Academy of Art muddied the waters for UH-Hilo in the Pacific West Conference playoff race Sunday by earning a quality victory.
The Vulcans went out Tuesday and did little to clear up the postseason picture.
It’s all even headed down the stretch after well-traveled UHH trailed from start to finish in La Mirada, Calif., losing to Biola 79-63 to fall into a sixth-place tie for the final spot in the conference tournament.
The Eagles (13-11, 9-9 PacWest), a second-year NCAA Division II member that’s ineligible for the postseason, beat the Vuls (11-12, 9-10) for a second time, but this one was much easier than their two-point win Feb. 4 in Hilo, which required a comeback from a 20-point deficit.
“When we played there it was clear they were a great team,” Biola’s Trevor Treinen, who scored a game-high 19 points, said in a school release. “They went up on us by (20) and we came back and won.
“It was obvious that they were going to come out for revenge. We kept our composure tonight. Overall we played great and everyone had a great spirit tonight.”
Playing for the third time on a four-game, eight-day road trip, UHH shot just under 40 percent and was outrebounded 42-26.
Larry Bush, the reigning PacWest player of the week, Kupaa Harrison and James Griffin combined to take more than 70 percent of the Vulcans’ shots. Bush (9 of 19) scored 18 points, Harrison (6 of 14) delivered 14 points and seven rebounds and Griffin (5 of 17) struggled from the floor in adding 12 points.
Biola used a first-run to pull away this time, with Treinen hitting consecutive 3-pointers and Alex Wright scoring five points to ignite a 14-2 run, and the Eagles led 44-41 at halftime. Wright finished with 12 points, Levi Auble (8 of 11) added 16 and Alex Talma 15 as Biola shot 56 percent.
The Vuls used their press and scored 21 points off 16 turnovers, but their margin never got below seven in the second half.
“It was a good win. I’m glad we bounced back so well,” Dr. Dave Holmquist said after his team ended a brief two-game slide. “Hilo is a good team with talented players. It was very pleasing that we were able to make the plays down the stretch.”
The Urban Knights, who surprised Holy Names on Sunday at home, and UHH each have three games remaining, and the common opponents are fourth-place Azusa Pacific and cellar dweller Notre Dame de Namur.
The Vuls finish up the road trip Thursday at Asuza (13-5) before coming home to play the struggling Argonauts (1-17) and third-place Chaminade (13-5).
The Urban Knights host the Argonauts on Thursday before finishing up at Azusa and Biola – that means the Eagles could end up doing the Vuls a solid.
“We just want to finish by having fun,” Treinen said. “We’ve had a great season so far and made a lot of progress. We are looking to end on a good note.”
