Posted on: Sunday, February 1, 2004

Tulsa women rally for first win in Hawai'i

By Brandon Masuoka
Advertiser Staff Writer

Tulsa's Jillian Robbins put the hurt on the Rainbow Wahine basketball team last night.

Robbins, a redshirt freshman center who has recovered from three injuries to her left knee, scored 14 of her career-high 22 points in the second half as the Golden Hurricane won for the first time in Hawai'i, dusting the Rainbow Wahine, 63-55, in a Western Athletic Conference game.

A crowd of 617 at the Stan Sheriff Center watched the Rainbow Wahine (5-13, 3-6) control most of the first half, but falter in the closing minutes in losing their second game in a row and fourth in their last five. The Golden Hurricane (13-6, 6-3) won its fourth game in a row and improved to 1-5 in Honolulu.

"We just fell short, again," said Hawai'i point guard Janevia Taylor.

Hawai'i led by as many as six points in the first half, and rallied for a 47-45 lead with 7:29 remaining in the game, but could not close out Tulsa, which made the most of its free-throw opportunities.

For the game, Tulsa sank 22 of 28 free throws, compared to Hawai'i's 9 of 11. Tulsa also outscored Hawai'i 32-24 in the second half after the score was tied at 31 at halftime.

"I think Tulsa did a good job running their offense against our man-to-man defense," Hawai'i coach Vince Goo said. "They went to the free-throw line 28 times. That's the difference in the ball game — free throws."

Late in the game, Robbins scored six consecutive points to turn a 45-43 deficit into a 49-47 lead. Teammate Emily Jaskowiak had a double-double with 15 points and 13 rebounds.

"I felt like we needed big buckets," said Robbins, who has healed from three major left knee injuries, including two at Klein High School in Spring, Texas. "I felt like if anybody is going to take the big shots, it might as well be me or Emily because we're in the post and we're close in there."

Tulsa opened the second half with a 9-2 run for a 40-33 lead, but Hawai'i battled back to take a 43-42 lead on Taylor's basket.

After three ties and two lead changes, Tulsa took the lead for good, 49-47, on a basket by Robbins with 6:03 left. Robbins overcame first-half foul trouble and made 5 of 10 shots in the second half.

"She's very athletic and very quick," Goo said of Robbins. "She found the seams inside. They went into her real strong."

Hawai'i led for most of the first half, but could not fend off Tulsa, which rallied from the free-throw line in the final minutes. Tulsa made 9 of 11 free throws in the first half, including 5 of 7 in the final 4:11.

Hawai'i grabbed its biggest lead in the first half, 12-6, on Jade Abele's 3-pointer.

Robbins, Tulsa's leading scorer and shot blocker, picked up her third foul with 12:28 remaining in the first half and did not return until the second. She scored eight points in the first half.

"I was a little nervous with her on the bench," said Tulsa coach Kathy McConnell-Miller. "But I was really pleased with the way the bench came in and performed."

With Robbins out, Tulsa clawed back to tie the score four times before taking a 29-28 lead on Candice Brewer's free throw with 1:59 left in the first half.

A putback by Jaskowiak increased the lead to 31-28, but Hawai'i responded with a 3-pointer by Milia Macfarlane to tie the score at 31 at halftime.

For the game, Atuaia led Hawai'i with 13 points. Abele added 11 points and a team-high eight rebounds, and Taylor added 10 points.

Hawai'i center Callie Spooner played in her first game after sitting out the previous six games with a sprained right ankle. She played four minutes and had no statistics.

Reach Brandon Masuoka at bmasuoka@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2458.