UCI Hosts Hawai'i on Thursday

Thursday, January 11

Irvine, Calif.

6:00 PM

UC Irvine

Hawai'i

UCI Hosts Hawai'i on Thursday

January 10, 2024 | Women's Basketball

ESPN+KUCI Live Stats Game Notes

Hawai'i (6-6, 3-0 Big West) at
UC Irvine (9-5, 3-1 Big West)
Date: Thursday, Jan. 11
Time: 6 p.m. (PST)
Location: Bren Events Center (5,000) - Irvine, Calif.
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IRVINE, Calif. - UC Irvine women's basketball will look to extend its seven-game home winning streak when it hosts early league-leader Hawai'i on Thursday, Jan. 11. Tip-off is set for 6 p.m. at the Bren Events Center.

STARTING FIVE: STORYLINES
• Hawai'i and UC Irvine were picked first and second, respectively, in the 2023-24 Big West Preseason Coaches Poll. In Thursday's early season match-up, that is exactly where the programs sit as the Rainbow Wahine are 3-0 in conference play, which puts them a half-game ahead of UCI, UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly who are all 3-1. Last year, the Anteaters won the Big West regular-season championship, while UH defended its conference tournament title. The two teams have been evenly matched over the last five years with each side winning five games in the all-time series since 2019. Six of those 10 contests were decided by five points or less.

• UC Irvine has a streak of 48 consecutive games holding its opponent to under 70 points. The last time the Anteaters gave up 70+ was in an overtime win against UC Davis in the 2022 Big West quarterfinals (March 11, 2022). This year, the 'Eaters have allowed 60 points or less in 10 of their 14 games and lead The Big West in scoring defense (55.6 ppg). Hawai'i is right behind UCI with 55.8 points allowed per game, while it has given up a conference-best average of 43.3 points in its three Big West outings.

• Since 2020-21, UC Irvine has not lost more than four conference games in a season, combining for a league-leading 44-11 (.800) record during that stretch. Last year, the Anteaters went 16-2 to win the program's first Big West regular-season title.

• Juniors Déja Lee (516) and Nikki Tom (510) both surpassed 500 career points in last Saturday's game at UC Davis. Lee led all scorers with 17 points, while Tom finished with 14. The two guards combined to go 11-for-16 (68.8%) from the field and 6-of-8 (75%) from beyond the arc. It was Lee's 24th career double-figure scoring performance, and the 20th for Tom.

• Since 2017-18, UCI is 62-22 (.738) when playing at the Bren Events Center. Dating back to last year, the Anteaters have won seven consecutive home games with their last loss coming against Long Beach State, 52-50, on Feb. 4, 2023. This season, the 'Eaters are 4-0 with a +16.3 scoring margin on their home court. They have played most of their games away from the Bren where they are 4-4 in true road contests and 1-1 in neutral-site match-ups. UCI was on the road for three of its first four conference games.

SCOUTING THE RAINBOW WAHINE
Hawai'i (6-6, 3-0 Big West) earned two home wins last week, defeating Cal State Bakersfield, 67-43, and CSUN, 67-38. The Rainbow Wahine had two Preseason All-Big West selections in Lily Wahinekapu and Daejah Phillips. Wahinekapu is currently tops on the squad in scoring at 9.1 points per game, while Phillips is tied for second with Imani Perez at 8.7 points per outing. Brooklyn Rewers has also pulled down a team-best 6.2 rebounds per contest.

SERIES RECORD
UC Irvine trails in its all-time series with Hawai'i, 35-15, but won both meetings last year. The Anteaters upended the 'Bows, 71-67, in overtime at the Stan Sheriff Center on Jan. 19. Just over a month later on Feb. 25, the two teams had another overtime thriller at the Bren Events Center. The 'Eaters were down, 66-64, in the extra period before Amelia Scharpf knocked down a jumper in the paint to tie it up with 1:35 to go. After a few big defensive stops, UCI executed the game-winning baseline out-of-bounds play with Déja Lee finding Nevaeh Parkinson for the layup and the 68-66 lead with 0.4 seconds on the clock. The Rainbow Wahine were able to get a shot off before the buzzer but their deep three hit the back iron as time expired.

LAST TIME OUT
UC Irvine was handed its first Big West loss of the season last Saturday, falling 60-57 at UC Davis. The Anteaters led by as many as 10 early in the third quarter, but were outscored 19-14 in the period and 33-22 in the second half. The Aggies used a 7-0 spurt to go up 55-53 with 4:20 remaining in the game. It was their first lead since the 6:36 mark of the second quarter. The 'Eaters tied it up twice and had a couple late opportunities but were unable to convert down the stretch. Déja Lee went 7-for-10 from the floor and 3-of-4 from beyond the arc for a game-high 17 points. She also had a career-best six steals. Nikki Tom finished with 14 points on a 4-of-6 (3-4 3FG) shooting performance. Nevaeh Dean added nine points, while Amelia Scharpf grabbed a team-best five rebounds.

BOUNCE BACK TEAM
The Anteaters have not lost back-to-back contests since the end of the 2021-22 season when they fell to Hawai'i in the Big West Championship game (March 12, 2022) and UCLA in the first round of the WNIT (March 18, 2022). The last time they dropped consecutive regular-season games was at Arizona State on Dec. 21, 2021, and at Grand Canyon on Dec. 23, 2021.

LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN
Over the last three-plus years, no team has been better in Big West regular-season play than UCI. Since 2020-21, the Anteaters have not lost more than four conference games in a season, combining for a league-leading 44-11 (.800) record during that stretch.

