LOS ANGELES (AP) — Charisma Osborne scored 17 points and No. 2 UCLA had over half its points in the paint in the first half while routing Hawaii 85-46 on Thursday.
The Rainbow Wahine had no answer inside for 6-foot-7 Lauren Betts, who towered 3 inches over their tallest player. Even when double-teamed, Betts fought through to draw a foul. She finished with 16 points and seven rebounds. Hawaii's starting center, Brooklyn Rewers, picked up three fouls in the first half.
The Bruins led 45-16 at halftime, outscoring the Wahine 30-4 in the paint. For the game, the Bruins outscored Hawaii 44-8 inside.
Olivia Davies led the Wahine (3-6) with 11 points. MeiLani McBee added nine points. She was one of five Hawaii players in foul trouble. The Wahine had a season-high 26 turnovers.
Kiki Rice added 14 points, four rebounds, six assists and four steals for UCLA.
The Bruins (11-0) didn't waste any time in dominating the Wahine, who were coming off a 17-day break. They ran off 14 straight points for a 16-3 lead and closed the first quarter with 11 in a row, capped by Amanda Muse's layup off an offensive rebound to beat the buzzer, for a 27-6 advantage.
The Wahine's only points in the first quarter came on two 3-pointers by McBee. They committed 12 turnovers and were outscored 20-0 in the paint.
In the second quarter, the Wahine scored 10 points while cutting their turnovers down to five.
The Bruins' lone weak spot was free throws. They made just 8 of 19.
Hawaii's Daejah Phillips went down with 1:42 remaining in the game. She eventually got up and walked off, finishing with eight points, eight rebounds and five assists.
BIG PICTURE
Hawaii: It's another challenging start to a season for the Wahine. They fell to 0-3 against Pac-12 teams, already having lost at Stanford and to Washington in November. Last season, they began 1-7 before winning their second straight Big West title and making consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances for the first time since 1989-90. Two years ago, they went into league play at 3-6, then rallied to go 13-3 and win the Big West regular season and tournament titles.
UCLA: The Bruins are rolling heading into their highly anticipated matchup against crosstown rival USC after Christmas. Betts has blossomed since joining UCLA from Stanford via the transfer portal. She was buried on the depth chart with the Cardinal, but leads the nation with a 77% field-goal percentage and is one of five Bruins averaging double-digits in scoring (most in the Pac-12).
UP NEXT
Hawaii: Visits Cal State Fullerton to open Big West play on Dec. 30.
UCLA: Hosts No. 6 Southern California and star freshman JuJu Watkins on Dec. 30 in the teams' Pac-12 opener.
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AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball
