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HONOLULU —The University of Hawai'i men's basketball team passed a major gut check, grinding out a 70-66 win over UC Santa Barbara Thursday night at the Stan Sheriff Center. UH was out of sync for much of the night but ended the game with a flourish in rallying for its eight win in its last nine home games.
 
With the win UH (17-11, 10-6 BWC) maintained its third-place standing in the Big West while staying within striking distance of second-place Pacific. The win also secured UH's first winning conference record since the 2005-06 season. UCSB (8-19, 4-11 BWC), meanwhile, dropped its fourth straight contest.
 
Jace Tavita led the Rainbow Warriors with a career-high 17 points and five assists. Tavita nailed five three-pointers and scored 11 points down the stretch to help the 'Bows rally from an eight point deficit with less than nine minutes remaining.  
 
Meanwhile, UH survived a 27-point outburst by Gaucho guard Kyle Boswell. Boswell buried five three-pointers of his own, while going 10-of-12 from the line.
 
The first half wasn't pretty as UH shot 33 percent and UCSB just 32 percent. It was back-and-forth for the first 20 minutes with nine lead changes, the last of which came when Brandon Jawato hit a three-pointer to give UH a 30-28 lead at the break.
 
UH extended its lead to seven points early in the second half, but then the Gauchos turned the tide with a 20-5 run that gave them a 51-43 lead with just 8:43 remaining.
 
Enter Tavita, who hit a trio three-pointers in a five-minute span that put UH right back in the game. With UH trailing 57-53, Tavita hit his fifth three-pointer of the night to cut the deficit to 57-56 with 3:20 left and spark a key 9-0 run that  gave UH a lead it would not relinquish.
 
The Bows sealed the game on the free throw line as seniors Hauns Brereton, Vander Joaquim and Tavita hit 10 straight free throws in the final minute. UH finished the game 24-of-30 from the line.
 
Joaquim finished with 16 points and nine rebounds, Brereton added 14, while Fotu finshed with 12 .
 
 UH will play is home finale on Saturday, March 2 when the 'Bows host Cal Poly at 7:00 p.m. in a “White Out” game. Brereton, Joaquim and Tavita will be honored following the game as part of Senior Night festivities.