MID-MAJOR POLL
UC Irvine dropped out of the receiving votes section of the latest College Insider Women's Mid-Major Poll released on Jan. 9. The Anteaters had been receiving votes in seven of the first nine weekly rankings (including preseason). Last year, they rose to as high as No. 13 (Jan. 24, 2023), which was a program best, before closing out the year at No. 23.

STRENGTH IN NUMBERS
The 'Eaters have used the same starting lineup in every game this season. Three starters are among the team's top-five scorers, while the reserves have also been a force to be reckoned with as the Anteaters have outscored their opponents in bench points by a 14.0 margin. Their 27.0 bench points per game rank 32nd in the nation.

BIG WEST ACCLAIM
Junior Déja Lee was named the Big West Player of the Week on Jan. 1 after averaging 17.5 points on 54% shooting in UCI's 2-0 conference start. Lee scored all 13 of her points in the second half of a 67-52 win at UC Riverside, and put up 17 of her game-high 22 in the final 20 minutes of a 71-48 victory over Cal State Bakersfield. Through four Big West games, Lee ranks second in the conference in 3-pointers made (2.8/gm), third in scoring (15.8 ppg) and fourth in field goal percentage (54%).

TWENTY-TWENTY
Déja Lee has three of UCI's four 20-point performances this season. Lee drained a career-high 23 in the opener at Pepperdine before matching that total vs. St. Thomas on Nov. 24. The 5-foot-9 point guard also dropped 22 against Cal State Bakersfield (Dec. 30) to help secure her first career Big West Player of the Week award. Lee, who has reached double figures in scoring in five-straight games, ranks first on the team with 12.9 points per outing and second with 2.2 assists per contest. She has 24 career 10+ point games and five 20-point efforts.

PICKING POCKETS
Déja Lee had a career-high six steals at UC Davis on Jan. 6. Her six takeaways tied for fourth in single-game school history and were the most by an Anteater since Kayla Williams had six at UCR on Feb. 10, 2022.

POWER 5 IMPACT
Moulayna Johnson Sidi Baba, a graduate transfer from Miami, is averaging 11.4 points and 5.8 rebounds in nine games played. Sidi Baba registered the Anteaters' first double-double of the year with 19 points and a season-best 11 boards against Colorado State on Dec. 16. She was just shy of her career-high 21 points, which she set at Big 12 member Texas Tech on Nov. 29. Sidi Baba was 8-for-16 from the field and a perfect 5-of-5 at the free throw line vs. the Lady Raiders. The 6-foot-1 guard/forward also reached double figures with 18 points at Cal State Fullerton (Jan. 4), 13 vs. Cal State Bakersfield (Dec. 30) and 10 in her UC Irvine debut against St. Thomas on Nov. 24. Sidi Baba missed the first four games recovering from an injury.

IRON WOMAN
Junior Nikki Tom has played in every game since her arrival at UC Irvine in 2021-22. She leads the team with 79 consecutive appearances, 56 consecutive starts and 2,259 minutes (28.6 mpg) in an Anteater uniform. This season, Tom ranks first in The Big West in free throw percentage (87.9%), third in minutes played (33.4 mpg) and seventh in steals (2.0 spg). The 5-foot-9 guard is also averaging 8.3 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists per outing. She has six double-figure scoring games with a season-high 15 points at Pacific. Tom was named to the All-Big West Preseason Coaches Team.

GIVE AND TAKE
Fifth-year senior Diaba Konate leads the Anteaters and ranks among the top-five in The Big West with 50 assists (3.6 apg) and 29 steals (2.1 spg). She dished out a season-best eight assists against Eastern Washington on Nov. 20 and had a UCI career-high tying five takeaways vs. Denver on Dec. 2. Konate has at least one steal in 38 of her 43 appearances as an Anteater. Last year, the All-Big West Defensive Team selection tied for eighth in single-season school history with 63 steals. In her collegiate career at Idaho State and UC Irvine, Konate has amassed 1,184 points, 391 rebounds, 434 assists and 244 steals.

SPARK OFF THE BENCH
Senior Nevaeh Parkinson, the reigning Big West Best Sixth Player, has continued to provide a spark off the bench for the Anteaters. The 6-foot-3 center is averaging 8.4 points and a team-best 5.9 rebounds per game, while shooting 57.9% from the field. Against Seattle U (Nov. 11), Parkinson went 8-for-11 from the floor to finish with a career-high 17 points. She also pulled down a season-best 11 rebounds in a win over Denver on Dec. 2.

DEAN FROM DOWNTOWN
Last year, Nevaeh Dean didn't attempt her first 3-pointer until the Anteaters' 26th game, but finished with three triples over the final four weeks of the campaign. This year, the 6-foot-2 forward has already surpassed that total as she is 5-of-9 from beyond the arc. Against Eastern Washington (Nov. 20), she went 6-for-9 from the field and knocked down both of her threes for a career-high 15 points. Dean, who transferred from Cincinnati last year, has started 45 of 46 games played at UC Irvine.

FRESH LOOK
Shirel Nahum ranks among The Big West's top-10 freshmen in scoring (5.6 ppg), rebounding (2.4 rpg) and minutes played (21.6 mpg). Nahum has three double-figure scoring games with a season-high 16 points at New Mexico State on Dec. 5.

PRESEASON PREDICTIONS
UCI was picked second in The Big West Preseason Coaches Poll. The 'Eaters earned two of the 11 first-place votes and 88 total points to come in behind defending conference tournament champion Hawai'i. Nikki Tom was named to the All-Big West Preseason Team.

UP NEXT
UC Irvine will make its way to UC San Diego on Thursday, Jan. 18, before returning home to host UC Davis on Saturday, Jan. 20.