by HONOLULU – The University of Hawai’i men’s basketball team staked claim to the island with an 88-52 win over Hawai’i Pacific fueled by a historic night of shooting. The Rainbow Warriors improved to 4-3 in its first home game in nearly a month at the SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.
UH shattered a single-game school record with 18 three-pointers, surpassing the mark of 14 which was done five times, most recently in 2019. The Warriors led from wire-to-wire and held a double-digit for the majority of the evening.
It was a balanced attack with five Warriors finishing in double-digits. Noel Coleman, who missed the better part of the last three games, made a strong return with a game-high 23 points on 8-of-9 shooting, including six three-pointers. Kamaka Hepa and Junior Madut each dropped 16 points, while Jerome Desrosiers added 14 and Amoro Lado 10.
UH got off to a sluggish start until Coleman came in, scored five points, and ignited a 17-2 run midway through the half. The lead extended to 18 after the ‘Bows finished the half with nine answered to go up 42-24. UH was 7-of-10 on three-pointers in the first 20 minutes.
UH’s barrage of three-pointers didn’t stop there as the ‘Bows first four buckets were from beyond the arc. Coleman continued to be a force on offense as he hit five consecutive three-pointers, that included the record-breaker.
UH shot a season-high 56 percent from the field, including 18-of-31 from deep. The ‘Bows assisted on 21 of its 33 field goals and got 35 from the bench. UH also got the job done on the defensive end of the court, holding the Sharks to just 36 percent shooting for the game.
