How Hawaii’s ‘Utah crew’ helped the Rainbow Warriors return to the NCAA Tournament
· Yahoo Sports
PORTLAND, Ore. — Some couples go honeymooning in Hawaii.
This past summer, Isaac Johnson and his wife, Audrah, moved there two days after getting married.
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Isaac, a 7-foot center who had played for both Oregon and Utah State, was transferring to the University of Hawaii for his final season of college basketball.
Journeying 3,000 miles away from home was a major leap of faith, but the Johnsons had an instant community waiting for them in Honolulu.
Three of Isaac’s new Hawaii teammates — Hunter Erickson, Isaac Finlinson and Tanner Cuff — were all Utah natives, Latter-day Saints, returned missionaries, married and brand new to the island, just like him.
“It’s been super nice just to have this community,” Johnson told the Deseret News. “It makes things very easy for us, it was an immense weight off my shoulders to know that we had people around us who shared the same beliefs.”
The Johnsons, Ericksons, Finlinsons and Cuffs attend church together each Sunday, often gathering again in the evening to play games or make treats and spending time at the beach during the week as well.
The young couples aren’t merely teammates or fellow ward members — they’re a family, and such a bond has become a true blessing on the hardwood.
Fresh off a Big West Conference championship, Hawaii is making its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2016, facing No. 4 seed Arkansas Thursday afternoon at Moda Center in Portland.
The “Utah crew,” as Erickson calls it, has been a key reason why the Rainbow Warriors are back in the Big Dance.
Johnson, Erickson and Finlinson have accounted for 40% of Hawaii’s total scoring. All-Big West selections Johnson and Erickson have started in every game this season, and Finlinson has made 15 starts as well.
While Cuff has missed the entire campaign with an injury, he should be credited with a very crucial assist — he helped convince Johnson to come to Hawaii after the latter entered the transfer portal out of Utah State.
But it was Rainbow Warriors assistant coach Gibson Johnson, a Utah native himself, who led the recruiting charge to get the quartet to Hawaii, where each of the upperclassmen caught the vision of taking the program to the next level.
“Everybody’s got different roles on the team, and regardless of what it was, everyone on this team bought into it and came together to be a team and a family,” Erickson said. “Obviously that allowed us to win the Big West tournament and put us in this position.
“... This was our goal the whole time, to get to March Madness. This is what I believe every college player dreams of, getting to this stage. And it’s just awesome that we were able to accomplish this.”
The members of the ‘Utah crew’ weren’t unfamiliar with each other prior to teaming up at Hawaii. Erickson and Johnson played AAU ball together. Johnson and Cuff were teammates at American Fork High. Cuff and Erickson were on the same Salt Lake Community College squad.
Additionally, Erickson spent the first two years of his college career at BYU, playing alongside Johnson’s older brother Spencer.
BYU guard Hunter Erickson (0) brings the ball up court against Gonzaga in the second half during a game Saturday, Feb. 5, 2022, in Provo, Utah. | Rick Bowmer“To be able to have him as an older brother, to watch his example and just see the type of player and the type of person he is, that has helped shape me to be where I’m at,” Isaac said of Spencer. “He’s an amazing dude. Great father, awesome husband, amazing brother.”
Following his time at BYU, the Timpview High product Erickson bet on himself by spending a junior college year at SLCC, then wound up at Utah for two seasons before his senior stop at Hawaii.
It’s been an unconventional college journey for Erickson, but he maintains a perspective of pure gratitude. “Everything works out, everything happens for a reason, and it’s been awesome.”
Erickson does, however, take a great deal of pride in representing the state of Utah within the basketball world.
“I think Utah’s got to be one of, if not the most underrated basketball (hotbeds) in the country,” Erickson said. “Just going down the list of the (college) players is a testament to the kind of basketball that there is in Utah. Obviously being born and raised there, it’s just awesome to be able to be one of those guys that’s representing the state, and hopefully we can continue to do that.”
Johnson’s career has also seen a number of twists and turns, beginning at Oregon, transferring to Utah State and now finishing up with the conference champion Rainbow Warriors.
But Johnson credits his mission experience in Ohio — especially serving on the campus of Youngstown State University — as a significant influence for keeping him humble and grounded through the uncertainties of college life.
“I was around people my age (at Youngstown State) who were doing the complete opposite of what I was doing, and so for me to have that purpose and to realize that early on, I think that did wonders for me,” Johnson said. “When I got to college, I was able to know exactly where I was supposed to be, the type of human I was supposed to be. I had a lot less things to worry about figuring out who I was, because that identity was already instilled in me.”
Hawaii’s NCAA Tournament history is anything but robust, having won just a single game in the event in program history.
Erickson and Johnson may be one-and-done in Honolulu, but their efforts Thursday could cement them as Hawaii heroes forever if they’re successful in scoring an upset over Arkansas.
“That would mean everything to me, but hopefully it would mean more to the people of Hawaii,” Johnson said. “I want to leave a mark in a positive way. I hope that so far, regardless of wins or losses, I’ve done that. The people that I’ve come in contact with, I’ve tried to help leave a positive impact. And hopefully that’s what people remember me for. But wins and losses can definitely help boost that as well.
“If we can get another one and just keep pushing, that would be awesome. So we’re excited for this opportunity and hopefully we can keep it running.”
As for Erickson, he holds complete and total faith in his team. Beating Arkansas isn’t just wishful thinking — it’s the expectation.
“People might be overlooking us a little bit,” Erickson said. “I feel like we’re not like your typical mid-major team. We’ve got a lot of size and we can defend. I feel like those are two things that don’t really go together in most mid-major programs.
“I feel like we’ve got a high-major style team, and I think we’ll come out and shock some people.”
Hawaii guard Hunter Erickson drives during a game in the 2025-26 season. | University of Hawaii