HONOLULU (AP) — Fabian White Jr. and Caleb Mills scored 19 points each to help Houston rally to a 75-71 win over No. 21 Washington in the title game of the Diamond Head Classic on Wednesday.
The Cougars (10-3) trailed by as many as 14 points in the first half, but outscored the Huskies (10-3) 44-35 after halftime to win their fourth straight. White shot 7 of 13 from the field and hit all five of his free throws to finish with a career-high in points scored and earn the tournament’s most outstanding player honors. Mills hit three of his team’s eight 3-pointers. Houston shot 17 of 18 (94.4 percent) as a team from the stripe, including their final six.
Washington took a 35-21 lead with 6:01 left until halftime on Isaiah Stewart’s free throw, but Houston closed out the first half with a 10-1 run to get within 36-31 at the break. Stewart finished with 25 points while Nahziah Carter added 15.
Quade Green had 11 points and seven assists and Jaden McDaniels added 10 points in the loss. Washington committed 15 turnovers to seven for Houston. There were five ties and 10 lead changes.
NEXT: Washington: Will start Pac-12 play when it hosts UCLA on Jan. 2 and USC on Jan. 5.
