Beach day was not pleasant for the University of Hawaii basketball team.
The Rainbow Warriors committed 17 turnovers, missed open shots and could not contain Long Beach State point guard Devin Askew in Saturday’s 76-68 loss in Walter Pyramid in Long Beach, Calif.
A crowd of 1,446 saw the Rainbow Warriors fall to 5-3 overall by dropping their Big West opener. Because of this season’s unique schedule, the ’Bows’ next league game is against UC Santa Barbara on Jan. 2.
The Beach lost eight of their first nine games but defeated Cal State Fullerton on Thursday and UH in the Saturday matinee to open 2-0 in Big West play. Chris Acker, a former UH assistant coach, is in his first season as the Beach’s head coach.
Askew, a 5-star prospect as a Mater Dei High senior, is with his fourth college team after previously playing at Kentucky, Texas and California. A graduate student seeking his second degree, Askew schooled the ’Bows with a season-high 28 points, seven assists, six rebounds and seven steals.
“That’s dominating a game,” UH coach Eran Ganot said of Askew.
Askew hit back-to-back 3s to expand a nine-point advantage to 69-54 with 4:26 to play. Askew was 9-for-17 from the field, including 4-for-5 on 3s.
The ’Bows entered holding opponents to 31.3% on shots launched behind the arc. But the Beach were 10-for-13 on 3s, draining a couple deep in the shot clock.
“We usually defend the 3,” Ganot said, “we didn’t.”
The Beach hit their first 16 free throws, their only miss coming on Askew’s foul shot with 14.8 seconds to go.
In their first six games, the ’Bows averaged fewer than 10 turnovers per game. But they had 20 turnovers in Tuesday’s road loss to Grand Canyon, and their 17 in the Big West opener brought the total to 37 during this two-game road trip. The Beach transformed those takeaways into 27 points.
Ganot shuffled the lineup, with guard Marcus Greene and forward Gytis Nemeiksa making their first UH starts. Greene, who transferred from Houston Christian, finished with 17 points. Nemeiksa, an Xavier transfer, contributed 14 points.
Akira Jacobs came off the bench to score 11 points — all in the first half — including eight during an 11-0 run. But for every UH surge, the Beach answered with a tough man-to-man defense and half-court sets that Askew directed with drives, drive-and-pitchouts and jumpers off pull-up and step-back moves.
“We’re not going to do it with spurts,” Ganot said. “We’re going to do it with consistency. That’s kind of where we’re at. … The turnovers (hurt). Rebounding has been a positive for us. But they made two tough 3s late clock in the first half. We missed some bunnies around the rim. We have to stay with it when you’re going through some of that. There were some key stretches where they kind of got what they wanted.”
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Charity event on for Dec. 20
The Coaches vs. Cancer initiative is still accepting sponsorships for the Dec. 20 pau-hana event at the Kani Ka Pila Grille in the Outrigger Reef Waikiki Beach.
Ganot, who is part of a team of organizers, echoed the continuing theme: “Let’s crush cancer.”
The head coaches of the eight-team Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic will serve as co-hosts. The event will feature food, beverages, a silent auction and a talk-story session with the participating coaches.
All proceeds will go to the Clarence T.C. Ching Hope Lodge, which provides rooms for cancer patients and their caregivers.
Soon after Ganot was hired as UH’s head coach in 2015, he reached out to Lon Kruger, who was leading the Coaches vs. Cancer program. Ganot was included in a group that offered the tie-in with the eight-team tournament.
The first event was at Murphy’s Bar and Grill on Merchant Street. After that, the event moved to the Outrigger Reef, where it was held every ensuing year except for the pandemic-related hiatus in 2020.
Tickets are priced at $150, and may be purchased at hawaiibowlfoundation.org. Call 808-523-3688 for further details, as well as information on sponsorships.
