Recap: Hawaii vs. UC Santa Barbara

Honolulu, HI (Sports Network) - Jace Tavita scored 17 points as the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors rallied for a 70-66 victory over the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos in a Big West Conference duel at the Stan Sheriff Center.

Vander Joaquim had 16 points and was a rebound short of a double-double, Hauns Brereton added 14 points and Isaac Fotu tacked on 12 points for Hawaii (17-11, 10-6 Big West) which has won back-to-back games.

Kyle Boswell poured in a game-high 27 points, Alan Williams had 14 points and was a rebound shy of a double-double and Michael Bryson registered 11 points for UC Santa Barbara (8-19, 4-11) which has lost four straight.

Hawaii led 30-28 at the break after both teams struggled from the field in the first half. The Rainbow Warriors shot at a 33.3 percent clip and hit four shots from 3-point range while UC Santa Barbara was right behind at 32 percent shooting.

With less than nine minutes left the Gauchos held an eight-point advantage. However Hawaii went on a 19-6 run to take a 62-57 lead with 1:03 remaining. The Rainbow Warriors then hit 8-of-8 from the free-throw line in the final minute to hold on for the win.

Both teams shot better than 50 percent in the second half. Hawaii had a 33-27 edge on the boards.