UH Vs. UCI (1/10/26)
Happy new year, everybody!
The University of Hawaiʻi Men's Basketball team dug deep and turned back the UC Irvine Anteaters, 67-66, thanks to a Hunter Erickson buzzer beater at Bankoh Arena at Stan Sheriff Center on Saturday! The win ended a four-game skid over Irvine and was UH's first since 2023!
Isaac Johnson was saddled with foul trouble and held to just three minutes in the first half, but he scored all 15 of his points in the second half to lead the 'Bows! Harry Rouliadeff followed with 14 points and five rebounds, and Aaron Hunkin-Claytor chipped in 12 points, five rebounds, and a game-high six assists.
Derin Saran led the Anteaters with 22 points and three rebounds on 10-for-21 shooting. Kyle Evans was the only other double-digit scoring Anteater with 13 points and eight rebounds.
Rouhliadeff began with immediate fire in scoring eight of UH's first 10 points of the game! He aided in UH picking up an early 17-9 advantage. Johnson got two fouls early, and Dre Bullock sat out a portion of the first half due to a hit to his head; fortunately, Bullock returned later on.
Irvine erased UH's lead while UH went through another bad scoring drought. It turned into a 9-0 run while UH could not buy a bucket for over five minutes.
Fortunately, UH got their act together and finished the first half up, 29-27, over UCI!
Both UH and UCI stayed within four points of each other for the final 20 minutes! Johnson picked up his third foul just seconds in, and teammate Gytis Nemeikša had to pick up his slack.
Johnson came back in minutes later and gave the team a spark. He sank a couple of triples to give UH the lead on two occasions, but Irvine responded each time. UCI showed they were stingy with their hustle, but UH used turnovers to avoid all control going away.
With 1:11 to go, Johnson made a layup in the paint to put UH in front, but UH turned the ball over on its next offensive possession. It came down to the final nine seconds.
With Irvine up, 66-65, UH had one last chance to cause an upset, and Erickson answered that bell! Erickson got to the free throw line and put up a prayer with 0.6 seconds left that dropped through the net and sent the Stan Sheriff Center crowd into a frenzy!
UH improves to 12-3 in the 2025-26 season, and 4-1 in Big West play. They remain in second place in the Big West standings. UH will hit the road for their next two games beginning with the Cal Poly Mustangs on Thursday, Jan. 15. Tipoff at the Mott Athletics Center is scheduled for 5 p.m. HST, and you can listen to the game on ESPN Honolulu.
