Deywilk Tavarez was determined to get a little extra sleep Christmas morning.
Tavarez scored a season-high 30 points and Derrin Boyd added 16 points, including 13 in the second half, to lead College of Charleston past Loyola Chicago, 77-68, in the second day of the Diamond Head Classic in Honolulu at SimpliFi Arena on Dec. 23.
Had Charleston (9-3) lost to the Ramblers (9-3) Monday afternoon, the Cougars would have had to get out of bed before the sun came up to make it in time for an 8:30 a.m. local tipoff time on the final day of the tournament.
Instead, Charleston will be able to sleep in a little longer Christmas morning as the Cougars won’t have to play until about 11 a.m. Christmas morning (4 p.m. on the East Coast).
Tavarez, who was just one point off his career scoring record, kept the cold-shooting Cougars in the game during the first half.
With under four minutes to play in the opening half, the Cougars found themselves trailing 31-21 after two free throws from Jalen Quinn.
Tavarez took over offensively, scoring 12 points during a 16-3 run to end the first half for the Cougars.
“I started off a little slow today,” said Tavarez, who was 9 of 19 from the field. “I missed my first three, threes. Airballed my first three and got to the bench and was pretty upset. I knew I needed to reset and get my mind back into it. My teammates kept my confidence up, they kept telling me to keep shooting."
After missing his first three shots from distance, Tavarez, who transferred from Delaware State, made seven of his next 13 shots from three, including four straight to end the first half.
“Deywilk gave us a jolt of energy and we needed it,” said College of Charleston coach Chris Mack. “Deywilk’s performance there for the final four minutes of the first half was incredible. Going into the locker room at halftime, it was hard to believe we were actually ahead in the game.”
Tavarez’s banked in a three on the final play of the opening half to give the Cougars a 37-34 advantage.
“When that shot went in, you kind of know it’s going to be your night,” Tavarez said.
The Ramblers, who became just the fourth No. 11 seed to advance to a Final Four in 2018, crushed the Cougars on the glass, outrebounding Charleston 40-29.
“Loyola really took it to us on the glass,” Mack said. “They were not shooting a high percentage, but they were getting 40 percent of their missed shots back. We have to be way more stout than we are right now under the basket. Credit our guys for hanging in there and battling.”
Boyd took over where Taravez left off in the second half. Boyd keyed a 10-2 second half run that broke the game open midway through the second half.
“Derrin is starting to find his offensive rhythm,” Mack said.
Ante Brzovic, who was double-teamed most of the game, finished with 14 points, six rebounds and five assists for the Cougars.
Quinn led the Ramblers with 17 points.
The Cougars are 2-1 against A-10 teams this season with wins over Saint Joseph's and Loyola Chicago.
Next game
College of Charleston will face the winner of the Charlotte-Murray State on Christmas morning.