The Hawaii men’s basketball team parlayed its hot finish to the Big West regular season into a conference tournament victory. Now the Rainbow Warriors have a chance to reach their first league final since 2016.

Justin McKoy scored 16 points, including two key free throws in the final minute, as UH held off Cal State Northridge, 75-68, in the Big West second round at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nev., on Thursday.

What You Need To Know

  • The Hawaii men's basketball team defeated Cal State Northridge 75-68 in the Big West tournament second round at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nev., on Thursday

  • UH will face UC Davis in a 5:30 p.m. Hawaii time semifinal on Friday, the second time in three years that UH has reached the semis with a chance to make its first championship game since 2016

  • Justin McKoy scored 16 points to led the Rainbow Warriors against the Matadors, while center Bernardo da Silva moved into UH's 1,000-point club with 14 points and nine rebounds

  • CSUN trimmed a 10-point second half deficit to two in the final minutes but was unable to capitalize on its opportunities late

Third-seeded UH (20-13) won for the 10th time in 13 games and will meet No. 2 UC Davis (19-12) at 5:30 p.m. Hawaii time Friday for a spot in Saturday’s championship game.

UH came into the day with a 1-6 mark in Big West tournament games since 2017, and got off to a slow start against CSUN (19-15), which was playing on a quick turnaround from the night before when it beat UC Santa Barbara in overtime. UH began play in the second round due to its top-four seeding.

But the Rainbow Warriors recovered and built a six-point halftime lead, then protected it throughout the second half, though the Matadors got to within one possession at several points.

“We didn’t overreact to missing good shots,” UH coach Eran Ganot told the ESPN Plus broadcast team afterward. “We’re going to take some hits; they’re a heck of a team. They had a heck of the year, and they really put pressure on you in the paint in every which way.

“Our guys weathered that and finished strong. Really proud of them.”

Center Bernardo da Silva scored 14 points and grabbed nine rebounds as he became the 18th player in program history to eclipse 1,000 points for a UH career. Guard Noel Coleman added 12 points and moved into seventh all-time in UH scoring, passing Carl English at 1,259 points, and Juan Munoz scored 11.

UH held CSUN to three 3-point makes to the Rainbow Warriors' 10.

CSUN forward De’Sean Allen-Eikens led his team with 22 points on 9-for-19 shooting after the Big West first-teamer scored a career-high 34 points against UH in a two-point loss in Honolulu last week.

McKoy, a second-team selection, went 3-for-7 from long range and scored 10 of his points in the first half.

“It’s really my first time playing major minutes in March, and so for me it was just about getting that feel,” McKoy told the ESPN Plus crew. “I thought the first four to eight were a little bit choppy, and then the game started slowing down a little bit for me, and we got rolling from there. My teammates found me in great spots, and then I just let it go.”

Munoz’s third triple of the game extended the UH lead to its largest at 10 with 14:05 to play.

The Matadors rallied with eight straight on the play of Allen-Eikens.

JoVon McClanahan hit da Silva and Tom Beattie for back-to-back buckets to extend the lead back to eight with 66-58 with 5:12 to play. McClanahan had a game-high seven assists against one turnover in 25 minutes off the bench.

Keonte Jones stuck back-to-back driving layups to get the Matadors within 67-64 with under four minutes left.

Dionte Bostick scored inside to make it 68-66 with 2:30 to go. McClanahan countered with a right-handed take and CSUN turned it over at the other end, but McClanahan missed on a turnaround jumper.

Allen-Eikens had a point-blank shot rim out and CSUN’s Jasman Sangha committed a foul on the rebound. Noel Coleman hit two free throws to push the lead back to six.

Bostick drove and scored and CSUN called its last timeout with 1:01 left.

McKoy drew a foul at the end of the shot clock and hit two foul shots for a six-point lead with 31 seconds left.

CSUN missed its final three shots as UH closed out the game on a 7-2 run.

"Credit to Hawaii, they played good basketball, made shots when they had to, and that's what time of year is about," CSUN first-year coach Andy Newman said. "You gotta make shots, and Hawaii did. They executed their offense and I thought they played great and deserved to win."

UH got a big first-half lift from backup big man Harry Rouhliadeff. The sophomore from Australia had seven points, five rebounds and a block in eight minutes spelling center Bernardo da Silva, who had two quick fouls. But Rouhliadeff hit his head on the court on an awkward landing underneath the basket and was helped off the floor, and did not return in the game. Freshman Akira Jacobs assumed the role of backup center.

“Harry was awesome in the first half. Guys stepped up in the second half for him,” Ganot said.

UH overcame an 8-2 scoring start by CSUN. The ‘Bows drew even late in the half and led 36-30 at halftime thanks to a 10-4 run to close the period.

UH and UC Davis split their regular-season series with each team winning at home.

Brian McInnis covers the state's sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.