The University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa women’s basketball team tops the Big West Preseason Coaches Poll with two Rainbow Wahine guards — Lily Wahinekapu and Daejah Phillips — voted to the Preseason Coaches’ Team.
The Big West released the poll on October 18 and the two-time defending Big West champion Rainbow Wahine received 6 of 11 first-place votes from the conference’s coaches and posted 95 points to lead the poll for the third time since rejoining the conference in 2012.
Wahinekapu and Phillips earned All-Big West honors last year and were voted to this season’s Preseason Coaches Team.
Wahinekapu led the Rainbow Wahine with 12.5 points and 2.9 assists and 1.7 steals per game in her first year at UH Mānoa and was named to the All-Big West first team last season. She also ranked second on the team with 45 3-pointers and scored in double figures 24 times while starting all 33 games.
Phillips averaged 11.1 points and 3.9 rebounds and closed the season by scoring in double figures in each of the last nine games. The high point of that run came in the Big West Championship final, when she scored 19 points on 6-for-8 shooting from the field, including the go-ahead layup with three seconds left. Phillips was an All-Big West honorable mention pick after the regular season and was named the Most Valuable Player of the Big West Championship.
The Rainbow Wahine play host to the UH Hilo Vulcans in an exhibition game on November 1 at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center, and open the regular season on November 8 at Stanford.
For more visit HawaiiAthletics.com.
