A longtime Christmas wish finally turned into reality Friday night for the University of Hawai’i men’s basketball team, as the Rainbow Warriors shut down Washington State, 62-51, to advance to the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic championship game for the first time in the tournament’s 13-year history.
A vocal and spirited crowd of 3,109 in SimpliFi Arena at the Stan Sheriff Center along with a national TV audience on ESPN2 watched Samuta Avea score a game-high 19 points and JoVon McClanahan add 16 points, six rebounds and four assists as UH improved to 8-3 and advanced to Sunday’s 3:30 p.