2010 Field By Jon Cooper |
The second annual Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic was every bit as exciting as the inaugural event. Over four days, all eight teams battled with the kind of intensity usually reserved for March, proving that anything was possible in a 40-minute game. In the end, Butler showed that last year’s appearance in the NCAA Championship Game was no fluke, taking the measure of up-and-coming Washington State in the final to take home the title. Here’s a team-by-team rundown.
BAYLOR (1-2)
Nickname: Bears
Conference: Big 12
Location: Waco, Texas
2009-10 Record (postseason result): 28-8, 11-5 (NCAA Regional Final)
No. 15 Baylor got off to a blazing start in Honolulu, routing San Diego, 83-50, in its opener. Anthony Jones had 16 and Quincy Acy 14 to lead five double-figure scorers. The Bears, who shot 61.8 percent in the first half, used an early 14-0 run then a half-closing 19-8 run to take a 48-19 bulge into intermission. They dominated on the glass, holding a 42-26 advantage. Against Washington State, Baylor overcame a 20-point, second-half deficit but was doomed by a late 7-0 run. LaceDarius Dunn had 29 points, 25 in the second half, and Acy added 16 and 12 boards. The Bears used a 29-6 run to turn a 55-35 deficit into a 64-61 lead with 6:36 remaining, but eventually fell, 77-71. In its final game, BU lost, 68-61, to Florida State, despite Dunn’s game-high 23 and A.J. Walton’s career-high 15. The Bears overcame a double-digit, second-half deficit for the second straight game, but went 2-for-7 over the final 3:16 as FSU closed on a 9-2 run to break a 59-59 tie. They also hurt themselves at the line, missing eight second-half free throws. Dunn was named to the All-Tournament Team, after averaging 21.6 ppg and 4.3 rpg.
BUTLER (3-0 | Champion)
Nickname: Bulldogs
Conference: Horizon
Location: Indianapolis
2009-10 Record (postseason result): 33-5, 18-0 (NCAA Championship game)
The NCAA Tournament runner-up team started nicely, topping Utah, 74-62, in their opener. Matt Howard scored a game-high 23, 15 in the first half, as the Bulldogs raced out to a 40-27 halftime lead. Ronald Nored added 16. Butler had four double-digit scorers, despite shooting 18.9 percent from three (4 for 22). In the next game, Butler hit 10 three-pointers and made seven of eight free throws in the final 47 seconds to down Florida State, 67-64. Howard led the Bulldogs with 19, and Shelvin Mack added 17, all in the second half. Mack was 5 for 5 from three and 5 for 6 from the line in the second 20 minutes, and scored seven Butler points in a 73-second span to give the Bulldogs the lead for good. Butler held on despite seeing a 15-point lead with 9:29 to go shrink to three in the final minute. In the championship game, Butler again used the three to bury Washington State, 84-68. Mack scored 20 points and led four Bulldogs with at least 14 points, as Butler broke open a two-point game in the second half, shooting 53.8 percent and hitting 5 of 10 from three. They led by as much as 18 in the second half. Butler made 22 of 54 three-point attempts (40.7 percent) in its final two games. Howard had 14 points and a game-high 11 rebounds to seal Tournament MVP honors. He averaged 18.7 points and 8.7 rebounds. Mack, who averaged 16.7 points and shot 50.0 over the final two games (7 of 14), also was named to the All-Tournament team.
FLORIDA STATE (2-1)
Nickname: Seminoles
Conference: ACC
Location: Tallahassee, Fla.
