Feb. 10, 2006
Box Score
HONOLULU- Fresno State benefited from a balanced scoring effort and opportunistic defense, defeating Hawai'i 69-62 for its third straight victory on Thursday night at the Stan Sheriff Center.
Tierre Wilson scored 15 points to lead four players in double-figures for the Bulldogs (17-5, 9-1 WAC), who have won nine of their last 10 games and maintain a first-place tie with No. 23 Louisiana Tech for the conference lead.
Amy Parrish chipped in with 12 points, while Chantella Perera and Brittani Green added 11 and 10, respectively. However, the Bulldogs received perhaps their most complete performance from Jasmine Plummer. The junior guard scored only six points but pulled down eight rebounds, dished out four assists and came up with four of the Bulldog's 15 steals while leading a stingy defense that forced 26 Hawai'i turnovers.
Fresno State shot 50-percent on the evening and made 6-18 from three-point territory. Hawai'i (13-8, 4-6 WAC) kept the game close throughout, thanks to a 7-15 mark from beyond the arc and a commanding 39-24 rebounding edge. Fresno State's 24 rebounds were a season-low.
The Rainbow Wahine received a game-high 22 points from Dalia Solia (eight rebounds, three three-pointers) and 17 points from Janevia Taylor (six boards, four assists). After those two the production dropped off, as the Hawai'i bench accounted for just two points.
"Their half-court defense really prevented us from getting our offense going," said head coach Adrian Wiggins, who improved to 24-9 exactly one year after taking over the program as interim head coach. "Our steals were effective but so was their rebounding. I was pleased with our defense though, as we contested shots and were all over the basketball with pressure."
A back-and-forth first half came to a close with Fresno State leading 36-34. There were two ties and six lead changes spread over the first 20 minutes, with the Bulldogs taking their largest lead at 23-17 following a lay-up from Green with 8:18 on the clock.
An 11-3 Hawai'i scoring run put the Rainbow Wahine back in the lead at 28-26, only to see Fresno State rally back and take a halftime lead.
A three-pointer from Perera with 11:50 remaining in the second half gave Fresno State its largest lead of the game at 52-42.
But the Rainbow Wahine made it a one-possession game on two different occasions after that, pulling to 55-52 with 6:10 left to play.
The Bulldogs scored 14 of the game's final 24 points to secure the win.
Fresno State faces San Jose State (10-10, 5-4 WAC) on Saturday at 7 p.m. to conclude its two-game road trip. The game can be heard live on 1430 ESPN Radio.
