Huff announces departure from Rainbow Wahine basketball team
STAR-ADVERTISER / FEB. 18
UH center Megan Huff drove to the hoop against UC Davis’ Morgan Bertsch in the Wahine’s game against the Aggies at the Stan Sheriff Center.
JAMM AQUINO / JAN. 28
UH center Megan Huff shoots the ball over Cal State Fullerton’s Amanda Tivenius during the second half of a game at the Stan Sheriff Center.
Projected to be a centerpiece for the University of Hawaii Rainbow Wahine basketball team next season, center Megan Huff plans to instead continue her college career with another program.
Huff, UH’s second-leading scorer this season, confirmed on Wednesday she intends to transfer and has been granted a release from the school.
A two-time Big West Sixth Player of the Year, Huff announced her plans to leave UH on social media on Tuesday night. In a text to the Star-Advertiser on Wednesday, Huff said she’s “still in the process of weighing my options on which school I plan to go to. I’m waiting to see where God leads me on this journey.”
WAHINE LEAVING
CENTERS
>> Megan Huff
>> Kalei Adolpho
>> Connie Morris
>> Brianna Kennedy
GUARD/FORWARD
>> Destiny King
GUARDS
>> Ashleigh Karaitiana
>> Marissa Wimbley
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UH head coach Laura Beeman confirmed she’d given Huff a release to transfer, but declined further comment.
Huff, a 6-foot-3 center, played in all 32 games in her sophomore season with four starts, providing consistent production off the bench while helping the Rainbow Wahine (21-11, 12-4 Big West) capture the conference tournament title and advance to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1998.
She averaged 9.7 points and 6.5 rebounds per game and led UH with 33 blocked shots while earning second-team All-Big West honors. She was UH’s top scorer in seven games and shot 50.9 percent from the field, good for fourth in the conference, in just over 21 minutes per game.
She closed the season by posting a game-high 18 points and 13 rebounds in UH’s 66-50 loss to UCLA in the first round of the NCAA tournament on March 19 in Los Angeles.
“I’ll always have love for the islands but I know the decision to pursue my dreams at a different university will help me blossom to the player I aspire to be,” Huff wrote in a post on Instagram on Tuesday. “I have to follow Gods path for my future and have faith that he is leading the way! Thank you for all the support in my journey, Mahalo.”
A two-sport standout at Todd Beamer High School in Federal Way, Wash., Huff began her UH career with the Rainbow Wahine volleyball program in 2014 and joined the basketball team that December. She averaged 6.9 points and 4.9 rebounds as a freshman and was named Big West Sixth Player of the Year, an award she retained this season.
She played in seven matches with the volleyball team last fall before deciding to commit to basketball full-time.
Huff’s departure leaves UH without a returning center next season. Kalei Adolpho and Connie Morris completed their senior seasons in March. Junior Brianna Kennedy will graduate in May and forego her final year of eligibility.
In all, UH stands to lose six of this season’s top eight scorers. Along with the centers, first-team All-Big West guard/forward Destiny King and guards Ashleigh Karaitiana and Marissa Wimbley finished their UH careers with the NCAA tournament appearance.
Guards Briana Harris (8.4 points per game) and Sarah Toeaina (6.7) enter the offseason as UH’s leading returning scorers. Dalayna Sampton, a 6-foot sophomore forward, is the team’s lone returnee in the post after averaging 1.8 points while having her playing time limited by injury.
Given the anticipated losses heading into last fall, the Wahine coaching staff added interior depth in a six-player signing class in November.
UH’s group of incoming freshmen include 6-2 center Makenna Woodfolk, another product of Todd Beamer High; 6-3 center Taylor Donohue of Santa Margarita Catholic High School in Southern California and 6-foot forward Amy Atwell.
The Wahine also signed wing players Courtney Middap of Australia and Julissa Tago of South Medford (Ore.) High and Australian point guard Brittany Wunhym.
The regular signing period opened April 13 and runs through May 18.
