Wahine look to keep streak alive

The Hawaii Rainbow Wahine have a nice four-game winning streak going with the last three victories coming against teams they lost to earlier in the year.

The same situation exists tomorrow when Hawaii plays Fresno State in a Western Athletic Conference basketball game at the Stan Sheriff Center at 7 p.m.

The Wahine (11-12, 5-6) lost 75-69 in overtime to the Bulldogs (13-10, 6-4) at Fresno on Jan. 13

Hawaii can even its overall record, its conference record and the regular-season series with Fresno State with a victory tomorrow night.

"We didn't shoot very well in that game (37 percent from the field) and we were just 2-for-15 from behind the 3-point line. Hopefully, that will be better at home," said interim head coach Pat Charity.

Hawaii outrebounded the Bulldogs, but that advantage was offset when UH committed 24 turnovers to FSU's 16.

The Wahine also will have to contend with two of the top-six scorers in the WAC.

The guard tandem of 5-foot-9 Chantella Perera and 5-8 Tierra Wilson have led FSU in scoring a combined 19 times.

Perera averages 15.2 points a game, third in the conference, and scored 28 in the win over UH earlier this season. Wilson knocked down 20 in that game and averages 14.2 points an outing, sixth best in the league.

"We were in a zone and didn't match up very well. Those two took it to the basket and Perera got to the free-throw line (11-for-12)," Charity said. "We will have to do some different things on defense. We need to mix it up on them.

The Bulldogs (13-10, 6-4) also are coming off a two-game road trip. They defeated Nevada last Thursday and lost to New Mexico State 67-63 last Saturday. FSU is 6-7 on the road this year.

The Wahine's winning streak is the longest of the season and follows a disappointing January when they started league play with a 1-6 record.

"Our players are not cocky at all. They are pretty humble," Charity said. "They just want to finish strong because we have so many seniors."

A solid finish would provide the Wahine with momentum heading into the WAC tournament next month.

Hawaii's top three scorers remain the same. Pam Tambini averages 12.8 points a game, followed by Janevia Taylor (11.3) and Tanya Smith (11.0).

Rebounding honors go to Smith (9.1 per game), while Brittany Grice (35) and Iwona Zagrobelna (33) have stuffed the majority of Hawaii's 113 blocked shots.

Note: Taylor's first point tomorrow will move her into ninth place on UH's all-time scoring list. She is now tied with Ayesha Brooks with 1,131. ... Grice moved into 10th place on the all-time rebound list on the recent road trip. She now has 549 boards.