HONOLULU — The University of Hawai'i women's basketball team won its sixth straight contest with a 67-44 dismantling of Long Beach State on Saturday at Bankoh Arena at Stan Sheriff Center. A season-high crowd of 4,671 saw the Rainbow Wahine improve to 12-9 overall and 6-5 in the Big West to punctuate the third iteration of Beeman's Big Bash.
A balanced UH attack was led by the twin towers of Imani Perez and Ritorya Tamilo. Perez scored a team-high 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting, while Tamilo posted her second career double-double with 10 points and 10 rebounds. The UH bench out-scored LBSU's bench by a whopping 32-0.
JaQuoia Jones-Brown scored a game-high 18 points for the Beach (3-18, 2-10) but it wasn't enough to prevent the 'Bows from winning for the fifth time in the last six meetings between the teams.
Saturday's attendance figure was the largest since the inaugural Beeman's Big Bash drew 5.068 in 2024 and UH improved to 3-0 in the event.
It was a true team effort for the 'Bows in the first half as all 10 UH players who saw playing time contributed to the scoring. After trailing early, UH outscored LBSU 18-5 in the second quarter to build a 32-22 at the break.
Jade Peacock and Keiara Curtis hit early 3-pointers for UH but Long Beach State closed the first quarter on a 7-0 run to take a 17-14 lead into the second. Perez scored off an assist from Curtis to ignite a 14-2 UH run to start the period. The UH defense held the Beach without a field goal until the 1:10 mark of the period and the 'Bows opened up a double-digit lead when Curtis hit two free throws following a Beach technical foul.
Long Beach State opened the third quarter with a 9-0 run to close to within a point before Curtis scored on a drive. Curtis found Perez for a layup and drained a 3-pointer moments later to ignite a 13-1 UH run to close the period and UH took a 47-34 lead into the final period.
UH maintained a double-digit lead throughout the fourth quarter and freshman Ella Collins sent the crowd into a frenzy when she scored on a breakaway layup to push the 'Bows to 67 points.
The 'Bows out-scored the Beach 36-20 in the paint and forced 19 LBSU turnovers in which they parlayed into 30 points.
The Rainbow Wahine will have a single-game road trip next week with a matchup at UC San Diego on Feb. 7 at LionTree Arena in La Jolla, Calif.
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