HENDERSON, Nev. — The Hawaii women’s basketball team combined the best of the old and the new to return to the Big West tournament championship game.

Third-seeded UH got there for the second straight year with a gutsy 67-62 performance against the highest-seeded team in the semifinals, No. 2 Long Beach State on Friday afternoon at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson, Nev.

UH (17-14) sizzled in the second half — it connected on 60.9% of its shots after intermission — and will meet No. 5 UC Santa Barbara (21-11) at 1 p.m. Hawaii time on Saturday looking for the program’s fourth overall conference tournament title, and second straight NCAA tournament ticket.

“We have a group of girls that have experienced this,” coach Laura Beeman said in the postgame press conference. “They know what it’s going to feel like tomorrow. They’re up for the challenge. This is why we flew here. We didn’t fly here to lose. We flew here to win.”

A player who was not part of the 2022 celebration, Cal State Fullerton transfer Lily Wahinekapu, was instrumental in getting UH back to the title game. The All-Big West point guard was a steadying force against LBSU’s fullcourt, high-pressure traps and 2-3 zone defense, helping her team initiate its halfcourt offense despite having just one assist. She scored a game-high 18 points and tied for the team lead with seven rebounds.

“When she’s on the floor and she’s got the ball in her hands, these guys know that we’re in good shape; they know to be available for her when she needs it. But she executed a brilliant game plan,” said Beeman, who noted her 37-minute workload with only two turnovers.

Forward Daejah Phillips added 14 points, four rebounds and four assists. Freshman center Imani Perez continued to shine in big moments late in the season with 10 points and seven boards.

Beeman looked to leverage her team’s size inside against the quicker Beach. Centers Perez, Nnenna Orji and Kallin Spiller combined for 22 points and UH won battle of the glass by 10.

LBSU’s Jeff Cammon, the Big West Coach of the Year, offered his respect for UH’s “championship pedigree.”

“I would say they worked for quality shots versus us settling for 3-pointers,” Cammon said. “I thought the physicality bothered us; we didn’t stay the course with that. … Ultimately, we just didn’t get it done.”

UH lost its sharpshooting Big West Player of the Year from the 2021-22 season, Amy Atwell, but her old teammates did a passable Atwell impression in the third quarter, sinking five of eight 3-point shots in the 25-point period.

Kelsie Imai, Meilani McBee and Wahinekapu splashed three straight 3s to turn a three-point deficit into a six-point lead and the advantage was four heading into the fourth quarter.

Phillips and Perez connected on high-low lobs for layups three times in the fourth to help build a 10-point lead with 2:20 remaining.

“I know my team is really good at assisting, especially Daejah,” Perez said. “I just depend on them to get it high — that’s where we tell them to pass it to me, because it’s better for me. I knew once we started hitting our 3s that other things would open up, which is very helpful for our team.”

Wahinekapu exited for a breather and LBSU used that moment to surge with seven straight points to come within 57-54.

The point guard returned and steadied things with two free throws with 55.2 seconds left to cap her 7-for-8 day at the line. Then, Perez leaked out against the Beach’s pressure and Ashley Thoms tossed it ahead for a layup assist for UH to go back up seven.

LBSU (23-9) swept UH during the regular season as part of a 15-game winning streak, but Big West Player of the Year Tori Harris was held to six points on 2-for-14 shooting in the matchup that mattered most.

“I thought there was a time in the third quarter where we were scrambling and rotating, and that is something we’ve worked really hard to do, and it showed up today,” Beeman said.

Kianna Hamilton-Fisher led the Beach with 17 points. Courtney Murphy, who had the game-winning free throws in LBSU’s 48-47 win at UH on Feb. 18, scored 14, including a couple of late 3-point hits to keep her team in it until the buzzer.

Up three with 2.1 seconds left, UH called timeout to advance the ball and Phillips scored a layup at the horn. It was a satisfying moment for a team that had struggled to close out close games — there were losses in the final two seconds against LBSU and UC Irvine — until the last handful of games.

“That’s what you have to do to win championships,” Beeman said.

Phillips, a Las Vegas native, made reference to the season-altering cluster of season-ending injuries to Wahine players, including Olivia Davies, Jovi Lefotu and Jacque David.

“We had ups and downs this season. To come together and be where we are now, I think, is very special for the team,” Phillips said. “I think we’re ready.”

Preceding UH’s game, UCSB defeated No. 9 Cal State Bakersfield 75-66.

UH defeated UCSB 68-58 on senior night March 4 and lost 72-69 at the Thunderdome on Jan. 26.

Brian McInnis covers the state's sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.