HONOLULU — The Hawaii men’s basketball team rallied from a double-digit second-half deficit and topped visiting Weber State, 73-68, in overtime on Sunday night.
In front of a gathering of 2,637 (4,433 tickets issued), graduate center Tanner Christensen was at his Sunday best. The Utah Tech transfer made his first nine shots and put in a season-high 25 points on 10-for-11 shooting before fouling out in overtime. He sank a leaner off the glass to tie the game with 6.7 seconds left in regulation.
Christensen did his damage exclusively from the paint. His lone miss was a dunk attempt blocked from behind; he successfully slammed three.
"It was really just my teammates getting me open," Christensen said of his outing.
UH improved to 4-0 heading into the marquee game of its nonconference schedule. Tenth-ranked North Carolina stops over on Oahu on Friday before heading to the Maui Invitational.
Weber State guard Blaise Threatt’s coast-to-coast runner to win in regulation was too strong and the teams headed to overtime at 57-all. Threatt, the son of former NBA player Sedale Threatt, scored a game-high 27 points on 11-for-18 shooting and had five steals.
UH forward Harry Rouhliadeff supplied 12 points and five rebounds before fouling out. Guard Tom Beattie had 10 points, four assists and five turnovers and forward Gytis Nemeiksa had 10 points, eight rebounds and two blocks off the bench.
"Harry really stepped up tonight," Christensen said. "Weber State's a physical team and Harry went above and beyond."
Ryan Rapp, making his first appearance of the season, fed Nemeiksa for a layup and four-point lead in OT.
Weber State coach Eric Duft was then issued a technical foul for his reaction to a foul call. Beattie and Nemeiksa combined to make three of four free throws on the pivotal possession to build UH’s lead to seven with 1:53 left in the extra period.
Beattie sank another foul shot for an eight-point lead and the Wildcats were forced to play the foul game. Kody Williams iced it with two makes at the line with 3.5 seconds left.
UH doubled up Weber State (1-3) in free-throw attempts, 40 to 20, sinking 26 to the visitors' 12. Weber State was called for 30 fouls to UH's 18.
Duft declined to talk about the officiating afterward, but he acknowledged fatigue was a factor late in the game as the Wildcats came straight to Hawaii from a game at Nevada. Weber State shot 24% (6-for-25) in the second half.
"Just frustrated for our players," Duft told Spectrum News. "To be honest with you, I thought we outplayed them tonight. ... I thought we competed at a really high level defensively all night long. We've been on the road for a little while."
Christensen was perfect offensively in the first half, making all eight of his shot attempts from the field and all four from the free-throw line for 20 points, matching his season high.
The rest of the team combined to shoot 3-for-16, however, and the Wildcats carried a 38-31 lead into the break while shooting 58.6% from the field.
The Big Sky team from Ogden, Utah, went cold in the second half. It missed all eight of its 3-point tries of the second half and UH crept back in the game from 10 points down with 15 minutes left.
UH forward Akira Jacobs, who'd started the first three games of the season, missed the game with a right foot injury. Greene made his first start in Jacobs’ stead.
The teams had not played in 49 years, after six meetings in the 1960s and 70s. Weber State beat UH’s first NCAA Tournament team, the second-year edition of the Fabulous Five, 91-64 in Pocatello, Idaho, on March 11, 1972. It was considered a sizable upset as UH was ranked No. 12 at the time.
Note: This story will be updated.
Brian McInnis covers the state’s sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.