HONOLULU — In a battle for the top of the Big West standings, the University of Hawai'i women's basketball team shut down UC Irvine, 55-43, Saturday at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center. With their fifth win in the last six contests the Rainbow Wahine (12-8, 9-2) claimed sole possession of first place in the Big West race before the largest home crowd of the season.

The 'Bows did it with defense, limiting the Anteaters to 25 percent shooting on the night, including 0-of-15 from behind the three-point arc. UH set the tone by spotting UCI (13-7, 7-3) just nine first-quarter points and by game's end held its seventh opponent this year to under 50 points. 
 
UH guard MeiLani McBee hit two key 3-pointers in the fourth quarter and led the Rainbow Wahine with 14 points — all of them coming in the second half. Lily Wahinekapu scored in double figures for the 10th time in the last 11 games with 11 points, while Imani Perez returned to the court after a one-game absence to chip in 10 points. Perez scored 17 points in the first meeting with UC Irvine and with Saturday's 4-for-5 shooting performance went 11 for 12 against the Anteaters to help the 'Bows sweep the regular-season series. 

UH held UC Irvine 20 points under its season average and won the rebounding battle 44-32 with the backcourt combination of Wahinekapu, McBee and Daejah Phillips each grabbing seven boards.

The 'Bows entered the game first in the Big West and 19th in the country in holding opponents to 26.1 percent shooting from 3-point range and held a team without a 3-pointer for the first time since Cal State Fullerton went 0 for 10 on Jan. 23, 2020. 

The game pitted the top two defensive teams in the league. Olivia Davies banked in a 3-pointer for the game's first bucket, but UH's offense went cold for over five minutes and UC Irvine inched out to a 6-3 lead. The 'Bows then went on a 10-2 run, with Daejah Phillips and Wahinekapu contributing four points each, to surge ahead. It was a lead they would not relinquish.
 
UH carried the momentum into the second quarter with Davies hitting a corner 3 in an 8-2 burst to open the period and stretch the lead to double digits at 21-11. The 'Bows twice led by 12 on mid-range jumpers by Phillips and Jacque David and UH went into halftime with a 27-18 cushion.

UC Irvine's pressure contributed to six UH turnovers in the third quarter and guard Deja Lee scored all 13 of the Anteaters' points in the period and cut UH's lead to 37-31 at the 2:28 mark of the quarter. Wahinekapu answered with a 3-pointer to swing the momentum back to the 'Bows going into the fourth.
 
McBee hit two 3-pointers early in the fourth and came up with her second block of the game to help UH extend the lead back to double figures. UH went up 49-35 when Perez scored inside and converted the three-point play and the 'Bows built its lead to as many as 17 points before winning by a dozen.

Lee led UCI with 21 points but went scoreless in the fourth quarter. 

The Rainbow Wahine head back on the road to face UC San Diego on Feb. 8 in La Jolla, Calif., and UC Davis on Feb. 10 in Davis, Calif.