The UC Irvine Anteaters overcame a large first-half deficit for a 67-58 victory over the Hawaii Warriors to win the 2015 Big West Tournament on Saturday night at Honda Center in Anaheim.
It is the first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance for UC Irvine, which lost in four tournament championship games, in 1988, 1994, 2008 and 2013.
Hawaii jumped out to a 20-7 lead, and still led by 12 points with 3:53 remaining in the first half. But UC Irvine clawed back to tie in the opening two minutes of the second half, and the two teams went back and forth after that.
Sophomore guard Luke Nelson led the Anteaters with 17 points, including 13 in the second half to lead the comeback. Senior forward Will Davis II led UC Irvine with 11 rebounds and added 10 points on 5-of-9 shooting.
UC Irvine (21-12) closed out the game on a 23-11 run over the final 7:21 to seal the victory.
Aaron Valdes led Hawaii (22-13) with 17 points on 7-for-11 shooting, and pulled down seven rebounds as well. Garrett Nevels added 14 points for the Warriors.
It was the third win of the year for the Anteaters over Warriors, along with a 78-72 win in Hawaii on Jan. 24 and a 75-60 triumph at home in Irvine, 75-60, on Feb. 19.
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