On an evening where it needed every encouraging shriek from the season-high 1,989 sixth men and sixth little girls in the Stan Sheriff Center stands, the University of Hawaii Rainbow Wahine basketball team also got a huge lift from the most unlikely of benchies.
It’s nothing new to this team, though. It’s a feature of the now 11-game winning streak for the Wahine that has them perched atop the Big West standings. UH’s most experienced, versatile and athletic player starts each contest sitting, watching.
But, by the end of Saturday’s 62-60 win over UC Davis, sixth-year senior Shawna-Lei Kuehu had no need to worry about splinters. She led the Wahine in points (12), rebounds (13), assists (7) … and minutes, with 27.
When Kuehu made her first entrance three minutes and 40 seconds into the game, the Aggies led 8-0. With her leading the way, the Wahine were up 29-27 at halftime.
The absence of injured starting point guard Morgan Mason contributed a lot to that early deficit, and coach Laura Beeman had no second thoughts afterward about not having Kuehu on the floor for the tip. Beeman added that if Kuehu ever requested it, she’d be back in the starting lineup.
But the three-time state prep player of the year from Punahou said she likes her role.
"I used to tell people I actually didn’t like starting," Kuehu said. "I love to see what can be done, what needs to be done. … Maybe we don’t need a scorer. Maybe we need someone to run the offense. … We (she, Megan Huff and Briana Harris) like to say it’s the second wave and we have to keep up that intensity. We see the flow of the game and we know what needs to happen."
On Saturday there was a lot that needed fixing. As Beeman described it, the Wahine were "discombobulated" and "missed the continuity" of Mason as UC Davis went up 12-0.
"We had six turnovers and they gave us their best punch," Beeman said.
But UH has become a team that finds ways to win without an important player, and they don’t get much more important than the starting point guard.
And, as Beeman said, rebounding was the key to the outcome.
With Hawaii’s offense at less than peak efficiency and shooting poorly (34 percent to UC Davis’ 48), every carom was essential. Kuehu had five of UH’s 25 offensive boards and another player off the bench, Dalayna Sampton, grabbed six Wahine misses.
Hawaii denied UC Davis the perimeter — and not just because the Aggies made 17 3-pointers in thrashing Long Beach State on Saturday.
"That’s always our emphasis — 2s are worth less than 3s," Beeman said, after the Wahine never allowed the visitors to heat up from outside.
UH missed 47 shots. But the Wahine are at a point in their confidence — in themselves and each other — where that doesn’t matter much. Ashleigh Karaitiana displayed no hesitation at all in launching and making the key 3-pointer at the end after missing five of six earlier.
And then it was Kuehu making two free throws to seal it with 29 seconds left, finishing what she didn’t start.
Reach Dave Reardon at dreardon@staradvertiser.com or 529-4783. His blog is at hawaiiwarriorworld.com/quick-reads.
