SAN RAFAEL, Calif. – Dominican Men's Basketball kept things close in the first half, but an early lead disappeared as turnovers went up in a 75-54 loss to the University of Hawai'i at Hilo on Monday night at the Conlan Center. 

The Penguins (5-7, 1-5 PacWest) finished the game shooting 52.8 percent from the field, but 38 turnovers were too much to overcome. Senior forward Cedric Thomas continued his streak as Dominican's leading scorer with 16 points on 4-for-6 shooting from the field and eight free throws. Sophomore forward Christian Futch proved to be a force in the paint, bringing down 11 rebounds to go along with nine points for the Penguins. 

The Vulcans (4-5, 2-3 PacWest) took advantage of Dominican's miscues, recording 32 points off turnovers, including 19 fastbreak points. Hawai'i Hilo's bench helped the Vulcans extend their lead in the second half, scoring 24 of their points. Kupaa Harrison led UHH with 15 points and seven rebounds, while Jalen Thompson recorded 13 points and three steals. Jordan Graves added a team-high five assists and five steals for the Vulcans. 

After trading buckets in the early going, Romeo Mays came off the bench and hit a 3-pointer from the corner to give the Penguins to a 2-point lead and spark a small run. Futch then found Mays unguarded under the hoop for two more and Mays ended the 9-2 run with a tip-in to give Dominican the 22-16 lead with nine minutes left in the half.

Hilo began a full-court press to slow the momentum and keep the game close. Kaleb Gilmore cut in front of a pass from Jordan Williams to take it all the way to the hole to give the Vulcans the lead several minutes later at 30-29 with 2:21 left in the first half. Johnson sent UHH into the locker room on a high note with a fastbreak dunk to extend the lead to 35-31.

The Vulcans returned in the second half, sustaining a steady lead while Thompson drained back-to-back 3-pointers, and Graves nailed one of his own to extend their lead to 13. Dominican pressed and Jared Harper stole the ball and laid it in to cut the deficit to 45-53 with 8:56 left on the clock. Harper continued to make a difference on the defensive end with blocks on a shot from Larry Bush and another on a shot from Harrison, but Dominican had a difficult time shutting down the Vulcan's offense all together.

Thompson hit a three in transition, and Harrison followed suit, hooking one in off the glass to push the UHH lead back to 13. The Vulcans held all the momentum down the stretch as Dominican was unable to hold the ball long enough to sustain a run. 

The Penguins will make a quick turn-around as they face Hawai'i Pacific University on Wednesday at 4 p.m. PST. Live video and stats will be available online.