Hopson scores 24 points to lead Idaho past Hawaii 59-52 in Western Athletic Conference opener
By APSunday, January 3, 2010
Hopson’s 24 points lead Idaho past Hawaii 59-52
HONOLULU — Mac Hopson scored a season-high 24 points to lead Idaho past Hawaii 59-52 Saturday night.
Steffan Johnson added 10 points, all of them in the first half including a buzzer-beating banked 3-pointer to give the Vandals (8-4, 1-0 Western Athletic Conference) an 11-point lead going into halftime.
Hawaii’s Paul Campbell matched his career-best effort with 14 points. Roderick Flemings, who missed the last two games with a sprained right knee, came off the bench to score 10 points.
Hawaii (7-7, 0-1) led midway through the first half, but Idaho’s 3-point shooters caught fire and hit three 3’s in the last 90 seconds to give the Vandals a lead 22-20 lead, which they never relinquished. They hit 7 of 16 from behind the arc, while the Rainbow Warriors shot a mere 2 of 16 from long distance.
