Box Score

HONOLULU--Fairfield used a strong second half effort and withstood a late rally to defeat Hawaii, 67-65, on the opening night of the Ala Moana Hotel Paradise Classic. The Rainbow Wahine had the game's final possession but failed to convert on two opportunities in dropping their second straight game.

Fairfield will play Northern Iowa for the tournament championship Tuesday afternoon at 3 p.m. The Panters defeated Tennessee Tech, 76-73 in the day's earlier action. UH faces Tennessee Tech at 5 p.m. in the consolation game.

The Rainbow Wahine (2-6) nearly overcame a nine-point deficit in the closing minutes to win the game. A Schrene Isidora layup with 3:20 left gave the Stags (3-5) a 66-57 lead with just 3:20 remaining, but UH battled back by scoring eight straight points. Jade Abele's layup with 33 seconds left cut the Fairfield lead to 66-65. UH then sent the Stags to the line where they converted one-of-two attempts.

The Rainbow Wahine retained possession with eight seconds and after a timeout, junior guard Milia Macfarlane took the ball the length of the court. Macfarlane missed a runner in heavy traffic, but freshman guard Janevia Taylor gathered the rebound in the middle of the lane. However, her turnaround jumper from five feet out bounced of the backboard as time expired.

UH led nearly the entire first half, and at one point held a 10-point lead early in the game. Powered by Abele who scored 17 points, and dominating performance on the glass (28-15 advantage), Hawaii held a 35-33 lead at the break. Fairfield, however, scored the first six points of the second half and would not trail again. The Stags shot 42 percent from the floor and out-rebounded UH, 23-14, in the second half. They also held Abele in check, by limiting her to just four second-half points.

Abele led all scorers with 21 points and also added eight rebounds. Taylor finished with a season-high 12 points and five rebounds. Fairfield got a balanced attack as Marybeth Chartier was the only Stag to finish in double-digits with 11 points.