National Basketball Association
Wichita St. 80, Hawaii 79
When: 9:00 PM ET, Tuesday, December 23, 2014
Where: Stan Sheriff Center, Honolulu, Hawaii
Officials:
# Michael Greenstein, # Keith Kimble, # Bart Lenox
Attendance:
18055
By SportsDirect Inc.
No. 11 Wichita State 80, Hawaii 79 (OT): Rashard Kelly scored on a putback with 3.8 seconds left in overtime as the Shockers withstood an upset bid by the Rainbow Warriors in the semifinals of the Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu.
Ron Baker scored 17 points and Fred VanVleet added 13 for Wichita State (10-1), which escaped with the win after Michael Thomas’ shot bounced off the back rim at the buzzer. Kelly added 12 points for the Shockers, who advanced to face George Washington in Thursday’s championship game despite shooting 6-of-24 from 3-point range.
Freshman Isaac Fleming led Hawaii (9-4) with a career-high 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting while Aaron Valdes added 17 points, including three 3-pointers. Stefan Jankovic had 12 points and five rebounds for the Rainbow Warriors, who led 79-78 on Thomas’ basket with 18 seconds left before Kelly followed VanVleet's 3-point attempt and scored on a putback for the winner.
Wichita State led 34-33 at the half despite shooting 2-of-10 from 3-point range and committing 11 turnovers. Jankovic converted two free throws to put Hawaii ahead 49-42 with just over 15 minutes left before Wichita State’s defense forced five turnovers during a 15-2 run to move ahead by six.
Hawaii, which came in shooting 29 percent from beyond the arc, pulled ahead 70-68 when Valdes drained one of the Rainbow Warriors’ season-high 10 3-pointers. Baker, who was 2-of-11 from 3-point range, converted two free throws with 27 seconds left in regulation and the game went to overtime when Negus Webster-Chan’s 3-point attempt missed the mark.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Wichita State G Evan Wessel missed his second straight game due to a sprained right ankle. … Fleming fouled out with 27 seconds left in regulation for the Rainbow Warriors, who edged Nebraska 66-58 in Monday’s opening round and will face Colorado in Thursday’s third-place game. … Webster-Chan registered nine points on three 3-pointers and grabbed nine rebounds while Roderick Bobbitt recorded 10 assists.
Top Game Performances
Wichita St. |
|
Hawaii |
Ron Baker 17 |
Scoring |
Isaac Fleming 17 |
Fred VanVleet 5 |
Assists |
Roderick Bobbitt 10 |
Darius Carter 6 |
Rebounds |
Negus Webster-Chan 9 |
Fred VanVleet 6 |
Free Throws Made |
Roderick Bobbitt 6 |
Fred VanVleet 3 |
Steals |
Quincy Smith 2 |
Ron Baker 2 |
Blocks |
Stefan Jankovic 2 |
Team Stats Summary
Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
Wichita St.
|
80 |
39.7 |
6-24 |
28-36 |
11 |
30 |
5 |
8 |
13 |
Hawaii
|
79 |
44.1 |
10-23 |
17-23 |
13 |
35 |
6 |
5 |
16 |