HENDERSON, Nev. — It came down to the wire in a hotly contested semifinal matchup, but UC Davis secured the 68-65 win over three-seed Hawai'i to advance to the Big West Conference Championship.
The Aggies (20-12, 14-6 Big West) got a big performance from their newly named Big West Player of the Year, Elijah Pepper, who poured in a game-high 25 points. The Selah, Washington native was 10-of-23 from the field and hit some crucial shots when it mattered most to get his team across the finish line.
Enjoying a solid all-around performance was Kane Milling who dropped 14 points and grabbed a team-high seven rebounds. Ty Johnson was the other Aggie to reach double-digits, registering 12 points, five boards, and three assists.
UC Davis out-rebounded Hawaii 32-27 in Friday's game, led by Milling's seven boards. The Aggies also collected 11 offensive rebounds and scored six second chance points.
UC Davis forced 15 Hawaii turnovers while committing 10 themselves in Friday's game. The Aggies turned those takeaways into 20 points on the other end of the floor. Johnson's three steals led the way for UC Davis.
How It Happened
Pepper ignited UC Davis with the first five points, setting the stage for an 11-2 run. Johnson and Milling found their groove in the early minutes, tallying 13 points together, propelling the Aggies to an 18-6 lead. By the under-12 media timeout, UC Davis dominated with a 20-6 advantage, shooting an impressive 9-of-12 from the field while Hawai'i struggled at 2-of-9.
The Aggies sputtered offensively after the media timeout, enduring a scoring drought of three minutes until Francesco Borra's put-back layup brought the scoreless stretch to an end. UC Davis missed four straight field goals after Borra's basket, allowing the Rainbow Warriors to cut the lead to single digits following their 12-2 run. However, Pepper replied by knocking down a deep three-ball to bring his total to eight points on the night. Hawai'i kept the foot on the gas, rallying for a 6-0 run to whittle the Aggies' lead down to just three points. Despite the hot start that saw Davis' team lead by as many as 16, Hawai'i was able to bring it to within just two points at the break, with the Aggies holding a 31-29 advantage.
Ade Adebayo finished off a three-point play to kick off the second-half scoring and it quickly turned into a 7-0 run when Pepper nailed a fade-away jumper to push the lead to nine. The offense started to flow again for UC Davis when Milling hit a nifty turnaround jumper before Borra poured in a bucket to restore UC Davis' double-digit lead, forcing yet another Hawai'i time out.
The Aggies went on to take their largest lead of the night (17) after rallying for a 10-0 that was punctuated by an emphatic Pablo Tamba alley-oop. The Rainbow Warriors had a short surge, but it was quickly silenced by consecutive three-pointers from Pepper and Milling at the 12-minute mark.
After converting on four straight attempts from the floor to spark a 11-2 run, Hawai'i cut the lead to eight with 6:30 left to play. UC Davis turned to the Big West Player of the Year to get the offense clicking when Pepper showed some individual brilliance to hit a contested turnaround jumper to push the lead back to 12.
UC Davis preserved their advantage while Hawaii diligently narrowed the gap through free-throw shooting, culminating in a 66-60 score following McClanahan's successful attempts with just 1:24 on the clock. The Rainbow Warriors would proceed to convert two more critical free throws, bringing the score to 66-62 with just 1:17 left to play.
An Aggie shot-clock violation gave way to a JoVon McClanahan and-one bucket on the opposite end to bring the contest to 66-65 with a mere 27.8 seconds remaining.
It came down to the wire with a late McClanahan pull-up jumper failing to find its mark with four seconds remaining. While going up for the last second, rebound, Pepper was pushed in the back and sent to the free throw line. Shooting his first pair of free-throws of the game in this moment, it was Pepper's composure at the line that proved decisive, sinking two free throws with only 1.8 seconds to spare, securing the Aggies' spot championship finale.
Game Notes
» UC Davis never trailed on the way to a 68-65 victory.
» UC Davis had a 32-27 edge on the boards in the win.
» The UC Davis defense forced 15 turnovers.
» UC Davis cleaned up on the offensive glass, collecting 11 offensive boards in the game.
» Elijah Pepper led the Aggies with a game-high 25 points.
» UC Davis got a game-high seven rebounds from Kane Milling.
UP NEXT
The Ags will take on four-seed Long Beach State in 2024 Hercules Tires Big West Men's Basketball Championship game. Tip-off is set for 6:30 p.m. at the Dollar Loan Center. The game will be broadcast on ESPN2.
