HONOLULU, Hawaii - The Golden Grizzlies fell to the Rainbow Warriors, 73-70, tonight in the third place game of the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic inside SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.

The Golden Grizzlies (4-9, 1-2 HL) were led by Malcolm Christie who set another career-high at the tournament with 27 points, sinking seven shots from range, as Buru Naivalurua led off the glass for the team with eight rebounds.

The Rainbow Warriors (8-4, 0-1 Big West) saw Gytis Nemeiksa record a double-double as he led the team in points with 25, and tied with Tanner Christensen off the glass with 11 boards.

Both teams struggled to find their rhythm early, as the game's opening minutes were marked by missed shots and turnovers. Christie got the Golden Grizzlies on the board with a layup at the 15:55 mark, sparking a stretch where both teams traded baskets.

Naivalurua brought the Oakland bench to its feet with a thunderous dunk that evened the score at 8-8. Jaylen Jones provided a much-needed spark off the bench, as the teams traded points throughout the half. A Naivalurua jumper knotted the game at 21, before J. Jones gave Oakland a two-point lead, but the Rainbow Warriors went on an 11-0 run to put its lead to nine. Isaiah Jones put the run to a halt and grabbed the final points of the half from a two as Oakland headed into the locker room down, 32-25.

Oakland opened the second half with renewed energy. Christie continued to give the Golden Grizzlies energy to stay in the game. Oakland retook a lead off an Allen Mukeba free throw, but the Rainbow Warriors continued to press hard as it re-built a six-point lead with 12:43 to go. The teams continued to trade points until an Oakland 8-0 run gave the team its largest lead of the game at 54-46.

Hawai'i battled though and made it hard for the Golden Grizzlies to get ahead as it went on a quick run and took a lead with 5:30 to play. In the next four minutes of play, there were a trio of lead changes as Christie continued to hit from range, adding a spark to the Oakland offense. With the game tied with just under a minute to go, Naivalurua made a nice up-and-under layup to give Oakland a lead, but a pair of free throws from the Rainbow Warriors tied things up with seconds to go.

Each team had a chance to take the game in regulation, but neither team was able to get a shot off during its final possession as the game went into extra time tied at 64.

In the extra period, Hawai'i struck first with a three-pointer, but Oakland tallied its next three points from the charity stripe to tie things up with 2:13 to go. The Rainbow Warriors hit its second three of extra time, but Christie matched it with a three of his own to tie the game up with 1:36 to play. Hawai'i, however, hit a layup with :46 seconds to go, followed by a free throw, as Oakland's contested three-point shot at the buzzer fell short as it fell in overtime, 73-70.

The Rainbow Warriors finished shooting at a .390 clip from the field (23-of-59) and made five threes, two of which came in extra time, as Oakland shot 24-of-68 (.353) from the floor with nine makes from range. Off the glass, Hawai'i held the advantage as it brought down 10 more than Oakland, with 44 compared to 34.

The Golden Grizzlies continue on the road Monday (Dec. 30) as it faces nationally-ranked Arkansas, with tip-off set for 8:00 p.m. ET. Monday's game will be nationally televised on ESPN2. All Oakland games this season will be live streamed through audio via 97.1HD-3, The Bet1270 AM (WXYT-AM) & the Audacy App with Neal Ruhl on the call.