HONOLULU (AP) — Jameer Nelson Jr. came off the bench to score 13 points on Sunday, helping TCU defeat Hawaii 65-51 for third place at the Diamond Head Classic.
Nelson made 3 of 6 shots with a 3-pointer and all six of his free throws for the Horned Frogs (10-2). Trevian Tennyson added 10 points and five rebounds. Xavier Cork totaled nine points and eight rebounds off the bench.
Cork scored all his points in the first half, Tennyson had two of TCU’s five 3-pointers and scored eight and the Horned Frogs took a 36-27 lead into halftime. Noel Coleman sank two 3-pointers and scored 13 for Hawaii.
Micah Peavy and Avery Anderson III had layups in the first two minutes of the second half and the Horned Frogs maintained a double-digit lead for all but 20 seconds from there.
Coleman finished with 19 points to lead the Rainbow Warriors (8-4). Reserve Juan Munoz scored nine.
TCU coach Jamie Dixon had two stints as an assistant for Hawaii (1992-94 and 1998-99).
It was the first time TCU played on Christmas Eve since 1997 when the Horned Frogs beat Iowa State 93-54 in the Puerto Rico Holiday Classic.
TCU leads the all-time series 8-3. Hawaii won the previous two meetings, most recently in 2001 — a 99-79 victory during the Western Athletic Conference Tournament when both were members from 1996-2001.
TCU returns home to play Texas A&M-Commerce on Jan. 1. Hawaii will host Cal State Fullerton on Saturday in a Big West Conference opener.
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AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
