Chaminade's all-everything point guard Zack Whiting didn't have his best game last night against Brigham Young-Hawai'i.

But he feels the Silverswords played their best game of the season.

Stewart Kussler scored 21 points, Whiting added 20 points and 10 assists, and Marko Kolaric had 17 points and 11 rebounds as Chaminade beat BYU-Hawai'i, 83-69, at McCabe Gym.

"Stu is going to hear from us because we need that out of him every night, and he's capable of doing that every night," Silverswords coach Matt Mahar said.

Chaminade improved to 10-5 overall and 2-1 in the Pacific West Conference. BYU-Hawai'i dropped to 11-5 and 3-1.

Whiting, who has five triple-doubles this season, scored just six points in the first half and finished with seven turnovers.

"He was struggling a little bit and so we just pulled him aside and said to get everyone involved," Mahar said.

Chaminade finished the game on a 16-5 run, including 6 of 6 from the free-throw line in the final 51 seconds.

"We got real lucky tonight," Whiting said. "That's the best team on the island. We had a big win. That's the best basketball we've ever played. We hit shots when we needed to hit shots."

Kussler, a 6-foot-5 junior forward, finished 8 of 12 from the field as the Silverswords shot 61.7 percent from the field (29 of 47).

The game was physical and Kussler said he was a bit worn down over the final 10 minutes.

"I was a little tired, but I just pushed through," said Kussler, who didn't make a field goal over the final 12 minutes. "The coach needed me to play big inside even though I'm under-sized against their big guys."

Whiting, a 6-foot-3 senior, scored 14 points over the final 13:30 and Kolaric, a 7-foot junior center, had eight over the final 9:30.

"It sets the tone for the rest of the season," Kussler said. "Every team we have a three-game series with and we're trying to win 2 out of 3 with each of the teams."

The teams will play again tomorrow afternoon at McCabe.HAWAI'I-HILO 84, HAWAI'I PACIFIC 66: Vince Alvarado scored 22 points, Travis Sobers added 17, and Sam Wilhoite contributed 14 points and 11 rebounds to lead the host Vulcans (5-10, 2-1) over the Sea Warriors (7-8, 1-3) at Hilo civic.

DIVISION II WOMEN

BYU-HAWAI'I 70, CHAMINADE 64

Latoya Wily dominated inside and the Seasiders went on an 8-0 run to open the second half to edge the Silverswords at McCabe Gym.

Wily, a 6-foot junior forward/center, had 23 points and 18 rebounds for BYU-Hawai'i, which held a 57-30 advantage in rebounds.

Wily, who scored most of her points off post moves and putbacks, had nine of BYU-Hawai'i's 23 offensive rebounds.

"She is the pillar of our team; no doubt about it," Seasiders coach Wendy Anae said "Everybody knows that, but she's such a smart player, she can handle the pressure."

BYU-Hawai'i, which trailed by eight midway through the first half, led 59-47 with 6:48 remaining after two free throws by Wily.

The lead was 64-59 with 47 seconds remaining, but BYU-Hawai'i (4-10, 2-2 PacWest) missed five of its next six free throws during an eight-second span. The Seasiders were able to grab offensive rebounds off two of the misses.

"We need to hit those. They are free opportunities," Anae said. "But getting those offensive rebounds were definitely a plus."

Chaminade (2-10, 1-2) got within 65-62 with 25 seconds remaining after Brittnee Fonnesbeck's 3-pointer from the right wing, but the Seasiders' Kayla Burningham hit 4 of 4 free throws in the final 22 seconds to put the game away.

The Seasiders opened the second half in a 2-3 zone and scored eight consecutive points to take a 39-32 lead with 16:30 remaining.

Lisa Chessman, a 5-11 sophomore guard/forward, also had a double-double for BYU-Hawai'i with 17 points and 12 rebounds.

HAWAI'I-HILO 67, HAWAI'I PACIFIC 57

Krystlelyn Omlan scored 19 points and Ashley Kualii added 17, leading the host Vulcans (3-8, 2-1 PacWest) past the Sea Warriors (0-16, 0-4) at the Hilo civic.

Reach Kyle Sakamoto at ksakamoto@honoluluadvertiser.com.