Seniors help Hawai’i crush Cal State Fullerton on Senior Night

HONOLULU – A performance fit for celebration.

A group deserving of even more.

The University of Hawai’i women’s basketball team completed their home watch of the Big West on Saturday night, cruising to a 67-49 demolition of Cal State Fullerton (16-12, 12-6 Big West) inside Bankoh Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.

The final home game in the last Rainbow Wahine run as a member of the Big West, senior forwards Saniyah Neverson, Imani Perez and Izzy Forsyth helped Hawai’i (18-10, 12-6 Big West) win its sixth straight contest and for the 12th time in the last 13 games in their own island finales.

Neverson paced UH with 12 points, seven rebounds and a season-high four assists while adding a steal and historic rejection in the second quarter as the 2026 edition of the Rainbow Wahine set a new single-season program record with their 164th denial of the year.

Entering the evening needing five to tie the all-time mark and six to set a new record, Hawai’i finished the game with nine blocks as a team. It was the 18th time this season that the Rainbow Wahine recorded at least five rejections in a game.

Imani Perez, the lone UH senior to spend all four years of her college career in the islands, tallied eight points, six rebounds and two more blocks in her final time suiting up in the Stan Sheriff Center. The 6-foot-4 forward from Colorado has quietly made herself one of the all-time great Rainbow Wahine, racking up nearly 800 points to go along with 532 rebounds and 120 blocked shots as she heads into her final regular season week with the program.

“I always say if someone is in your life and they’re worth enough for you to cry over, both of you guys have done something great,” Hawai’i head coach Laura Beeman said while talking about Perez. “I’ve shed a lot of tears over that kid, and I’m more than happy to do it again.”

Izzy Forsyth, who has continually worked her way back from a knee injury that stole her 2023-24 season at UC San Diego, made her first start for the Rainbow Wahine in her final game inside the Stan Sheriff Center and scored eight points (2-3 3PT) in 15 minutes of action.

“We’re so fortunate that they all decided to come here,” Beeman said glowingly of her senior trio. “Imani for four years, what an amazing story. And then for Saniyah and Izzy, just to come here their last year … it was like they played for us for four years, honestly. They are amazing young women and to walk in here in a year and do what they’ve done in our locker room, within our team, it just feels like they’ve been with us from Day 1.”

Hawai’i took a two-point lead after the first quarter of play thanks to Forsyth’s first 3-pointer of the night and a Ritorya Tamilo block of a last-second try from behind the arc. The rejection by Tamilo was the fifth of the opening frame and the 163rd of the year by the Rainbow Wahine, tying the program’s single-season record.

Imani Perez got on the board with a pair of triples to open the second quarter, part of a 3-point onslaught by the Rainbow Wahine that saw the hosts go 7-for-13 from long range in the first half. Rebecca Moors and Kyra Webb got in on the sweet-shooting fun before Saniyah Neverson sent Hawai’i into halftime leading by 11.

Hawai’i extended the lead out to 20 when play resumed in the third, seeing Forsyth and Neverson each drain another triple before a few Tamilo finishes put the Rainbow Wahine in cruise control.

Underclassmen drove the final 10 minutes for the Rainbow Wahine, seeing Bailey Flavell, Keiara Curtis, Ritorya Tamilo, Kyra Webb and Rebecca Moors combine for 12 of the final 14 points by UH. Perez was the lone basket from outside the youth group, scoring one last jumper in the Stan before exiting to a bear hug from Laura Beeman and a standing ovation from the crowd in house.

Ritorya Tamilo joined Neverson as the only Rainbow Wahine players in double figures on the night, racking up 10 points, seven rebounds, three steals and three blocks in 16 minutes off the bench. Keiara Curtis added eight points while Rebecca Moors chipped in a season-high seven points in seven minutes of action.

Freshman guard Bailey Flavell did a little bit of everything for Hawai’i in the win, scoring six points, grabbing seven rebounds and handing out four assists. Kyra Webb tacked on six points, four boards and a block as well in 15 minutes of work for UH.

The win knotted the Rainbow Wahine with Cal State Fullerton for fourth in the Big West standings with two games left in the regular season. The top four seeds will get a first-round bye in the conference tournament in Henderson in two weeks.

“I think we’re playing better basketball, obviously,” Beeman said when asked about the statement the Rainbow Wahine made in their final weekend at home this season. “I think we’re peaking at the right time. We have two more huge games on the road, and then we’re going to go to the tournament. Let’s hope that we just continue to play well at the tournament.”

Hawai’i hits the road next week to wrap up the regular season, visiting UC Riverside on Thursday, March 5 before heading to Long Beach State for the final time as conference opponents on Saturday, March 7. A road trip sweep would deliver the Rainbow Wahine their third straight 20-win season and fourth in the last five years.