Warriors knock off first-place UC Riverside, 67-63

Any recent doubts about the University of Hawai’i basketball team being a contender for the Big West Conference championship were erased in an inspiring 67-63 road win at UC Riverside on Saturday afternoon.

File photo courtesy Brandon FloresA crowd of 722 at SRC Arena in Riverside, Calif., watched the Rainbow Warriors take control early and hold on in the final minute for the win. Hawai’i improved to 15-5 overall and 6-2 in the BWC. The Highlanders dropped to 14-7 and 7-2. UCR was alone in first place prior to the contest.

“So proud of these guys,” Hawai’i head coach Eran Ganot said in a post-game radio interview on ESPN Honolulu. “To hold a good team like (UCR) the way we did, on their home…