LAS VEGAS, Nev. — The University of Hawai'i women's basketball team's 2024-25 season came to an end on Thursday with a 63-46 loss to UNLV in the first round of the Women's Basketball Invitation Tournament at Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas.
 
The Big West regular-season champion Rainbow Wahine closed their season at 22-10 overall following their fourth straight postseason appearance.
 
UH took an early lead in the matchup of regular-season conference champions before UNLV (26-7) moved ahead and took a 27-20 lead into halftime. The Lady Rebels then opened the third quarter with an 11-0 run to take command and advanced to face Florida in the second round of the WBIT.
 
Lily Wahinekapu scored 12 of her game-high 18 points in the fourth quarter of her final game in a Rainbow Wahine uniform. The senior guard ended her UH career with 1,114 points over three seasons to place 18^th on the program's all-time scoring chart. She also hit two 3-pointers to raise her career total to 122, good for seventh in program history.
 
Wahinekapu, the Big West Player of the Year, was among six seniors who completed their careers on Thursday along with Hallie Birdsong, Kelsie Imai, MeiLani McBee, Brooklyn Rewers and Mia 'Uhila.
 
Rewers finished with 10 points, 'Uhila hit two 3-pointers to finish with six points and Imai helped spark UH's early with five points.
 
Meadow Roland led UNLV, the Mountain West regular-season champion, with 16 points and Amarachi Kimpson added 14 for the Rebels.
 
The 'Bows opened the game with an 8-0 run with Imani Perez and Imai hitting 3-pointers. UNLV went inside to take a 12-10 lead at the end of the first quarter.
 
The Rebels opened up a 19-12 lead before UH answered the 3-pointers from Rewers and 'Uhila. But Roland scored the next five points and McKinna Brackens hit a 3-pointer and UNLV led 27-20 at halftime. Roland, the Mountain West Freshman of the year and Sixth Player of the Year, had 11 points on 5 for 8 shooting through the first half.
 
The Rebels scored the first 11 points of the third quarter and opened up a 38-20 cushion on a 3-pointer by Kimpson followed by a floater by Alyssa Brown.
 
UNLV led 44-29 going into the fourth quarter and Wahinekapu hit two 3-pointers and scored on a drive to cut the deficit to 11 with just over two minutes remaining. But UNLV would allow UH to get no closer in closing out the win.
 
UH closed Laura Beeman's 13^th season as head coach with the ninth postseason appearance of her tenure and 20^th in program history.