Hawaii has overcome several obstacles in the past, but none more evident than the geographical problem.

Away games for Hawaii, especially against teams east of the Rocky Mountains, are half a world away. It is no wonder that the Rainbow Warriors are a different team away from Honolulu than they are in its friendly confines.

Indeed, Hawaii has built a reputation as one of the strongest home teams in the nation, with the latest defeat being handed to fifth-ranked Michigan State University.

MSU came in expecting a tough-fought win and left with a 22-point shellacking.

Lucky for the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, they were playing in Brew City, not on the island of Maui.

Led by senior forward Adrian Tigert, UWM opened up a 26-21 lead at halftime en route to a 58-52 victory over the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors at the U.S. Cellular Arena on Saturday, Dec. 10.

With six minutes to go in the first half, Ahmet Gueye tipped in a bucket, tying the game at 15. During the ensuing possession, court general Chris Hill sent in a pass to newcomer Tyrone Young, who proceeded to score his only points of the game on a highlight reel move to the basket.

That began a 6-0 run for UWM, which never gave up the lead after that. The lead had reached nine before Matt Gipson knocked down a jumper for Hawaii.

Neither team shot well in the first half, with Hawaii shooting 37.6 percent from the field.

That was better than UWM, which shot 36.7 percent. However, a trio of three pointers coupled with 11 turnovers by Hawaii gave the Panthers a five-point advantage at the break.

Milwaukee came out of halftime with as much poise as they could muster, extending the lead to 10 with 17 minutes, 9 seconds to play in the game. Newcomer Avery Smith bounced around the ball, putting individual pressure on the Rainbow Warriors that they were not ready for.

Hawaii then mounted a comeback, bringing the difference to three points on a lay up by Matt Lojeski, a Milwaukee area native. The home team went on the offensive, going on a 17-6 run that saw the Panthers lead by 14, their largest lead of the game, with six minutes remaining.

Over the next five minutes, Hawaii gradually chipped away at the lead, piece by piece, until 55 seconds remained in the game. Forward Julian Sensley of Hawaii nailed a jumper, cutting Milwaukee's lead to three.

With the arena practically shaking with crowd momentum, a steal to seal the game came from one of the most unlikely sources of the team — forward Jason McCoy.

McCoy floated around the perimeter, stole the ball and tossed it to Boo Davis. Davis dribbled it down court, slammed home a one-handed dunk that rattled the U.S. Cellular Arena, and stuck the dagger into Hawaii, earning the final points of a 58-52 win.

Tigert led UWM with 16 points, and had six rebounds. Joah Tucker had 10 points, five rebounds and two steals. Chris Hill dished out three assists and had seven points, the last of which came in the last minute of the game.

Jason McCoy, who has had a quiet season thus far, finished with five points and led the Panthers with seven rebounds, also garnering the steal that sent Hawaii home with a loss. Kevin Massiah scored five points in 15 minutes.

Most surprising may have been Avery Smith, the reserve point guard who had seven points, six rebounds and five steals — the most steals any Panther has had this season, beating his previous best of four against Upper Iowa.

The tenacious frontcourt of Hawaii lived up to its billing as their three forwards — Gipson, Sensley and Gueye — combined for 38 points, 28 rebounds, three blocks and six steals.

The guards, Milwaukee area natives Lojeski and Deonte Tatum, combined for 12 points, five rebounds, six assists and two steals. Hawaii returns to action on Saturday, Dec. 17, against Utah State.

The Panthers travel to Madison on Thursday, Dec. 15, to take on the University of Wisconsin Badgers in the annual non-conference contest at 7 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on WMLW in Milwaukee, with a pre-game show before the broadcast.

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