Long Beach State Finishes Season With Road Win At Hawai’i

Saturday, March 7

Honolulu, Hawaii

9 p.m. PT

Long Beach State University

10-22,6-14Big West

Hawai'i

22-8,14-6Big West

Long Beach St.

Hawaii

3/8/2026 12:26:00 AM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

Freshman Gavin Sykes scored 34 points in the win, finishing the season averaging over 19 points per game.

By: Roger Kirk, Associate Athletics Director, Communications & Broadcast

HONOLULU, Hawaii – With four minutes to play in the game, Gavin Sykes hit three straight 3-pointers to extend a four-point lead to 13, a phenomenal stretch that helped seal a final win of the season for Long Beach State against Hawai'i on the road, 84-75.

Hawai'i (22-8, 14-6 Big West) got off to a strong start, taking a 14-9 lead over the first eight minutes, Long Beach State (10-21, 6-14 Big West) did not let the lead extend any further, as a balanced Beach offense helped chip away. A three from Sykes gave the Beach their first lead, and two more quickly from Shaquil Bender and Isaiah Lewis keyed a 10-0 run that expanded the LBSU lead to 32-22 with four minutes to play in the first half.

That lead would hold into the break, and the Beach led 44-34 behind 13 points each from Gavin Sykes and Shaquil Bender.

Hawai'i made a push as the Beach had a stretch with five turnovers in five minutes, which helped the Rainbow Warriors erase the lead, eventually moving in front 59-55 on a Harry Rouhliadeff 3-point play with 11 minutes to play.

Long Beach State rallied with a 3-point play of their own from Lewis, taking a 65-60 lead, but Hawai'i remained within striking distance with just over four minutes to play at 68-64 after a runner from Isaac Finlinson.

That was when Sykes took over. With the Beach defense holding while LBSU fed the freshman, Sykes answered with three straight 3-pointers to open up a 77-64 lead, and the Beach closed out the win on the road in Hawai'i 84-75, just the eighth win in Honolulu for the program and the first since 2022.

Sykes finished the season scoring 542 total points to shatter the freshman scoring record in just 28 games played, averaging 19.4 points per game for the season, a mark that will likely rank in the Top 10 in the nation among freshmen.