HONOLULU – Junior forward Isaac Morrow sparked the Western Washington University men's basketball game scoring seven of the team's final 10 points in a 70-69 one-point victory over Hawai'i Pacific University Monday afternoon to conclude play in the Hoops in Hawai'i Holiday Classic.

WWU snapped its five-game losing streak inside the Hawai'i Convention Center to improve to 8-3 overall, finishing non-conference play with a 7-3 record. The Vikings return to Great Northwest Athletic Conference play (1-0) after the holiday break with a trip to play Western Oregon (Dec. 29) and Saint Martin's (Dec. 31).

The Vikings built a 12-point first-half lead and carried a 43-34 lead into halftime, but HPU went on a 14-0 run out of the break to take a 48-43 lead with 12:28 remaining in the game. 

After going nearly 12-and-a-half minutes without a point to open the second half, the Vikings rallied going on an 11-0 run to take a six-point lead at 54-48. The Sharks answered with a 7-2 run to take a one-point lead at 61-60 with 5:14 remaining. 

A layup by Morrow with 4:58 on the clock put the Vikings back ahead 62-61 jump-starting a 6-0 Western run. But the Sharks again had an answer scoring eight consecutive points to take a 69-66 lead with just over a minute left. 

Morrow then hit the biggest shot of his WWU career sinking a long three-pointer with 36-seconds left to tie the game 69-69. On the next HPU possession, Morrow grabbed a key defensive rebound and passed the ball to Kai Johnson, who was fouled after crossing the half-court line. 

Johnson hit one of two free throws to break the tie, giving the Vikings a 70-69 lead. After a lone violation was called on Johnson's second free throw, the Sharks turned the ball over by stepping out of bounds while going for the game-winning shot. 

Johnson led the Vikings with 18 points on 6-for-8 shooting and recorded a team-high four assists. D'Angelo Minnis scored 13 points on 5-for-7 shooting (3-for-4 3FG) and Daniel Hornbuckle contributed 11 points on 5-for-18 shooting. Overall, the Vikings shot 39.4-percent (28-for-71) and were 9-for-27 (.333) from three-point range. Morrow finished with seven points connecting on all three of his shots and grabbed three rebounds in 14 minutes.

"Hard work pays off and Isaac was a huge lift for our team today in crucial moments," said WWU head coach Tony Dominguez. "We were looking for a spark and Isaac did just that. I am proud of the team for battling through a tough weekend and we'll carry this good finish into our trip back to Washington and enjoy the holiday break. We have a tough restart to the schedule at Western Oregon and Saint Martin's, but this team is ready for the challenge."

After opening the season 3-0, including wins over Alaska Fairbanks and Alaska Anchorage, HPU dropped its seventh consecutive game to fall to 3-7 on the season. Marquis Moore, a transfer with Division I experience from Southern Utah & University of Detroit Mercy, led the Sharks with a game-high 19 points on 8-for-17 shooting and completed the double-double with 11 rebounds. Maj Dusanic added 17 points on 8-for-17 shooting.

The Vikings (8-3, 1-0 GNAC) return to GNAC play closing out the calendar year with road games at Western Oregon (12/29, 7 pm) and Saint Martin's (12/31, 5:15 pm). The complete 2022-23 WWU men's basketball schedule can be viewed online at wwuvikings.com/MBB.

Here is a look at the statistical comparison between WWU and Hawai'i Pacific:

Here is a look at the Vikings record breakdown for the 2022-23 season:

Here is a game-by-game look at the 2022-23 season following the 70-69 win over HPU:

One of the premier basketball programs in NCAA Division II, WWU has recorded a 20-win season in eight of the last 11 seasons. WWU is a six-time Great Northwest Athletic Conference champion and has appeared in the NCAA II Elite 8 three times. The Vikings won the 2012 NCAA Division II National Championship and advanced the following season to the NCAA II Final Four. Western has 20-win seasons in three of the last four years (and seven of nine) and won the 2020 GNAC Championships Tournament. WWU is the 12th winningest Division II program with its 1,536 all-time victories. Head coach Tony Dominguez is in his 10th season and 11th year as the Vikings head coach (28th overall at WWU) and is listed in the top 20 amongst active NCAA Division II head coaches with a .671 winning percentage (190-93).