Men's Basketball | 12/15/2010 10:21:28 PM

Box Score [Box score]

HILO, Hawaii - The Hawaii Hilo Vulcans put on a timely 13-2 run in the final three minutes to defeat the Western Oregon men's basketball team, 85-78, on Wednesday (Dec. 15).

Blair Wheadon led the Wolves (6-5, 1-1 Great Northwest Athletic Conference) with 18 points. He scored 15 points in the first half, as he hit 5-of-7 shots from behind the arc. Kyle Long added 17 points, five rebounds and four assists. Tarance Glynn posted 15 points and seven boards, while Kolton Nelson had 10 points and team-leading eight rebounds.

Justin Smith went 14-of-19 from the floor to lead the Vulcans (4-3) with 33 points. He also grabbed 17 boards to help Hawaii Hilo outrebound WOU 49-26.

Western Oregon never trailed in the first half and built a six-point lead at the half (38-32) thanks to accurate long range shooting. WOU hit 8-of-15 three-point attempts in the period, including the five by Wheadon.

In the second half, UHH quickly erased the deficit with an 11-4 run to open the half for its first lead of the game. The teams would trade baskets from there before Western Oregon took a one-point lead (73-72) with 4:02 remaining. The Vulcans, however, had their biggest run of the night left in them, as they scored 13 of the next 15 points to extend a one-point deficit to a double-digit advantage.

It was the lack of effectiveness at the easy shots that really hurt the Wolves in the second half. They hit just 12-of-22 free throws and down the stretch they missed a couple of open looks at close range.

The Wolves bench came through with 26 points to outscore the Vulcans' by 17. UHH countered this edge for WOU with a 22-9 advantage in second chance points.

This was the Wolves second loss to Hawaii Hilo this season. In the second game of the year, WOU fell, 87-79, to UHH at the GNAC/PacWest Challenge in Lacey, Wash.

Western Oregon will conclude its road trip on Friday (Dec. 17) with game at BYU-Hawaii. The game will tip-off at 9:30 p.m. (PST).