HONOLULU — Matt Johnson II hit a pair of free throws with four seconds left to allow Northern Colorado to hold off a furious Hawaii comeback bid and earn an 81-78 win Thursday night.
The Bears led by as many as 26 points in the second half, but the Warriors roared back and cut the deficit to a single point, 78-77 with 4 seconds remaining when JoVon McClanahan hit two free throws.
Johnson was fouled on the in-bounds pass and pushed the Northern Colorado lead back to three points. Hawaii’s Noel Coleman hit the first of two free throws to make it 80-78. Dalton Knecht hit the second of two free throws with a second left to make it 81-78. Hawaii got the ball with a second left but turned it over.
Daylen Kountz and Dru Kuxhausen each scored 21 points to lead Northern Colorado (2-0). Bodie Hume added 16 points and Kur Jongkuch grabbed 11 rebounds.
Jerome Desrosiers scored 15 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to lead Hawaii (1-1). Kamaka Hepa, Bernardo da Silva and Noel Coleman each added 14 points.
Women
USC 90, Hawaii 50: The Wahine hung for a half in Los Angeles before the Trojans finished on a 34-5 run, dropping UH to 0-2 on the season and 0-7 all-time against Pac 12 teams.
Senior forward Kallin Spiller was a bright spot for Hawaii, finishing with 14 points and 10 rebounds in 21 minutes.
Jordan Sanders scored 17 points with seven rebounds for USC (1-0), which shot 51.5%, including 9 of 17 from 3-point range.