The University of Hawaii women's basketball team looks to continue its education tomorrow when the Wahine host the Hawaii Invitational. The two-day tournament opens with Mississippi (5-1) taking on Santa Clara (4-1) at 1:30 p.m., followed by Hawaii (2-3) meeting Wright State (0-5) at 3:45 p.m. The winners and losers meet Sunday at 3:45 and 1:30 p.m., respectively.
Hawaii is coming off a 91-81 win over Southern Mississippi last Saturday that snapped a three-game losing skid. The Wahine averted a fourth consecutive defeat by changing a bothersome pattern that had seen them leading midway through the second half only to lose in the final minutes.
"Learning how to win at the end of a game means we're moving in the right direction," said Hawaii coach Vince Goo. "There's some things in the offensive and defensive direction that we need to work on, and we're working hard on it. I liked that we were able to come off the tough loss to Drake (78-74 in overtime) and come back to beat Southern Miss, which is a pretty good team.
"The difference in the two games is, in the last four minutes, we responded on the defensive end against Southern Miss. We created five turnovers, buckled down on defense instead of letting them extend their run."
Hawaii also hit its free throws down the stretch, sinking 7 of 8 in the last 90 seconds against Southern Miss. Against Drake two nights earlier, the Wahine were 7 of 16 in the second half, 0 for 4 in last 4:25.
Goo also credited the return of sophomore guard BJ Itoman in helping put defensive pressure on Southern Miss. Against Drake, Itoman took an elbow to the chin with 7:08 left in regulation, taking her team-high 16 points with her to the bench. Drake went on a 13-2 run after that to force the game into overtime.
Another key to the win over Southern Miss was the efforts of junior Nani Cockett, who scored 27 points, including a UH record of five 3-pointers. Cockett also had all five of the Wahine blocks, a career best.
Cockett has been floating between off-guard and small forward this season. Goo said he has no qualms about playing her at either spot.
Hawaii is not looking past winless Wright State but is concerned with its Sunday opponent. Both Santa Clara and Mississippi are enjoying excellent starts and both are led by outstanding guards.
The Broncos feature 5-foot-7 junior Lisa Sacco, who is averaging 14.6 points a game, while the Lady Rebels have senior Lisa Miller's 19-point average leading all scorers.
Goo said he would prefer seeing Ole Miss, which would help Hawaii's power rating. The Lady Rebels play in the top-rated conference in the country, the SEC.