Northridge, Calif.— The University of Hawai'i women's basketball team dropped its Big West Conference opener with a 58-54 loss on the road at CSUN Thursday evening.
 
The Rainbow Wahine (6-8) have lost three consecutive games, and this marks the fourth straight year of starting the conference season 0-1. The Matadors (6-9) with the reverse effect, and have won three in a row.
 
The first half featured the 'Bows' depth as all 11 active players saw action in the first 20 minutes, with nine of those 11 contributing in the scoring column. After being tied up at 7-7 at the first media timeout, UH went on a 9-2 run to end the quarter and controlled the lead through the first half. The 'Bows shot 50 percent from the floor and held a lead of 12-points at one point in the second quarter, leading to a 32-26 lead at the half.
 
As the game continued into the third quarter, CSUN chipped away at the lead, pulling to a 43-43 tie at the start of the fourth. The Matadors kept their offensive pace and slowly built to a lead, but senior guard Julissa Tago tried to provide a spark for the green and white, hitting a game-tying three-point bucket at 50-50 with six minutes to go in regulation. The home squad flipped the momentum through the final five minutes continuing their slow pace, ending the game on an 8-4.
 
Sophomore forward Myrrah Joseph led the 'Bows offensively with 11 points and pulled down a team-high six rebounds, but turned the ball over five times. Tago tallied 10 points and four rebounds.
 
UH committed 18 turnovers, but only allowed 10 points off turnovers. The Matadors controlled the rebounding battle with a plus-five advantage at 42-37, moving UH to 1-8 on the season when being outrebounded.
 
The Big West road trip continues for UH with a stop at defending champion UC Davis, Saturday at noon HT. The Aggies went undefeated at home a year ago against conference opponents, and the last time the 'Bows knocked off UCD on the road was back on Jan. 22, 2015.