The No. 5 Hawai'i Rainbow Warriors upset top-seeded UC Davis, 65-58, and No. 3 UC Irvine needed overtime to down No. 2 UC Santa Barbara, 72-63, in the semifinals of the 2015 Big West Men's Basketball Tournament at Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. The two are set to face off in the championship game on Saturday, March 14 at 8:30 p.m. with the winner earning a trip to the NCAA Men's Basketball Championship.
'Bows Upset Top Seeded UC Davis, Advance To Big West Final
Aaron Valdes had 12 points and a late block on Big West Player of the Year Corey Hawkins to propel the University of Hawai'i men's basketball team to a 65-58 win on Friday night over top-seeded UC Davis and earn a trip to the Big West Conference tournament final.
The 'Bows will play for the Big West title and the league's automatic NCAA Tournament berth Saturday night, 8:30 p.m. PT (5:30 p.m. HT) at the Honda Center. The last time Hawai'i advanced to a conference tournament final was in 2002 when it beat Tulsa on its way to a WAC championship and its last NCAA Tournament appearance.
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UC Irvine Takes Down UCSB in Big West Semifinal
Senior forward Will Davis II scored 18 points and grabbed 15 rebounds to help lead UC Irvine over UC Santa Barbara, 72-63, in overtime of a Big West Conference Tournament semifinal at the Honda Center Friday night. Sophomore center Mamadou Ndiaye also scored 18 points and had four blocked shots as the third-seeded Anteaters advanced to Saturday night's championship game against No. 5 seed Hawai'i at 8:30 p.m. (ESPN2).
UCI will be making its fifth appearance in a Big West tourney final and looking for its first win in a championship game. The 'Eaters previously played in title games in 1988, 1994, 2008 and 2013.
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