The University of Hawai’i women’s basketball team will travel to California this weekend, carrying the Big West Conference’s longest current winning streak. The Rainbow Wahine, who have won their last six games, are set to face conference leader UC San Diego at LionTree Arena in La Jolla on Saturday, February 7.
Hawai’i recently swept its homestand with victories over then-co-leader UC Irvine and Long Beach State. With a 12-9 overall record and 6-5 in the Big West, the team has climbed to sixth place after losing its first five conference games. Freshman guard Bailey Flavell continues to lead the team in scoring with an average of 13.6 points per game and has been the top scorer in 12 contests this season.
Another key contributor is freshman guard Keiara Curtis, who has scored in double figures in 10 of the last 11 games and made at least one three-pointer in each of those games. Senior forward Imani Perez anchors the defense, ranking second in the conference and 38th nationally with an average of 1.75 blocked shots per game. She also ranks second in total blocks within the Big West.
As a unit, Hawai’i leads the Big West and is ninth nationally with an average of 5.9 blocks per game—surpassing their previous program record set during the 2004-05 season. Senior forward Saniyah Neverson is shooting 54.2% from the field during conference play, placing her third among Big West players.
Defensively, Hawai’i holds opponents to a field-goal percentage of just 36.1%, which ranks second in the conference and among the top 25 nationally. During their current win streak, they have limited teams to only 49.5 points per game on 33.4% shooting.
Saturday’s matchup marks the eleventh meeting between Hawai’i and UC San Diego since their series began in 2022; both teams have won five times each so far. In La Jolla, Hawai’i leads with three wins out of four games played there.
The last time these teams met was on January 3 when UC San Diego secured a victory (65-54) at Bankoh Arena at Stan Sheriff Center. Erin Condron led UCSD with 16 points while Rosa Smith added four three-pointers for a total of 14 points; Curtis led Hawai’i with 13 points.
Hawai’i senior Izzy Forsyth previously played three seasons for UC San Diego before joining UH this year, appearing in more than eighty games for her former team and serving as captain during her final season there.
UC San Diego enters this week atop the Big West standings with a record of 10-1 (15-6 overall). The Tritons are coached by Heidi VanDerveer, who is now in her fourteenth season at UCSD with an overall coaching record that spans more than two decades.
Condron currently leads UCSD with averages of over fifteen points and eight rebounds per game while topping all conference players in field-goal percentage (.556). Dymonique Maxie leads the league with eighty-nine assists (4.2 per game), and Sabrina Ma tops all players with fifty-four three-pointers made so far this season.
The game will tip off at LionTree Arena on Saturday at 4:00 p.m. Pacific Time (2:00 p.m. Hawaii Time) and can be streamed live on ESPN+.