2009-10 Record (postseason result): 22-10, 10-6 (NCAA 1st Round)
Florida State controlled the boards and was opportunistic in its 70-62 victory over Hawaii. Derwin Kitchen led the Seminoles with 20 and Okaro White added 19, including five straight in the second half to fuel a 9-0 run that broke open the game. Chris Singleton shook off a 2-for-12 shooting night by grabbing a game-high 12 rebounds, including six on the offensive end. FSU held a 48-33 edge on the boards, with 23 offensive rebounds, which led to a 24-5 edge in second-chance points. They also forced 23 turnovers, which turned in 25 points. Singleton bounced back in the next game, scoring a game-high 28 points, but too many Butler threes in the second half doomed Florida State in its 67-64 loss. FSU trailed 21-19 at intermission and cut a 15-point deficit to four but got no closer. Singleton scored 26 second-half points and hit six three-pointers, many from well beyond the arc. In the third-place game, Florida State used 19 points from Kitchen, and double-doubles from Singleton (17-10) and Bernard James (15-10), to upend No. 15 Baylor, 68-61. Singleton scored six points in an 8-0 run that opened a 45-35 lead, and FSU limited Baylor to 33.3 percent shooting (18-for-54) and outscored the Bears 28-18 in the paint. Singleton was named to the All-Tournament team after scoring 45 points in the final two games (51 overall, 17.0 ppg), grabbing 31 rebounds (10.3 rpg), and canning 10 of 20 three-pointers.
HAWAII (2-1)
Nickname: Rainbow Warriors
Conference: WAC
Location: Honolulu
2009-10 Record: 10-20, 3-13
Hawaii got a career-high 24 points from Zane Johnson, and Bo Barnes added 17 second-half points, but the host couldn’t overcome the absence of senior leaders Bill Amis and Hiram Thompson, losing to Florida State, 70-62. UH held FSU to 32 percent shooting, but committed 23 turnovers while allowing 23 offensive rebounds. Johnson scored 14 of Hawaii’s first 18 points, but the rest of the team started 0 for 14. The Warriors trailed 33-25 at the half and cut the lead to four, but a 16-3 ’Noles run put the game away. The Warriors bounced back to bounce Utah, 68-55. Johnson again led UH, with 17 points, including four three-pointers, and Joston Thomas added 15. Hawaii led 37-33 at the half, then used a 9-1 run to start the second half and led by double digits most of the way. The Rainbow Warriors limited the Utes to 33.3 percent shooting and held them to 1-for-15 from three. In the fifth-place game, Johnson scored a team-high 19, while grabbing eight rebounds, and Thompson added 14 points and five assists, as Hawaii knocked off shorthanded Mississippi State, 68-57. UH scored the game’s first 12 points and shot 56 percent in the first half, while holding State to 22.6 percent shooting and taking a 42-23 halftime lead. The ’Bows led by as much as 22 and outscored Miss. State 30-12 in the paint.
MISSISSIPPI STATE (1-2)
Nickname: Bulldogs
Conference: SEC
Location: Starkville, Miss.
2009-10 Record (postseason result): 24-12, 9-7 (NIT 2nd Round)
Cold second-half shooting hurt Mississippi State in its 83-57 loss to Washington State. Kodi Augustus scored with a team-high 19 for MSU, which led 40-39 at half, but State shot only 25.0 percent in the second half and allowed a 24-3 run as WSU pulled away. Brian Bryant added 14, but leading scorer Ravern Johnson was limited to three points on 1-of-10 shooting. State lost the battle on the boards 42-29 and hurt itself with 24 turnovers. MSU hit its stride in its next game, running away from San Diego, 69-52. Renardo Sidney had 19 points, shooting 7 for 12, and 5-for-5 from the line. Johnson regained his form, putting in 18, while Augustus added 13 points and 11 rebounds. The Bulldogs opened an early nine-point lead, and led by 13 at intermission. The lead would grow to 22 in the second half. MSU rolled despite shooting under 40 percent, and only 5 of 23 (21.7 percent) from three. Following the game, MSU had bigger problems, as starting forwards Sidney and Elgin Bailey were suspended after fighting with each other in the stands while watching a game (Bailey later decided to leave MSU). With two bigs suspended and morale shaken, MSU never led, and fell to Hawaii in their final game, 68-57. Augustus had team-high 18 and 11 boards, and Jalen Steele added a career-high 14, but the Bulldogs trailed 12-0 early and 42-23 at intermission. They shot only 27.0 percent in the finale and 24.0 from three. The absence of Bailey and Sidney showed as State was outscored 30-12 in the paint.
