HONOLULU, HI – In a nail-biter against yet another Pacific West Conference title contender, Menlo Men's Basketball was firing on all cylinders during a furious second-half comeback that culminated with the Oaks' chance at forcing overtime with nine seconds left, but Chaminade escaped 88-85 winners on their home floor inside McCabe Gymnasium on Thursday night.
Oaks Highlights
-Scoring in double figures for his third straight game,
Kai Brown came off the bench to provide 21 points in 26 minutes
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Nick High finished with his first double-double of the season, collecting 18 points and 10 rebounds
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JaMaal Unuakhalu was on quadruple-double watch, scoring 11 points with 13 rebounds, six blocks (second-most by anyone in the PacWest this season), and five assists
Menlo Achieves Season-High, Shooting Over 56 Percent From The Field
Both sides found their offensive rhythm early on as the game became a long-range shootout with sophomore guard
Kai Brown coming off the bench to hit two 3-pointers while Chaminade countered with two of their own. Each time the Silverswords pushed a five-point advantage, Menlo continuously had the answer as junior guard
Marvin Brumfield knocked down a triple then had multiple layups as part of his seven first-half points.
Though CUH briefly led by seven in the final four minutes of the half, junior guard
Quentin Thompson's layup initiated a 6-2 burst before one more make from deep put the Swords ahead 47-41 at the break.
Midway through the second period, four quick points from Thompson sparked a 12-2 run that also featured layups by senior forwards
JaMaal Unuakhalu and
Nick High as Menlo went from down as many as 11 minutes prior to holding a 71-70 advantage.
Chaminade countered with nine unanswered, but a Brown triple and High's three-point play composed a 7-0 response that soon had the game hanging in the balance at 88-83 CUH with exactly one minute left. Brown managed to get to the free throw line on the next possession, making two before finding the ball back in his hands with 21 seconds in regulation and his team down three. His open look at the potential game-tying shot did not fall and, though High enabled the Oaks to regain possession, time ran out on the comeback with the Swords prevailing 88-85.
Up Next
The Oaks will finish up their island road trip at Hawaii Pacific on Jan. 17 at 6:30 p.m. HT (8:30 p.m. PT).
