HONOLULU — A season-long theme for the Hawaii women’s basketball team is “celebrate each other.” On Saturday night, the Rainbow Wahine did just that.
In the waning moments of a 67-38 blowout of Cal State Northridge, walk-on guard Hallie Birdsong caught a perimeter pass from Kelsie Imai, pump-faked, split a pair of defenders and pulled up for the first basket of her three-year Wahine career.
On-court teammates, the Wahine bench and the crowd of 865 (1,580 tickets issued) went wild as the Kalani High graduate’s shot found all net.
“I was in shock,” said Birdsong, who recalled that her previous shot in a real game found only air.
Coach Laura Beeman said there was no luck involved in the feel-good moment for a player who, since 2021, has toiled in practices to help the program prepare for upcoming opponents.
“This kid puts work in,” Beeman said. “Seeing Hallie hit that pull-up jumper was very, very fun. Many games she’s our why and she’s very humble about what she means to this program, but I think the reaction from the bench and the crowd kind of summed it up.”
UH (6-6) improved to 3-0 in the Big West for the first time in the 12-year Beeman era, and in the process moved into sole possession of first place in the conference, a half-game ahead of UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly. UH will see Irvine (9-5) at the Bren Events Center on Thursday.
Even with the success, the two-time defending BWC tournament champion, Rainbow Wahine has never been especially fast starters in conference play. The last time UH was 3-0 in league was in 2001-02, when Vince Goo’s Wahine competed in the Western Athletic Conference.
As was the case in the first two BWC wins, UH did it with defense. CSUN (2-11, 0-3) was held to 27.1% shooting, resulting in the second straight game in which UH held an opponent to a new season scoring low. Thirty-eight was the fewest points allowed by the Wahine since they gave up 35 in a 12-point road win at UC Santa Barbara in 2019.
The Wahine, sporting throwback Rainbow logo-era jerseys, got a well-rounded effort that began with six straight points from center Brooklyn Rewers to begin the game against the Matadors, who lost for the 11th straight time.
Point guard Lily Wahinekapu scored 10, while Daejah Phillips (13 points) and Imai (11) poured it on with the second unit as UH’s reserves outscored their CSUN counterparts 33-9.
It was 20-all when UH went on its largest sustained run of the season, 29-2, spanning the second and third quarters. The third-quarter onslaught included five unanswered Wahine triples – three by MeiLani McBee.
“We got 13 stops in a row, so being able to convert off of those and playing off of the energy the bench people give to the court really feeds into that,” said Rewers, who had nine points, six rebounds and a block.
The 5-foot- Birdsong, in her reserve role, has seldom made the walk from the end of the bench to the scorer’s table. Saturday was her third appearance of the season; last year she did not make any.
“It all happened so fast. I just knew when I got the ball, (be) shot-ready,” Birdsong said. “I did a shot fake, the girl jumped. I split the defenders and just pulled up. It’s as simple as that.
“I have to give credit to my teammates and this amazing coaching staff. I’ve been here for three years and it’s been a journey thus far. I wouldn’t want to be any other place.”
The Birdsong family has a legacy with UH. Norris Birdsong was a UH running back in 1975-76 and one of the first UH players to score a touchdown in Aloha Stadium. Last February, he attended the “Aloha to Aloha Stadium” event in the venue he used to compete.
“That’s also part of it, just being able to play at the University of Hawaii, represent my home state and just the legacy with my family is surreal and it’s really a blessing,” Hallie Birdsong said.
Brian McInnis covers the state's sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.