20 responses to “Huff announces departure from Rainbow Wahine basketball team”
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Exciting new group coming in; Intensive competitions for pt!
Next Wahine up to be sure – polished diamond(s)?
Leave it to Beeman.
Yeah, I’m sure Beeman will make the most of the group she’ll have.
Good luck to Huff. I hope she finds what she’s looking for.
And what is she looking for?
I know at that age I had no idea what I was looking for. People who don’t leave family and home to purse their dream to play sports, an education or a job have no idea what it is like. It is easy to cast aspersions on someone when they can’t put themselves into that person’s shoes. She obviously has been struggling with something having given up volleyball and now just leaving the university all together. Good luck Megan, hope things work out for you.
Washington Huskies?
Given all the circumstances it would appear that Huff’s departure may be due to a bigger departure. We all love Laura and her staff and wish them the best if that is the case. We hope Megan finds happiness and we understand her decision.
Mr. Matlin and Coach Shoji should take notice, Huff still has her volleyball skills.
“… it would appear that Huff’s departure may be due to a bigger departure.” – HUH?
Huff claims no idea where to go next so this decision was made without much planning. Huff likes coach Beeman, and came to the basketball program due to Beeman. Coach Laura has been applying for other head coaching positions and very nearly left for the PAC-12 a year ago. (Coaches never announce their departure early.) Who knows perhaps Huff and Beeman will end up together again.
Big loss for the team as she was one of the best players last year. Best wishes to Megan as she moves on.
The best center on the team, and not a starter. I would leave too.
Good luck Huff! Thanks for the past two seasons.
Big loss for Wahine. Huff should have been a starter. She’s got game and was aggressive and tenacious.
agree. don’t know why Adolpho was the starter. did not bring much as far as scoring or rebounding. Huff was way better. still, i don’t get it. would have been sure first team All Big West. she would be a big star here. but where is the loyalty? UH gave her the opportunity to shine. and now that she sees how good she can be, she wants to leave for someplace better? sorry, i’m not giving her a pass on that. same with Jovanovich. he just bailed on a rebuilding year to go to a mediocre team. seems like both teams are going from first to worst next year. sucks.
Good to hear Beeman was smart enough to load up on the bigs and others with 6 new recruits. On the other hand, the men’s only have 2 bigs on the roster and 5 open scholarships with High School player signing for next season already closed.
Maybe that’s where the problem lies, Beeman signing 3 bigs does not guarantee the start and PT. Just sayin
Damn, we just lost our best player. I wonder if getting bumped up to the starting five this past season would’ve made her stay? Huff was a guaranteed double-double with still a lot of upside. She could play the same bench role, or with some improvement, maybe even start for programs bigger than UH’s, so it’s no surprise she decided to leave.
Maybe the clue to her leaving is in her statement, “I know the decision to pursue my dreams at a different university will help me blossom as a player.” Why did she believe that she could not blossom here in Hawaii? Perhaps it is because of her supporting personnel. I listened to the broadcasts via the Internet of the team’s road games, both on radio and television. The opposing teams’ announcers made the same point over and over again. Hawaii’s strength was the inside. Announcers’ strategy? Use a zone, collapse on the middles and power forwards and allow the outside shots. Hawaii had just average three-point shooters and from the opposing team’s viewpoint it was better to lose from the outside than the inside. It must have been frustrating to face double teams and triple teams all the time for inside players like Huff. Hawaii did not have any “zone breakers”—good three-point shot specialists—this past season and Hawaii did not seem to have recruited any for next year. Huff may have foreseen more physical pounding on the inside for the next two years. However, I am just speculating. Huff probably will never reveal her real reasons for leaving, which might be purely personal.
pounding is certainly what she will find if she moves on to a “Bigger opportunity” like maybe Pac 12? Huskies to be closer to home? Won’t she have to sit out when she transfers?
Who’s next?
Mmmmm…Sixth Player of the Year in the BWC two years in a row but not on this year’s team. Really? No respect.