SAN DIEGO (1-2)
Nickname: Toreros
Conference: West Coast Conference
Location: San Diego
2009-10 Record: 11-21, 3-11
San Diego never got going in its opener, an 83-50 loss to No. 15 Baylor. The Toreros shot below 30 percent and were 0-for-9 from three in the first half. They’d get as close as 25 in the second half, but the deficit never fell below 23. Ken Rancifer had a team-high 10, and Darian Norris added six with a game-high eight rebounds. In its next game, USD took its first lead of the tournament, 3-2 at 18:23 in the first, but never led thereafter, losing 69-52to Mississippi State. Jordan Mackie led the Toreros with nine points off the bench, and Devin Ginty added eight, but San Diego shot only 30 percent for the game, trailed by 13 at the break and never got the deficit into single digits. After a day off to regroup, San Diego finished strong, defeating Utah 67-64. Mackie led the Toreros for the second straight game with 14, 11 coming in the first half. San Diego shot 63.6 percent and took a 35-30 lead into the half. The lead would reach 12 before Utah fought back to tie the game with 12:44 to go. But Chris Manresa hit two free throws with 1:04 left to give USD the lead for good, and Ginty went 5 for 5 from the line in the final 26 seconds to keep Utah at bay.
UTAH (0-3)
Nickname: Runnin’ Utes
Conference: Mountain West
Location: Salt Lake City
2009-10 Record: 14-17, 7-9
Josh Watkins scored 17 points to top four double-digit scorers, but Utah dropped its opener to Butler, 74-62. Will Clyburn added 16 for the Utes, who trailed by 13 at the half and cut the lead to seven with 9:19 left but never got any closer. The Utes held Butler to 18.2 percent shooting from three. Utah was outscored 36-22 in the paint, however, despite the presence of center David Foster, who swatted away a Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic-record seven shots. Utah’s cold shooting continued in the next game, a 68-55 loss to Hawaii. Watkins led the Utes with 16 and Clyburn added 14, but Utah shot only 33.3 percent and was 1-for-15 from three. The Utes allowed a 9-1 run to start the second half and trailed by double figures most of the rest of the way. They hurt themselves with 18 turnovers. In its finale, Utah got a team-high 19 from Clyburn, and Jason Washburn added 16 and a career-high eight rebounds, but the Utes fell to San Diego, 67-64. Utah shot only 38.6 percent and made only two of 16 from three (12.5 percent). Utah held a 22-10 scoring advantage in the paint and pulled down 20 offensive rebounds. Washburn forced the fourth tie of the second half, sinking two free throws with 1:31 left, but the Utes never tied the game again, as Watkins’ game-tying three at the buzzer missed. Foster finished the tournament with 12 blocks.
WASHINGTON STATE (2-1 | Runner-up)
Nickname: Cougars
Conference: Pac-10
Location: Pullman, Wash.
2009-10 Record: 16-15, 6-12
Klay Thompson scored a game-high 28 points and Faisal Aden added 20 and seven rebounds as Washington State topped Mississippi State, 83-57, in its opener. The Cougars trailed 40-39 at the half, but shot 55.2 percent and 58.3 from three in the second, shutting out MSU for over eight minutes to blow the game open. Thompson put up another 20-point night, leading five double-figure scorers, as Washington State upended No. 15 Baylor, 77-71. The Cougars, who led 39-26 at the half, squandered the lead before being saved by a pair of Thompson threes. The first, with 4:31 left, regained the lead. The other, at 1:11, iced the game. Aden scored 13 off the bench, leading WSU’s 32-7 edge in bench points. In the championship game, a 15-0 second-half run did in WSU in its 84-68 loss to Butler. Thompson scored a game-high 31 points on 10-for-18 shooting, but no other Cougar scored more than eight. Both teams shot over 46 percent in the first half as Butler took a 40-38 lead into the locker room. But in the second half, the three-point game abandoned WSU, as they shot 25 percent and couldn’t keep up. Thompson was named to the All-Tournament team, scoring a Diamond Head Classic-record 79 points (26.3 per game) on 54.3 percent shooting (25 for 46) and 52.0 percent shooting from three (13 for 25).
University of Maryland alum Jon Cooper is an Atlanta-based freelance writer.
(Back to top)
