Long Beach State drops Hawaii 78-64 for first Big West loss
HONOLULU (AP) Nick Faust had 28 points and a career-high 14 rebounds on Saturday night and Long Beach State beat Hawaii 78-64 for the Rainbow Warriors' first conference loss.
The 49ers (11-12, 5-3 Big West) led the entire way after the opening minutes and pulled away late with a 12-0 run. The Rainbow Warriors (16-3, 5-1) ended an eight-game winning streak and missed an opportunity to take sole possession of first place in the conference. UC Irvine (6-1) also lost earlier Saturday night, 76-60 to UC Santa Barbara.
Gabe Levin added 11 points and Mason Riggins and Travis Hammonds scored 10 each for Long Beach State. The 49ers converted 14 offensive rebounds into 22 second-chance points.
Michael Thomas had a career-high 20 points for Hawaii. Quincy Smith scored 13 and Roderick Bobbitt 12.
Hawaii rallied within 66-63 with 3:37 left in the game, but Faust's 3-pointer made it 73-63 at 1:20 remaining.