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The Maui News
Tia Kanoa scored a career-high 19 points to go along with nine assists, six rebounds and two steals to lead the University of Hawaii women's basketball team to a 66-58 victory over UC Riverside in a Big West Conference tournament semifinal Friday in Anaheim, Calif.
Leah Salanoa added 11 points and the Rainbow Wahine's bench outscored that of the Highlanders 18-0 to advance to the Big West final for the first time since 2016.
UH, the No. 2 seed in the tournament, took a 13-12 lead on a Kanoa jumper with 52 seconds to go in the first quarter and did not trail the rest of the game. The 'Bows (15-15) led by as many as 10 points -- they had a 38-31 lead at halftime -- and as few as two several times throughout but responded every time.
Malou De Kergret hit a 3-pointer to pull UC Riverside to within 57-55 with 2:56 remaining in the game, but Hawaii was able to put the Highlanders away thanks to a three-point play by Lahni Salanoa and solid free-throw shooting -- Kanoa and Courtney Middap combined to go 6-for-6 at the line in the final minute.
De Kergret led the third-seeded Highlanders (17-15) with 20 points.
The Rainbow Wahine will go for their third Big West tournament title today when they face top-seeded UC Davis at 12:30 p.m. HST. The game will be streamed live on ESPN3.