A poor second-half effort against an under-rated and strong Illinois State men’s basketball team led to an embarrassing 71-45 defeat for Hawai’i Thursday night in the opening round of the Diamond Head Classic.
A modest crowd of about 4,800 at the Stan Sheriff Center and national ESPN2 TV audience watched the Redbirds jump out to a 10-0 lead and then dominate the second half in improving to 7-3 and advancing to Friday’s 5 p.m. semifinal vs. San Francisco.
The Warriors fell to 4-6 with their third consecutive loss, and will face Utah (7-3) in a 7:30 p.