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Hawai’i, The Big West regular-season champion, will open its national postseason in the Las Vegas Valley, meeting up with UNLV in the first round of the Women’s Basketball Invitation Tournament on Thursday, March 20 at 6:30 p.m. PT/3:30 p.m. HT, televised on ESPN+.  

With a Native Hawaiian population of 50,000 and countless others traveling to the area annually, Las Vegas’ status as the Ninth Island is well known. The contest set for UNLV’s Cox Pavilion, and the home crowd coupled with the home-away-from-home crowd is sure to make for a raucous postseason environment. 

The Rainbow Wahine (22-9) earned an automatic bid into the WBIT field as the league’s regular-season champion not selected to the NCAA Tournament bracket. On Friday, top-seeded UH fell to eventual Big West Championship victor UC San Diego in the semifinal round from Lee’s Family Forum in Henderson, Nev.  

Hawai’i also competed in the inaugural edition of the WBIT, falling at California’s Haas Pavilion in a thrilling showdown, 65-60.  

Similarly, UNLV (25-7) found a spot in the field after winning the regular season in the Mountain West before falling to San Diego State in the Championship semifinals on their home court. The Lady Rebels are seeded second in their quarter of the bracket.  

UNLV is 35-15 all-time against Hawai’i. The two teams have met seven times since 2002, with UNLV holding the slight 4-3 edge in wins in that time span. The Lady Rebels won the last two meetings with Hawai’i taking the two previous, including a 66-61 overtime win at Thomas & Mack Center on Dec. 19, 2018. 

Hawai’i has been relying on stout defense throughout the 2024-25 campaign, leading the conference in various defensive statistical categories. The Rainbow Wahine lead the nation in three-point field goal percentage defense (24.6) and hold opponents to 33.3 percent shooting from the field, which rates second in the country. Also leading the conference in blocks per game (4.4) and rebound margin (+3.9), the UH defense limits teams to 52.8 points per game which is good for seventh in NCAA Division I.  

Individually, Big West Player of the Year Lily Wahinekapu has been guiding the squad during her senior season with 11.2 points per game on .420 shooting along with 4.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.2 steals per game. In Friday’s semifinal, Wahinekapu helped UH erase a 27-point first-half deficit before a last-second left-handed layup ended their Big West Championship aspirations. 

The winner of the contest between UH and UNLV will move on to play the advancing team between third-seeded Florida and Northern Illinois on Sunday, March 23.  

Quarterfinals will be held on March 27 with four teams advancing to historic Hinkle Fieldhouse on the campus of Butler University in Indianapolis, Ind., for the semifinals on Monday, March 31. The WBIT will conclude with the championship game on Wednesday, April 2.