JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARADVERTISER.COM
Hawaii’s Hunter Erickson drives to the basket against Long Beach State during the second half.
Gavin Sykes scored 34 points to lead Long Beach State to a 84-75 victory and spoil Hawaii’s senior night at Bankoh Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.
A crowd of 5,468 saw the Beach score 24 of the final 39 points to also sabotage the Rainbow Warriors’ opportunity to claim a share of their first regular-season title since 2016.
UH and UC Irvine entered the final day of the regular season tied atop the Big West. UCI defeated UC Davis to clinch the top seed in next week’s eight-team Big West Tournament in Henderson, Nev. The ’Bows missed a chance to share the title when their second-half rally ran out of steam.
The ’Bows turned to a full-court press to force six LBSU turnovers in a 4:06 span to turn a double-digit deficit into a 58-55 lead with 11:03 to play.
It was 60-all when Peter Majstororic hit a jumper over UH point guard Hunter Erickson with 7:45 to play. Isaiah Lewis’ three-point play extended the Beach’s lead to 65-60.
Later, Sykes hit three 3s in a 1:11 span to end the suspense.
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UH finishes the regular season 22-8 overall and 14-6 in the Big West. As the second seed, the ’Bows will have two byes leading to the semifinals in the Big West Tournament.