Box Score

HONOLULU – The University of Hawai'i women's basketball team made a late rally Saturday night against Louisiana Tech, but it wasn't enough, as the Lady Techsters held on for a 79-71 victory at the Stan Sheriff Center.

The Rainbow Wahine trailed by as many as 18 points in the second half, but cut the lead to four with less than five minutes left in the game. The Lady Techsters made some clutch free throws down the stretch to pull out the road with.

With the loss, UH falls to 9-18 overall and 3-11 in Western Athletic Conference action. Louisiana Tech improves to 18-6 overall and moves into second place with a 9-3 conference mark.

Junior Keisha Kanekoa continued her hot play Saturday night, scoring a team-high 16 points, grabbing six rebounds and dishing out five assists, as she played all 40 minutes for the second straight game.

UH had a strong bench contribution, including 13 points from Julita Bungaite and 12 points from Katie Wilson. Rebecca Dew also came off the bench to score eight points and Dita Liepkalne and Leilani Galdones each scored seven points.

In the first half, the Rainbow Wahine got off to a fast start, leading by as five points, but the Lady Techsters rallied behind hot shooting to take a 43-31 lead at the break.

Louisiana Tech shot 51.6 percent from the field, including three 3-pointers, while UH shot 40.6 percent and connected on 4-of-9 3-pointers.

Liepkalne had seven points in the first half and added four rebounds, while Breanna Arbuckle, Galdones and Bungaite each had five points for the Rainbow Wahine.

UH wraps up its home schedule and honors its lone senior Dita Liepkalne on Wednesday, Feb. 24 at 7 p.m. against Boise State at the Stan Sheriff Center.