The Rainbow Wahine basketball team knows how to count. But as far as they are concerned, their winning streak will be zero when they walk into Titan Gym for Saturday’s Big West game against Cal State Fullerton.

The only number that matters is one … as in one victory at a time. So far, it has worked with all the ones adding up to eight in a row and first place in the Big West Conference.

Hawaii (16-7, 8-2) puts its longest winning streak since 2007-08 on the line against Cal State Fullerton (9-13, 3-8). Tipoff is at 4 p.m.

Both teams come in after hard-fought contests on Thursday but with different views: the Wahine pulled away from UC Riverside 72-69, while the Titans dropped their fourth in a row, this one 74-67 in overtime to second place UC Davis.

None of that matters, Hawaii coach Laura Beeman said Friday. The Wahine cannot control the Titans’ collective mind-set.

"Whether they come in on a high or come in on a low, it won’t be a factor," said the third-year coach, who picked up her 50th win at Manoa on Thursday. "We can only control what we do. We have to show up and execute, play Hawaii basketball.

"Our last game here was a really bad game and the team knows that. We talked about it today, put it out in the open. The girls said it was not going to happen again."

Of Hawaii’s six conference losses last season, the regular-season finale at Fullerton was the only one that wasn’t even close. The other five defeats were by five points or fewer; the one in Titan Gym last March was by 19 (61-42) with the Wahine never recovering from being down 31-15 at halftime.

Being able to exorcize the ghost of seasons past has an added bonus. The first two rounds of the Big West tournament will be held at Titan Gym on March 10-11, and the Wahine very much would like to get a jump on feeling right at home.

Saturday’s key will be perimeter defense. Fullerton senior guard Chante Miles, one of the top 3-point shooters in the league, was 5-for-10 from behind the arc en route to 33 points against UC Davis.

The Titans average nearly 20 3-point attempts a game and Miles has hit 62 of her 161 shots from long distance. Equally trigger-happy are teammates Tailer Butler (39 of 125), a senior guard, and sophomore guard Samantha Logan (35 of 105).

"They are a high-volume 3-point shooting team and we will have to extend our defense," Beeman said. "Our players have locked into what we’re asking on defense."

Adding to Hawaii’s rotation this road trip is the return of freshman guard Sarah Toeaina, who had worked herself into the starting lineup during the preseason. The daughter of former UH volleyball player Maile Golden and UH football player Andrew Toeaina played five minutes against the Highlanders, her first Big West game, and "we’re working her back into things, trying not to disrupt the chemistry that we have," Beeman said. "She adds one more weapon for us."