RIVERSIDE, Calif. – UC Riverside picked up a statement victory on Thursday night in front of a national television audience, downing Hawaii 64-59 for its second win over a previously unbeaten and first place Big West team in five days.
UCR erased an 11-point first half deficit for Thursday's victory over the Rainbow Warriors, the Highlanders' fourth game in eight days.
"Our guys truly believe they can compete with anybody," head coach Mike Magpayo said. "They love challenges and seem to rise to the occasion as shown all season. The crowd was truly fantastic tonight and absolutely helped us get over the hump and provided the extra energy we needed."
Callum McRae knocked down a pair of back-to-back low post buckets to keep UCR within striking distance of UH before Zyon Pullin pulled up from the foul line midway through the first half for his first of 19 points on the night. The sophomore ended his night additionally with nine rebounds, coming one shy of his third double double of the season.
Pullin completed the three-point play at the 6:15 mark of the first half after a banked in shot to put the Highlanders on a 5-0 run. McRae also heated up late in the first half, hitting three of four field goals to get UC Riverside within six.
The New Zealand native reached double digit scoring for the ninth time this season with 3:06 remaining and ended the half sinking six of his final seven attempts, as UCR outscored Hawaii 6-2 in the final 3:13 to trail only 32-30 at the break.
UC Riverside held the edge on Hawaii in the first half in points down low, 22-10, in which McRae accounted for 12 of UCR's.
After Dominick Pickett energized the crowd with a quick three out of the halftime break, Pullin converted the layup four minutes into the second half to increase UCR's run to 11-2 over 10 minutes. On the other end, the Highlanders held Hawaii to one of their last seven from three, one of nine from the field and scoreless for five minutes.
Hawaii played catchup halfway into the second half, but Pullin kept the battle mentality there for UCR with five of six field goals while reaching the 10-point plateau the 12th of his last 13 games. The preseason all-Big West honoree spurred the Highlanders to a 6-0 run that effectively cooled off an offensive surge from Hawaii.
McRae's completed the and-one with 1:49 remaining to give the big man a season-high 19 points on the night on 9-of-15 shooting
Pickett played in his 124th game in a Highlander uniform on Thursday night, tying the program record for career games played in the Inland Empire. The fifth-year Moreno Valley native knocked down both ends of a one and one with 15 seconds left in regulation before Quinton Ford iced the win from the free throw line with six seconds remaining.
UC Riverside kept in check a Hawaii offense that entered Thursday putting up nearly 73 points per game while doubling up the Rainbow Warriors 44-22 on points in the paint.
The Highlanders hit the road now for a brief two-game road swing, starting with a short trip to UC Irvine on Thursday, February 10 at 7:00 p.m. from the Bren Events Center. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ with live stats available on ucirvinesports.com.
