Laura Beeman has some on-court priorities she wants to see the University of Hawaii women’s basketball team address.

Just getting more players on the court would be a good start.

Injuries have limited the Rainbow Wahine rotation early in the season, particularly in a stretch of two tournaments over the past two weekends. So Beeman would like to see the Wahine move closer to full strength with two nonconference games left on a relatively light December schedule.

“These next two games, hopefully we will be healthy going into them,,” Beeman said, “If not fully healthy at least close enough where we can get some chemistry and get some rotations, start to see some better play offensively and more continuity defensively.”

UH guard Olivia Davies is expected to be available for today’s 5 p.m. game against Loyola Marymount at SimpiFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center after sitting out last weekend’s three-game Rainbow Wahine Showdown.

Beeman said forwards Kallin Spiller and Jacque David remain “day to day” as the Wahine (2-5) take on the Lions (2-4) in their final home game of 2021.

After today’s contest, the Wahine will have more than two weeks between games, with final exams breaking up the schedule. They’ll play at UNLV on Dec. 21 to close the nonconference schedule and open Big West play at UC Riverside on Dec. 30 and at UC Davis on Jan. 1.

“This time of year gives us a chance to get better,” Beeman said of the increased practice time.

“During the tournaments we play, we can’t go hard (in practice), you can’t put new stuff in. You’re really playing to the (scouting report). I think these next two games are crucial in our overall development going into conference.”

Beeman and Loyola Marymount coach Aarika Hughes may want to trade notes once they get to their respective conference season.

Today’s game with Loyola Marymount will represent Hawaii’s fourth game against a West Coast Conference member in its first eight contests of the season. On the other side, UH is the fourth Big West team on LMU’s nonconference schedule.

UH dropped games with San Diego, Portland and Gonzaga so far. LMU’s record includes a win over UC San Diego and losses to UC Santa Barbara and Cal State Northridge.

LMU is led by guard Ariel Johnson, who transferred from Florida last season, at 12.2 points per game. Guard Nicole Rodriguez is next at 9.7 ppg with a team-high 10 3-pointers.

“They’re athletic, they have a lot of players who are the same size, so they can switch across the board,” Beeman said. “They’re going to get up and down the floor pretty quickly and (Hughes) has a couple of post players that crash the boards.”

As for the Wahine, Beeman listed rebounding, limiting turnovers and 3-point defense among the areas the team continues to work on early in the season.

Offensively, senior forward Amy Atwell has scored in double figures in each of the past five games and averages a team-high 16.9 points per game. Daejah Phillips returned from injury for last week’s tournament and had a 19-point effort in a loss to Utah.

Beeman has maintained a connection with Hughes since her days as an assistant at Southern Cal close to a decade ago. Hughes, a former USC player (2007-10), was hired in April to lead the Lions after serving as associate head coach at USC since 2019.

“She’s a great person, I have watched her grow as a coach,” Beeman said. “We’ve had conversations about her future and given me the opportunity to talk with her and I appreciate her for that. She is going to do a fantastic job as she continues to grow as a head coach.”

—

Rainbow Wahine basketball

At SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center

Loyola Marymount (2-4) vs. Hawaii (2-5)

>> When: Today, 5 p.m.

>> TV: Spectrum Sports

>> Radio: 1420-AM/92.7-FM