Rainbow Wahine come up short in return to action

An 18-day layoff wasn't long enough to get the Rainbow Wahine basketball team back on the winning track.

Senior Monique Dawson scored a team-high 17 points to lead Western Carolina of the Southern Conference to a 69-60 victory over Hawaii last night on the first day of the Island Imaging Paradise Classic at the Stan Sheriff Center.

A crowd of 284 saw the Rainbow Wahine lose their third straight game and fall to 3-4 for the season.

"We had our opportunities but couldn't capitalize on them," Hawaii coach Jim Bolla said. "The key was rebounding and we couldn't get them when we needed to."

Tanya Smith finished with a game-high 18 points and 15 boards for Hawaii, which played its first game in nearly three weeks. Freshman Keisha Kanekoa scored 11 of her 13 points in the second half and Saundra Cariaga added 11, but it wasn't enough to overcome 35 percent shooting from the field and 19 turnovers.

"We're not a real good team in halfcourt sets right now," Bolla said. "We need to get it up and down the floor and be more consistent with what we're trying to do."

Hawaii continued its trend of slow starts on offense this season, misfiring on eight of its first 10 attempts. Western Carolina (6-2) led by as many as five before Hawaii bounced back to take its first lead at 19-18 on a shot by Megan Tinnin.

It was Hawaii's only advantage in the opening 20 minutes as the Lady Catamounts finished the half on a 16-9 run to take a six-point lead into the break. Kanekoa's desperation attempt from behind the halfcourt line to end the half was all net, but it came just after the buzzer.

Smith had a double-double in the first half with 10 points and 11 rebounds. The Lady Catamounts had a decisive advantage in free throws, however, making 11 of 14 shots. Hawaii attempted only two.

"We had a breakdown at the end of the half and instead of being down one, we're down six," Bolla said. "And we didn't go to the line in the first 19 minutes or so. We just weren't being aggressive."

Kanekoa, who was held to two points at intermission, exploded out of the gates in the second half with nine points in the opening minutes.

A putback by Iwona Zagrobelna gave Hawaii the lead at 43-42 with 12 minutes remaining, but again couldn't sustain the momentum on offense. The Rainbow Wahine missed 10 of their next 12 shots and scored just five points in an 8-minute stretch as Western Carolina retook the lead and never trailed again.

The Rainbow Wahine return to the court today against Tennessee Tech at 1 p.m. The Golden Eagles were routed by Oregon State 78-55 in yesterday's opening game. Hawaii and the Beavers will conclude the tournament Monday at 7 p.m.