RENO, Nev. — This season has not been what the University of Hawai'i women's basketball team envisioned it would be five months ago, but the Rainbow Wahine did something yesterday they had not done in six years.

Hawai'i is not one and done in the Western Athletic Conference Tournament, not after its 70-57 victory over San Jose State in the play-in game at the Lawlor Events Center.

The Rainbow Wahine used hot shooting and stingy defense to win their first postseason game since a quarterfinal victory over host Tulsa in the 2003 conference tournament.

"The last couple of years we've come we've lost the first game, so it was real important for us to win this play-in game," interim coach Pat Charity said. "We didn't do exactly what we wanted to do, as far as keeping the lead. We had to go back with some of our starters there late, but overall I think the whole team played pretty well."

The Rainbow Wahine (8-22) shot 50 percent, including 55 percent in the second half, and held the Spartans (2-28) to 34-percent shooting to build a 62-38 lead with 7 minutes to play. Charity pulled her starters to rest them as much as possible for today's quarterfinal matchup with top-seeded Fresno State (21-8).

But the lead dipped to 64-53 with 1:45 to play and Keisha Kanekoa, Dita Liepkalne and Catherine Cho all returned. Kanekoa, who finished with 18 points, immediately got open and was fouled on a breakaway play. She made one free throw and scored on a layup 29 seconds later to restore order.

"Just like I've been telling them, you have to take it one at a time," Charity said, "so that's what we're doing and that's why I had to put some of our starters back in there at the end."

Liepkalne had 12 points on an efficient 5-of-6 shooting and Allie Patterson went 4-of-4 for 10 points.

Hawai'i, which split the regular-season series with the Spartans, went on a 12-2 run over the final 5:52 of the first half to take a 39-24 halftime lead and went on a 14-4 run midway through the second half to take away any doubt of the outcome.

"I think we jumped on them right from the start and kept on attacking them, got to the line, hit our shots, box out. All the little things," Kanekoa said. "It gives us confidence going into the next game."

Fresno State, though, beat UH twice in the regular season by an average of 27 points en route to a 12-4 conference mark.

"We're excited to get the win and we're going to carry that to (today)," Liepkalne said. "Fresno is a very athletic team. It's going to take a lot to play against them, but I think we're more than capable of winning. We have to play 40 minutes of good basketball. We can't make a run and then let them make a run. We have to play consistent for 40 minutes."

Outside of the late lapse, the Rainbow Wahine were pretty consistent against the Spartans. They made 41 percent of their 3-pointers (5 of 12) and had an assist on nine of their 13 first-half field goals.

The last stat, though, wasn't completely pleasing to Charity.

"I think sometimes we get in the paint and pass it too much," she said, before getting jovial. "They're going to laugh at me (for) that stat. They're one of the nicest teams. I wish I could have played with them, because I would have scored 60 points instead of just 40. They're very generous."