The Hawaii Rainbow Warriors were riding high after they defeated a Pac-12 Conference powerhouse in the California Golden Bears in the first round. However, they would need to get past another “Power 5 Conference” powerhouse in the Maryland Terrapins out of the Big Ten. The winner would get the #1-overall seed in the Kansas Jayhawks. Hawaii was looking to get their second ever tournament win.

Throughout the first half, the game was close, and it seemed as if Hawaii could pull off the victory. At the half, Maryland only led Hawaii by a point. The second half was where this game got good. The first part of the second half was a lot like the first half, really close. At one point even, Hawaii actually had a 41-39 lead. But, then Maryland capitalized on a 14-0 run, and the Terrapins would not squander the lead again. They would go on to defeat the Rainbow Warriors 73-60.

In the game, Maryland missed their first fifteen three pointers but obviously found their “groove” and went on a 14-0 run. Hawaii went cold in the second half. The Terrapins were led by sophomore guard Melo Trimble, who scored 24. Jake Layman and Diamond Stone both scored 14 for the Terrapins.

This loss was a tough one to swallow for the Warriors, as they are banned from the postseason for the 2016-17 season, due to NCAA infractions from their previous coach. As I said earlier, the winner, Maryland, will move on to play Kansas in the Sweet 16.