IRVINE, Calif. – UC Irvine women's basketball showed their resolve down the stretch of a hard-fought 50-47 victory over Hawai'i Saturday afternoon at the Bren Events Center.
 
For the first time during their current 14-game win streak, the Anteaters trailed for more than six minutes, and faced a halftime deficit. They struggled against the length of UH's defense, shooting 29.8% overall and 22.7% from beyond the arc.
 
The 'Eaters scored a season-low 18 first-half points, but were able to keep it close with strong defense of their own as they forced nine turnovers and held the Rainbow Wahine to 21 points through the first 20 minutes.
 
UCI regrouped at the break, opening the third quarter on a 12-0 run to pull ahead, 30-21, but the 'Bows punched right back with a 12-0 rally of their own to reclaim the lead.
 
Hawai'i started the fourth period with an and-1 to increase its advantage to five. UC Irvine continued to battle, erasing the deficit over the next four minutes with consecutive threes from Lauryn Madsen and Hunter Hernandez putting the home team on top, 45-38, with 5:36 to play. UH responded once again, closing the gap to one, but Wynn, who scored the Anteaters' final five points, came up clutch, sinking a turnaround jumper in the paint with 20 seconds on the clock to seal the three-point win.
 

Jada gives the Anteaters a three-point lead with 20 seconds to go!#TogetherWeZot | #RipEm pic.twitter.com/CsBjD2PS2a

— UCI Women's Basketball (@UCIwbb) January 10, 2026

"We really respect Hawai'i; they have taken it to us over the last few years, so today was really just about figuring out how to win," head coach Tamara Inoue said. "It's hard to beat teams when they have had your number. We shot terribly today because of their defense so for us to be able to pull this one out, I'm just really proud of my team. Down the stretch, when I called timeouts to run a play, they executed it. Lauryn's three on the wing was huge, and at the very end for Hunter and Jada to finish the game the way they did was great. Everyone has their time and chances, but we really rely on those two to close games for us."
 
UC Irvine extended its school-record win streak to 14 games. The Anteaters improved to 15-2 overall, while remaining perfect in Big West play (6-0) and at home (8-0).
 
BY THE NUMBERS: Senior Hunter Hernandez finished with a game-high 20 points to go along with five rebounds and two steals. It was Hernandez's fifth-straight outing with 20 or more points.
 
Senior Jada Wynn added 15 points, eight rebounds, five assists, and two steals.
 
Sophomore Lauryn Madsen, who had a career-high six steals on Thursday, swiped five against the Rainbow Wahine.
 
Junior Summah Hanson had another solid performance with five points, eight boards, and two blocks, while junior Shirel Nahum chipped in four points and five assists.
 
The 'Eaters were outrebounded (39-33) for just the third time this season, but they won the battle in turnovers forced (14-5) and points off turnovers (13-0).
 
The 'Bows shot 32.1% from the field, 37.5% from distance, and 80% at the free throw line. They were led by Bailey Flavell, who finished with 13 points and six assists.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED: Hawai'i (6-9, 0-5 Big West) struck first and proceeded to take a 6-2 lead at the 7:35 mark. The two teams traded points over the next couple minutes before the Rainbow Wahine knocked down back-to-back threes to pull ahead, 14-6. Hernandez answered with a driving layup, and Wynn followed with an and-1 to close the gap to 14-11 at the end of the first quarter.  
 
It was a low-scoring second period with each side putting up just seven points. The 'Bows took a five-point advantage in the first minute before the Anteaters used a 7-0 spurt, capped by a Wynn jumper, for their first lead of the game at 18-16 with 3:48 remaining. That lead was short-lived as 26 seconds later, UH ended a five-plus minute scoring drought with a triple. The visitors tacked on two more for a 21-18 edge at the half.
 
Hanson set the tone early in the third frame with a corner three on UC Irvine's opening possession. The 'Eaters continued on a 12-0 run for a 30-21 cushion with 5:17 to play. After the media timeout, Hawai'i came storming back with a 12-0 rally of its own to reclaim a 33-30 edge. Freshman Nohe'alani Stores then converted an and-1 with 31 seconds on the clock, but the 'Bows got a putback before the buzzer to go on top, 35-33.
 
Izzy Forsyth opened the fourth quarter with a traditional three-point play to give the Rainbow Wahine a 38-33 margin. Nahum then got UCI on the board with a layup at the 8:18 mark. The Anteaters extended that into another 12-0 run, capped by back-to-back treys from Madsen and Hernandez to go up, 45-38, with 5:36 left. Hawai'i refused to go down without a fight as it responded with consecutive 3-pointers to make it 45-44. Wynn and UH's Keiara Curtis each knocked down a clutch three in a 20-second span before both teams went scoreless over the next 1:50. Wynn then came up big again, burying a turnaround jumper in the paint with the shot clock winding down to put UC Irvine on top by three with 20.7 seconds remaining. The 'Eaters played solid defense on UH's final possession to come away with the 50-47 victory.
 
UP NEXT: UCI continues a four-game Big West homestand next Saturday, Jan. 17, when it welcomes UC Davis to the Bren Events Center for a 2 p.m. showdown.
 
NOTES
• UC Irvine has the fifth-longest active win streak in all of NCAA Division I at 14 games.
• The 'Eaters held their opponent to under 60 points for the 10th time this season.
• UCI (6-0) and UC San Diego (5-0) are the last two undefeated teams in Big West play.
• This was only the third time the Anteaters had a game decided by single digits this season, and first since Nov. 28.
• It was the smallest margin of victory for UC Irvine which entered today outscoring opponents by 15.8 ppg.
• Hunter Hernandez now has nine 20+ point games this season and 14 in her career.
• Jada Wynn has made at least one 3-pointer in 15 consecutive games.
• Lauryn Madsen picked up 11 steals (5.5 spg) this week, increasing her season total to a team-best 34.
• Summah Hanson has pulled down 8+ rebounds in each of her last three outings (8.3 rpg).
• UCI snapped a four-game losing streak in its all-time series with Hawai'i.