Game Notes

HONOLULU—The University of Hawai'i women's basketball team (16-12, 12-5 Big West) hosts their season finale with Senior Night on Saturday, March 9 against Cal State Fullerton (9-20, 5-12 Big West). It will be the final home game for four departing players: Kanisha Bello, Monica DeAngelis, Stephanie Ricketts and Vicky Tagalicod. The Rainbow Wahine are looking to avenge their loss at CSUF in their conference opener, 83-74 (Jan. 3). Hawai'i is still in the hunt to receive a double-bye as a top two team in the upcoming Big West tournament. But the 'Bows can finish no lower than third place.
 
First year head coach Laura Beeman has turned the UH program around in the blink of an eye. The Rainbow Wahine have won five of its last six games and seven of its last eight home games. This is the first time since the 2006-07 season that the Rainbow Wahine will finish the season with a winning record both overall and in conference action. The 12 conference wins are the most since the 2001-02 season when the Vince Goo led squad posted a 14-4 record and finished second in the Western Athletic Conference.
 
UH will honor its four “seniors”—Monica DeAngelis, Stephanie Ricketts, Kanisha Bello and Vicky Tagalicod—at the conclusion of the game against the Titans. DeAngelis and Ricketts are both graduate students who earned their undergraduate degrees last season. DeAngelis is a one-year transfer from Loyola Marymount who has improved throughout the season to become the floor general for the UH attack. She is also the 'Bows' most potent deep threat from beyond the arch. She leads Hawai'i with 32 made 3-pointers and a .333 3-point percentage. She has also dished out a team-high 62 assists—41 of which have come in conference play—and leads UH's starters with a .768 free-throw percentage.
 
Ricketts joined the basketball team after a storied career on the softball diamond. The two-time All-American, CoSIDA Academic All-American, Lowe's Senior CLASS All-American; and three-time WAC Pitcher of the Year is the all-time winningest softball pitcher in UH history. After graduating last spring with a degree in psychology, she played professional softball in Italy before returning home to begin the accelerated master's nursing program at UH. She has become a valuable asset to the team with her championship mentality, toughness and work ethic. Ricketts has been able to balance the rigors of an intense academic program while playing DI basketball. She has seen her minutes increase as of late and this past game, she played her longest game of the season with 30 minutes in which she grabbed a season-high six rebounds with three assists, two steals and a block.
 
Bello athletically is a junior transfer from Idaho, but academically, she is a senior who will be graduating this summer with a degree in history. The last two seasons she has boosted the team with her sweet shooting stroke and tireless work ethic. She has appeared in 41career games over the last two seasons and has made29 treys; averaged 5.7 points per game and has a career .795 free throw percentage.
 
Tagalicod also is a junior athletically but a senior academically who will be graduating this spring with a degree in sociology. Both she and Bello have chosen to forego their final year on the basketball court to begin new careers after UH. Tagalicod originally enrolled at USC before returning to her home state to play in front of her family and friends. She has appeared in 48career games the past two seasons and was one of the team's top scoring threats as a starter last year. This year she has transitioned to the role of a top reserve. She has provided the team an offensive spark off the bench—including an 18-point performance in the team's win over UC Riverside this past Thursday.
 
Hawai'i's Kamilah Martin continues to lead the 'Bows with 15.3 points and 9.8 rebounds per game—just shy of a double-double. She recorded her 12th double-double of the season in UH's most recent win over UC Riverside on Thursday in which she poured in 21 points and 13 rebounds. Martin is now ranked No. 11 in UH's all-time scoring list with 1,156 points and is second in every UH career rebounding record behind former UH All-American Judy Mosely.
 
Cal State Fullerton is fighting for their season to continue into the Big West tournament. They are currently tied with UC Irvine for the eighth and final spot in the Big West tournament with a 5-12 conference record. The Titans are looking to snap a two game losing streak in which they fell by identical 47-72 scores to Cal Poly at home and Cal State Northridge on the road. CSUF is led by Chante Miles who is averaging 10.5 points per game overall and 8.2 points in conference. She leads the perimeter-shooting team with 30 made treys and she also leads the team with 62 free-throws; a .785 free-throw percentage; 80 assists and 55 steals. Alex Thomas is averaging 8.6 points per game while Mya Olivier is scoring 6.5 points per game.
 
Game 29 Tipoff Notes
Who: Hawai'i (16-12, 12-5 Big West) vs. Cal State Fullerton (9-20, 5-12 Big West)
Date: Saturday, March 9, 2013
Time: 7:00 pm
Where: Stan Sheriff Center (10,300) – Honolulu, O'ahu
Television: Live statewide on OCSports – Channels 16 (SD) and 1016 (HD) with Jim Leahey (play-by-play) and Lori Santi (color) on the call.
Streaming Video: Live video streaming is available on ocsports.tv
Radio: ESPN 1500 am will carry the game live with Dave Kawada (play-by-play) and Tiff Wells (color). Neighbor islands can listen live on KNUI on Maui, KHLO in Hilo, KKON in Kona and KTOH on Kaua'i.
Live Stats: Live in-game stats available at HawaiiAthletics.com
Ticket Information: General admission-adult: $7; General Admission-Senior Citizen: $5; Students (ages 4-high school): $3; UH Manoa Students receive admission to regular season home games by presenting a valid UH I.D. UH has a 2-for-1 ticket special going on for this game in which fans receive a free ticket (of equal or lesser value) with each ticket purchased to the Rainbow Wahine's game against CSU Fullerton (Mar.9). Tickets need to be purchased at the Stan Sheriff Center Box Office
Promotions: Chevron is the sponsor of Saturday's “Senior Night” game and will distribute 200 rally towels at Gate A and award $250 in gas cards at halftime. Also, register at the sports marketing table inside Gate A to win one of the four “Lucky Seat” drawings, with the prize being a $25 Chevron gas card. The University of Hawaii Federal Credit Union will distribute 500 women's basketball team photos and award plaques to the seniors during a special post-game presentation.
Coaches: Hawai'i head coach Laura Beeman is in her first season at the helm of the Rainbow Wahine program. She has 16-12 overall record and an 12-5 mark in conference. Prior UH, Beeman made her mark at the junior college level where she enjoyed a phenomenally successful 15-year run as the head coach at Mt. San Antonio College (Mt. SAC). There she led the Mounties to 10 conference championships and four California Community College State Championships—including a string of three straight from 2006-08. Beeman posted a 390-110 (.780) record during her tenure at Mt. SAC. Her combined JC and DI record is now 406-122. UC Riverside's head coach: John Margaritis is in his 15th season overall and has a career record of 244-205. He has led the Highlanders for the past nine seasons with a 138-136 record.  CSUF Head coach Marcia Foster is in her third season at CSUF and has a 33-58 record with the Titans. Overall she is has a 36-80 record in four seasons.
Series History: Overall, the Titans hold a slim 13-12 edge over Hawai'i with the win to start the Big West conference season this year. CSUF defeated UH, 83-74 on Jan. 3 this season.