IRVINE, Calif. –Point Loma and Hawai’i Pacific won their semifinal matchups Friday to reach the finals of the 2017 PacWest Men’s Basketball Championship. The sixth-seeded Sea Lions meet the top-seeded Sharks on Saturday at 4:30 p.m., streamed liv on WatchESPN and the ESPN app.
Point Loma 72 – California Baptist 69
No. 6 Point Loma pulled of a last-second win for the second-straight day, upsetting No. 2 California Baptist, 72-69, on a three-pointer by
Mike Planeta.
Point Loma built a 43-34 halftime lead on 56.7 percent shooting, and outrebounded CBU 21-10. The Lancers came out in the second with a 10-4 run to tie the score, but the Sea Lions didn’t relinquish the advantage. A three-pointer by
Marquise Mosley capped a 7-1 run to put CBU on top, 67-66, with two minutes left. Three free throws put the Sea Lions back on top and
Kalidou Diouf tied it again with a short jumper. On Point Loma’s final possession,
Josh Rodriguez kicked it to Planeta on the wing for the game-winner.
Sterling Somers led Point Loma with 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting.
Zach Burnham had 11 points and a team-high 10 rebounds.
Michael Smith paced CBU with 18 points and had five rebounds. Diouf scored 16 points nd
Jason Todd led the Lancers with eight rebounds.
Hawaii Pacific 96 – Chaminade 90
Top-seed Hawai’i Pacific began its tournament run with a 96-90 win over Chaminade. The Sharks shot 50 percent from the floor and made nine three-pointers.
Connor Looney scored 23 points for HPU and
Chauncey Orr doubled up with 23 points and 13 rebounds.
Rohndell Goodwin was 13-for-13 at the free throw line, setting a tournament record, and scored a game-high 25 points.
Austin Pope logged a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds.
The lead changed hands 12 times in the first 27 minutes of play, with neither team building more than a five-point edge. HPU kept control in the latter part of the second half, with a pair of
Jordan Martin free throws extending the lead to 10 with just under two minutes remaining.