Jovi Lefotu appeared right at home in her first collegiate appearance in SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.

The freshman guard scored 14 of her 20 points in the first half, draining her first 12 shots (six field goals, six free throws) in a University of Hawaii uniform, and the Rainbow Wahine basketball team rolled to a 73-49 win over Hawaii Pacific University in Tuesday’s exhibition game in Manoa.

Lefotu signed with the Rainbow Wahine before helping lead ‘Iolani to the state championship last winter and was joined by her sister when guard Lily Wahinekapu transferred to UH after earning Big West Freshman of the Year honors at Cal State Fullerton.

Wahinekapu got the start at point guard in the exhibition and Lefotu didn’t wait long to make an impression after being summoned off the bench in the first quarter in UH’s dress rehearsal before a crowd of 593.

“When the big lights came on I was a little nervous, but (my teammates) helped me be comfortable and my coaches prepared me well for this game,” said Lefotu, who finished 7-for-8 from the field.

“Seeing what HPU had and reading what they were giving us, I think that helped me,” Lefotu said. “Knowing what they were doing on defense, I think, really gave me that spark.”

The defending Big West champion Rainbow Wahine depart this weekend on their season-opening road trip to Oregon. They face Oregon State on Monday in Corvallis and play at Portland on Nov. 7. They’ll make their home debut on Nov. 18 against Florida Gulf Coast.

Guard Daejah Phillips finished with 13 points and three steals and center Kallin Spiller added eight points and four rebounds. Wahinekapu ended her night with six points, five rebounds and three assists.

“I thought we had two really good quarters … the two middle quarters really showed what we can do offensively,” UH coach Laura Beeman said after UH outscored HPU 45-13 while shooting 53% from the field in the second and third periods.

“Obviously Jovi had a great opening night. She’s very comfortable with the ball, very skilled and helps our guard play,” Beeman added. “Lots of things to improve upon and work on, but overall pretty pleased with overall execution offensively and the energy we saw on the floor.”

HPU, under first-year coach Katie Novak, hit four 3-pointers in a two-minute span and led 16-9 when Kamehameha alumna Haley Masaki hit her second from long range with less than two minutes left in the first quarter.

Lefotu and Wahinekapu then accounted for nine points in a 10-2 UH run to end the quarter, with Lefotu scoring on a baseline drive to tie it 18-18.

UH opened the second quarter with a 15-0 surge highlighted by 3-pointers from Olivia Davies, Meilani McBee and Kelsie Imai. UH stretched the lead to 34-18 when Phillips took a steal the distance for a layup.

Lefotu continued her impressive debut with a pull-up jumper and a driving layup late in the period and went into halftime 4-for-4 on field goals and 6-for-6 from the free-throw line.

HPU center Abby Spurgin posted a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds and guard Jordyn Jensen added 13. Masaki hit three of HPU’s six 3-pointers to finish with nine points.