Beeman dished out tough love

While a young Hawaii team continues to work through growing pains, Rainbow Wahine basketball coach Laura Beeman took a tough love approach to practice this week.

Since winning four of five games to close January, the Wahine have dropped four straight — assuring the program’s first sub-.500 regular season since 2011-12 — with two of the Big West’s hottest teams visiting the Stan Sheriff Center this week.

While the Wahine (8-15, 4-7 Big West) prepared to face conference leader UC Davis (18-6, 9-2) today and Cal State Northridge (13-11, 6-4) on Saturday, the UH coaching staff addressed both on-court corrections and issues Beeman detected in demeanor and discipline.

“We’re inconsistent. … I have to take a lot of that responsibility for not trying different techniques or maybe getting a little bit more discipline earlier,” Beeman said. “It falls on my shoulders to get them to perform and to figure out a way to get them to not make the mistakes. So it’s on me. We’re better than what we’re showing.”

The emphasis heading into the second half of a four-game homestand included a new look in practice with the team working out in their own gear and intramural jerseys rather than their normal practice uniforms.

“You have to represent Hawaii with respect and pride,” Beeman said. “You have to represent this university on a level which fans expect and if you’re not going to do that by talking back to officials, or talking back to teammates, or not being on the same page with your coaches, then in my opinion you can wear your own gear. If you want to act like your own individual you can wear your own clothes.”

Beeman added that she understands the frustrations and reiterated her belief in the team, and the considerations in earning their privileges back go beyond the scoreboard.

“It’s everything else that goes into being a winner and being a great teammate and representing these fans that gets you back in your gear,” Beeman said. “It’s not the winning and the losing, it’s how you win and how you lose. This is a much bigger picture of representing the right way and working through really hard situations and adversity the right way.”

UC Davis arrived in town on Wednesday with a five-game winning streak and leading the conference in nine statistical categories, including scoring offense (69.9 points per game) and scoring defense (60.4 allowed).

Forward Morgan Bertsch, a 6-foot-4 sophomore, ranks second in the league at 16.4 ppg and junior guard Dani Nafekh is the Big West’s most efficient 3-point shooter at 46 percent (44-for-96). Bertsch led the Aggies with 24 points and eight rebounds in UCD’s 70-55 win over UH on Jan. 7 in Davis, Calif.

UH’s offense is averaging 53 points while shooting 31 percent from the field over the last four games. Guard Sarah Toeaina remains UH’s most consistent scorer at 16.8 ppg in Big West play while hitting for double digits in all but one conference game.