It was a December to remember for the Hawaii Rainbow Wahine, though not for the jolliest of reasons.

Laura Beeman’s basketball team departed on two separate two-game road trips for most of last month. UH (6-6) went 1-3 in those games, with a comeback win from 18 points down at Pacific and losses at Oregon State, USC and Grand Canyon.

After a short break over Christmas, the Wahine are back at it preparing for Big West Conference play. They open Jan. 8 at home against defending tournament champion and projected repeat winner Cal Poly (6-7).

UH’s December trips — the team’s second and third separate cycles to and from the mainland this season — were crafted with the idea of preparing the team for Big West road travel and, fortunes permitting, postseason play beyond that.

"Mixed bag. That’s a good way to say it," Beeman said. "I didn’t think we’d go 1-3. I thought the worst we’d go was 2-2. So a little disappointed with that. The fatigue factor hit us big time at USC and Grand Canyon. Particularly Grand Canyon. Mentally fatigued, physically fatigued. Not upset with the girls, they did the best they could. It was tough scheduling. So next year we have to take a look at that. Maybe one game on the road right before Christmas instead of two."

Despite those setbacks, the Wahine have achieved memorable moments on the court this season. Shawna Kuehu’s banked 3 en route to an overtime win over Minnesota on Dec. 1 stands out, as does the big comeback at Pacific on Dec. 15. Those moments and the tough trips have helped UH to a No. 49 RPI rating and the 10th-toughest strength of schedule in the country by RealtimeRPI.com.

Beeman, who inherited a brutal nonconference slate in her first season, might dial it back a little bit more for her third season.

"We’ll space it out differently for sure," she said. "Maybe have it a little more imbalanced and easier, but still have a good amount of games off island."

The Wahine led in second halves at USC and Grand Canyon but could not hold on. They were up 10 at halftime against the Trojans at the Galen Center, where Beeman assisted for two years before taking the UH job, but fell 66-55 on Dec. 21.

"I think what we gained out of it, we did learn how difficult it was to travel," the coach said. "We’re going to have to win (those) if we want to advance our season. We’re the only team in our conference who has to get off a plane every time we play … So we have to learn how to travel, focus and work through some of that fatigue."

On that second trip, size-starved UH accessed the services of junior center Kalei Adolpho for the first time this season. She played 13 combined minutes in two games. UH will work to fully integrate the 6-2 Adolpho into the fold coming off volleyball season.