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Season
| December 19, 2006 Odjegba, Bench Lead Comeback Win
Hawaii Kai, HI-The Brigham Young University Hawaii men's basketball team showed its depth tonight as the Seasiders defeated Harding (AR), 75-72, in the Hoop N Surf Tournament at Kaiser High School. The Seasiders, now 7-2 for the season after breaking a two-game losing streak, battled back from a 15-point second half deficit behind inspired bench play to overtake the Bison for the win. The victory was the 500th win of BYU-Hawaii Head Coach Ken Wagner's coaching career, counting high school and collegiate games. Reserves Jermaine Odjegba, Danny Jackson, Sa Tanuvasa, and Jeremy Brown accounted for all of the BYU-Hawaii points during an 18-3 run midway through the second half that turned a 56-41 deficit into a 61-61 tie and set the stage for an exciting comeback victory. Brown later broke a 72-72 tie with one of two free throws with 30 seconds remaining to give the Seasiders a one-point lead. Harding missed two shots on the ensuing possession but BYU-Hawaii's Eric Boyce came away with the ball after the second miss and calmly drained two free throws with eight seconds to play. Harding had one last shot to send the game to overtime but missed a desperation three-point attempt. After BYU-Hawaii opened the game with a Lucas Alves dunk, Harding took control of the half. The Bison raced to an 18-5 lead before the Seasiders started to climb back into the game behind the bench players and starter Alves. A long three-pointer by Tanuvasa just before halftime cut the Bison lead to 45-37 at the break. Odjegba led the Seasiders with 21 points on 9-11 shooting and also blocked three shots. Alves finished with 15 points and six rebounds and Jackson joined him in double figures with ten points. Tanuvasa totaled nine points and Brown finished with eight giving the four reserves 48 of the Seasiders' 75 points. Harding's Matt Hall led all players with 27 points. BYU-Hawaii will face Arkansas-Monticello tomorrow in Laie at 2:00 pm HST. |
