HENDERSON, Nev. — After pulling out an overtime victory in the quarterfinals of the Credit Union 1 Big West Women's Basketball Championship, the University of Hawai'i women's basketball team will face top-seeded UC Irvine in a semifinal matchup on Friday, March 13 at Lee's Family Forum in Henderson, Nev. Tipoff is set for noon Pacific Time (9 a.m. Hawai'i Time).
 
The fourth-seeded Rainbow Wahine (21-10) advanced with a 72-61 win in overtime over No. 5 seed Cal State Fullerton on Thursday to post their ninth straight victory and 15^th in the last 16 games. The 'Bows earned a berth in the tournament's semifinal round for the eighth straight year. Friday's winner will advance to the championship game set for Saturday at 3 p.m. Pacific (noon Hawai'i time).
 

GAME 32: HAWAI'I RAINBOW WAHINE (21-10, 14-6 BIG WEST) vs. UC IRVINE ANTEATERS (26-5 17-3 BIG WEST)
Date | Time				Friday, March 13, 2026  |  12:00 p.m. PDT (9:00 a.m. HT)
Location				Lee's Family Forum | Henderson, Nev.
Television				None
Live Stream				ESPN+
Radio				ESPN Honolulu
Live Stats				bigwest.org
Game Notes				Hawai'i

  HEAD COACH LAURA BEEMANAt Hawai'i: 243-179 (14th season)

'BOWS NOTES

• UH improved to 23-19 in the Big West Championship overall and 10-7 in the quarterfinal round with Thursday's win. The 'Bows are 8-6 in the tournament semifinals.
• UH is riding the longest active winning streak in the Big West at nine straight victories. The 'Bows are in the midst of a remarkable turnaround in going 15-1 following a 6-9 start to the season overall and 0-5 in Big West play.
• The Rainbow Wahine reached 21 wins for the 13^th time in program history and the fourth time under head coach Laura Beeman.
• The Rainbow Wahine added 10 more blocked shots to their program single-season record on Thursday and now have 194 blocks this season, 31 clear of the previous record set in the 2002-03 season. UH leads the Big West with 6.26 blocks per game. UH's rate of blocked shots also remains ahead of the program record of 5.6 set in the 2004-05 season.
• Freshman guard Bailey Flavell led UH with 14 points on Thursday and remains on track to become the first freshman to lead the team in scoring since the 2010-11 season with 12.5 points per game.
• Saniyah Neverson has surged late in her senior season, averaging a team-best 14.4 points and 6.5 rebounds during UH's nine-game winning streak. She is shooting 60% from the field and is 9-for-14 from 3-point range over that span.
• Senior forward Imani Perez blocked four shots against Cal State Fullerton and moved into a tie for seventh on UH's single-season list with 52. She ranks sixth in career blocks with 131, three away from moving into the top five. On the offensive end, Perez is shooting 51.3% from the field overall, 47.4% from 3-point range, and 84.3% at the free-throw line.
• Sophomore Ritorya Tamilo has 44 blocked shots, surpassing her total of 41 last season when she set the UH freshman record, and is shooting 50.9% from the field.
• This season marks UH's farewell campaign in the Big West before joining the Mountain West starting with the 2026-27 season.

THE MATCHUP

UC Irvine Anteaters
Series Record: UH leads 40-16
Streak: UH won 1
Last Meeting: UH 55-50; Jan. 29, 2026; Honolulu

• Hawai'i and UC Irvine meet for the 57th time in a series that began in 1985.
• UC Irvine won this season's first meeting 50-47 on Jan. 10 at the Bren Events Center in Irvine, Calif., snapping UH's four-game winning streak in the series. UH led at the end of each of the first three quarters before UCI opened up a seven-point lead in the fourth period and held off UH's comeback bid.
• UH won the rematch 55-50 on Jan. 29 at Bankoh Arena at Stan Sheriff Center. Bailey Flavell scored all 18 of her points in the second half and the UH defense held the Anteaters 22 points below their season average.
• UH is 2-0 against UCI n the Big West Championship. UH defeated UCI in the 1994 quarterfinals and claimed the 2022 crown with a 59-48 win in the tournament final.
• The series has featured defensive battles over the last six meetings with UH averaging 51.3 points to UCI's 46.3 in those matchups.
• UH and UC Irvine combined to win the last five Big West regular-season titles. UH finished atop the standings in 2022, '24 and '25. The Anteaters captured the title in 2023 and shared the crown with UC San Diego this season.
• UC Irvine head coach Tamara Inoue is in her 10^th season with the Anteaters and has a record of 187-121. She has led UCI to at least 21 wins each of the last five seasons.
• The Anteaters lead the Big West in scoring offense (71.7 points per game) and rank second in scoring defense (57.7).
• UCI guard Hunter Hernandez was named the Big West Player of the Year. The senior ranks second in the Big West with 19.5 points per game.
• Guard Jada Wynn ranks third in the Big West with 3.8 assists per game, seventh with 7.2 rebounds per game and ninth with 15.0 points per game.

#HawaiiWBB