Game Notes | Tournament Bracket | Championship Central 

LONG BEACH, Calif. – The University of Hawai'i women's basketball team will have to win four games in five days in order to defend its Big West Conference Tournament title, as the sixth-seeded Rainbow Wahine open the tournament in Long Beach State's Walter Pyramid against seventh-seeded Cal Poly on March 7. Tip-off of the opening round game is set for 6:30 p.m. (HT), or 30 minutes after the conclusion of Game 1 between (8) UC Irvine and (5) UC Riverside.
 
Tuesday's game will be broadcast live on ESPN3.
 
(6) Hawai'i Rainbow Wahine
Sixth-seeded Hawaii puts its season-long three-game win streak on the line and looks to go 3-0 against Cal Poly this season in the opening round of the 2017 Big West Tournament. The Rainbow Wahine are 11-17 overall and went 7-9 in the Big West. The 'Bows are led by first-team all-Big West honoree Sarah Toeaina, who averages 13.9 points per game overall and 15.9 points per game in Big West play. Toeaina averaged 23.0 points 4.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game in Hawai'i's two wins over Cal Poly during the regular season. Briana Harris adds 9.8 points per game for UH. Hawai'i is out-rebounding its opponents by 15 boards per game during its three-game winning streak.
 
(7) Cal Poly Mustangs
Seventh-seeded Cal Poly matches Hawai'is 11-17 overall and 7-9 Big West records.  Twins Dynn and Lynn Leaupepe each averaged 15.0 points per game for CP, both starting all 28 games, with Dynn out-doing her sister by just one point, scoring 421 to Lynn's 420 on the season. Hannah Gilbert added 14.0 points per game for Cal Poly, but that trio represents the only Cal Poly players to average more than 4.5 points per game this season.
 
THE SERIES
Cal Poly leads the all-time series against Hawai'i 8-6, but the Rainbow Wahine have won five in a row against the Mustangs, including a regular-season sweep this year. The 'Bows are 0-1 all-time against Cal Poly in the Big West Tournament.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
The winner of Tuesday's game will advance to the Big West quarterfinals to face either CSUN or UC Santa Barbara. If fifth-seeded UC Riverside aviods an upset by No. 8 UC Irvine, then CSUN will take on the winner of Hawai'i-Cal Poly.
 
GAME 29
WHO: (6) Hawaii (11-17, 7-9 Big West) vs (7) Cal Poly (11-17, 7-9 Big West)
WHAT: Big West Conference Tournament – Opening Round
WHEN: Tuesday, March 7, 2017 – 6:30 p.m. (HT)
WHERE: Walter Pyramid – Long Beach, Calif.
TV: ESPN3
LIVE STREAM: WatchESPN
RADIO: ESPN 1420 AM
LIVE STATS: HawaiiAthletics.com
STREAMING AUDIO: espn1420am.com