By: Kennedy Choo

After a first-round exit against seventh-seeded UCLA in 2024, Utah State center Isaac Johnson entered the portal not knowing his next move. After a two-year mission in Columbus, Ohio, Johnson started his career at the University of Oregon before moving to Logan, where he played sparingly, averaging just 8.7 minutes and 3.7 points per game. He was looking for an expanded role.

After entering the portal, Johnson immediately received a call from former high school teammate Tanner Cuff. The two played together at American Fork High School, where they won the school’s first state championship in 40 years. Cuff, an Evansville transfer already committed to the University of Hawai‘i, pitched Johnson on joining the Rainbow Warriors.

“Dude, we need you over here,” Cuff said. “We can do something special again.”

Days later, Eran Ganot and the University of Hawai‘i offered Johnson a scholarship, and he committed to the Warriors.

Johnson, nicknamed “Big Fish,” had played with Cuff in their senior year, when Cuff and his father, Ryan, moved from Dixie High School in St. George to play in Salt Lake City.

“We had to treat him nice because he was the coach’s kid,” Johnson said jokingly. “Tanner and Coach came in with a winning mindset, and we’ve been friends ever since.”

Cuff wasn’t done recruiting. Around the same time, Ike Finlinson finished an outstanding career at Snow College, averaging 13.5 points per game, shooting 40% from beyond the arc, and earning National JUCO Player of the Year honors.

Cuff had played with Finlinson at Dixie High School and on the summer club circuit. Though two years older than Finlinson, he made another call to get him to the islands.

“I was definitely looking at Hawai‘i the whole time,” Finlinson said. “I saw Tanner come here — it definitely made me excited and helped me make this decision.”

After Finlinson committed, Cuff had one more teammate in mind: Hunter Erickson. The two had briefly played together at Salt Lake Community College before Cuff broke his hand, sidelining him for the rest of the 2022–23 season.

“It’s really nice to get to play with him now,” Erickson said. “We spent that whole summer at SLCC playing similar roles — him at point guard, me at shooting guard.”

Erickson had stops at BYU and Utah, but his ties to Hawai‘i ran deep. “Growing up, Samuta Avea was part of my basketball club, and Gibson Johnson helped get me here,” Erickson said.

The string of Utah players heading to Hawai‘i might seem like coincidence, but it’s anything but. At the heart of the pipeline is assistant coach and former Warrior Gibson Johnson, a Centerville, Utah native.

“I watched Tanner and Isaac at American Fork, played at the same junior college as Tanner and Hunter, and coached Ike at Utah Tech,” Johnson said.

Johnson was also Cuff’s first call when he entered the portal from Evansville after averaging 8.7 points, 3.4 assists, and 6.4 rebounds for the Aces. Johnson had previously recruited Cuff while on staff at Utah Tech in 2023.

“I was super excited that he still wanted to reach out to me and that he was excited about Hawai‘i,” Cuff said.

Johnson brought the Utah boys to Mānoa for a visit, and it was an easy sell.

“Hawai‘i is an amazing place,” said Johnson, who played for the Warriors from 2016–18 and helped lead the program to its most recent March Madness berth in 2016. “They’re nearing the end of their college careers, so to be able to come out and experience this place is special for them.”

Though 3,000 miles separate Hawai‘i and Utah, the Utah players have found a home away from home. Cuff, Erickson, Finlinson, and Johnson are all married, so game nights and beach days are essential for their families.

“It’s pretty awesome,” Johnson said. “We try to get together once every two weeks.”

Cuff, a new dad, holds Hawai‘i very close to his heart, having proposed to his wife here and welcomed his daughter, Halo, on the islands. Though sidelined with a knee injury, Cuff is still excited to bring winning back to the Stan Sheriff Center.

“We were super excited to live here and to play here,” Cuff said. “The culture of Hawai‘i is just really cool.”

Picked third in the preseason Big West poll, Cuff, Erickson, Finlinson, and Johnson are ready to get the season started in Eugene against the Oregon Ducks.

Johnson anchors the middle, Erickson provides scoring, and Finlinson brings energy off the bench while Cuff cheers on from the sidelines. The boys from the Beehive State are ready to go.

“Our goal is to not just make it to March Madness, but to win games,” Johnson said. “We’re excited to show everyone what we’ve been working on.”

The Rainbow Warriors begin their campaign at 5:30 p.m. Hawai‘i Time on Tuesday, November 4, on the Big Ten Network. Listen to the game on ESPN Honolulu 1420 AM and 92.7 FM.