Box Score

HONOLULU - Rice played the role of spoiler in Hawai`i's home finale, handing the Rainbow Wahine a 70-49 loss Saturday at the Stan Sheriff Center. UH dropped its third straight game and now stand at 10-13 overall and 6-10 in the WAC.

It was a night of emotion for the Rainbow Wahine as Jade Abele and Milia Macfarlane made their final home appearances on Senior Night. But Hawai`i ran into one of the hottest teams in the WAC as the Lady Owls (19-8, 12-4) won its seventh straight game. It was also Rice's sixth straight win in the series between the teams.

The Lady Owls led from wire-to wire and were never really threatened by the Rainbow Wahine, who after beating Louisiana Tech on February 10, dropped its last three home games of the season. After taking an eight-point advantage at the break, Rice built a double-digit lead early in the second half and never looked back. UH cut a 15-point deficit to just eight with 14 minutes left, but that would be as close as it would get.

Abele scored a game-high 19 points and added five rebounds and three steals and Macfarlane finished with two points, two rebounds and an assist in their final game before the home fans. Janevia Taylor chipped in 13 points for the Rainbow Wahine.

Rice got a balanced attack with four different players in double-digits led by Krystal Frazier (19 points), Lauren Neaves (16), Annie Peck (13) and Michelle Woods(12). Rice out-muscled the Rainbow Wahine on the boards with a 41-27 advantage and out-scored UH 17-6 on second-chance opportunities.

For the fifth straight game the Rainbow Wahine offense struggled. UH has averaged just 52 points and 32 percent shooting during the stretch and on Saturday Hawai`i shot just 34 percent and totaled 49 points against the Lady Owls.

The Rainbow Wahine finish the conference regular season with a pair of games on the road before heading to the WAC Tournament in Reno. First up is a meeting with Nevada on Thursday, March 3. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. PST.

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