tournament championship game on Wednesday, while Hawaii will meet Georgia Tech for third place.
Quentin Grimes scored 26 points to lead Houston past Georgia Tech in the other semifinal.
Boise State topped Portland 85-69 and UTEP edged Boise State 71-70 in consolation bracket games.