IRVINE, Calif. – UC Irvine women's basketball struggled from the perimeter in a 49-44 loss to league-leading Hawai'i Saturday afternoon at the Bren Events Center.

The Anteaters missed their first 11 3-point attempts and finished the game shooting a season-low 13.8% (4-29) from beyond the arc.  
 
"It was uncharacteristic of us," head coach Tamara Inoue said of UCI's shooting performance. "I thought we had some good looks and took some good shots, they just didn't go in. We're a good shooting team so it was a bit of a shock to not see us hit shots like that, especially at home."
 
The 'Eaters (16-8, 10-4 Big West) did a good job defensively, forcing 18 turnovers and holding the Rainbow Wahine to 32% overall and 3-of-17 from distance.
 
Hawai'i (19-6, 13-2 Big West) won its 13th in a row and extended its lead in The Big West standings to 2.5 games over UC Irvine.
 
BY THE NUMBERS: UCI did not have a double-digit scorer for only the second time this season. Senior Déja Lee and junior Hunter Hernandez led the Anteaters with eight points apiece. Hernandez also pulled down five rebounds, while Lee notched four boards and three assists.
 
Senior Nevaeh Dean added seven points and three blocks. Senior Nikki Tom finished with five points, a team-best six rebounds, three assists and three steals.
 
The Rainbow Wahine had two double-figure scorers as Kelsie Imai led all players with 12 points and Imani Perez had 10. Ritorya Tamilo also recorded eight points and 10 rebounds.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED: UC Irvine forced eight turnovers in the first quarter but was unable to capitalize, shooting just 19% from the field and 0-for-9 from deep. Junior Olivia Williams got the Anteaters on the board at the 6:06 mark and Lee tied it up at 4-4 just under a minute later, but Hawai'i proceeded to outscore the 'Eaters, 12-4, the rest of the way for a 16-8 lead.
 
UCI opened the second period with a 7-1 spurt, including five-straight points from Hernandez to close the gap to two with 7:11 remaining. The Rainbow Wahine then ended a two-plus minute scoring drought with a layup before an and-1 from Lee started a 9-0 rally that put UC Irvine on top, 24-19 with 2:08 to go. The 'Bows accounted for the final four points of the half as the Anteaters held a 24-23 edge at the break.
 
It was a seesaw battle in the third frame with seven lead changes. The two teams traded buckets until UH pulled ahead, 37-34, in the final seconds.
 
Hawai'i took the momentum in the fourth, going up by seven before Williams knocked down a big 3-pointer to cut the deficit to 41-37 at the 7:29 mark. That would be the final field goal of the game as it was all free throws from there. The 'Eaters went 7-for-10 at the stripe, while the Rainbow Wahine were a perfect 8-of-8 down the stretch to hold on for the 49-44 victory.
 
UP NEXT: UC Irvine will look to get back in the win column next week when it makes its way to CSUN for a 6 p.m. game on Thursday, Feb. 20. The Anteaters then return to the Bren Events Center for their Breast Cancer Awareness Game against Cal State Bakersfield on Saturday, Feb. 22.
 
NOTES
• UC Irvine and Hawai'i rank among the top-15 in the nation in scoring defense.
• That showed in the season series as the two teams scored fewer than 50 points in both meetings.
• UCI lost back-to-back games for just the second time this season.
• The 'Eaters have been swept in a Big West series only three times since 2020-21, with all three coming at the hands of Hawai'i.
• Nikki Tom surpassed the 700-point benchmark in her Anteater career.
• Tom also increased her career steals total to 192, putting her just four back of school-record holder Andee Ritter.
• Déja Lee, who was recognized before the game for reaching 1,000 career points on Feb. 1, now ranks 13th in program history (1,030).