If the University of Hawai'i women's basketball team takes any encouragement from the fact that its first opponent in this weekend's Jack in the Box Rainbow Wahine Classic arrives with a 1-3 record, it is tempered by this:

Lipscomb's one win this season was a 123-22 razing of crosstown neighbor Fisk University. The Lady Bisons' 101-point margin of victory was one point shy of the NCAA record.

And while the Rainbow Wahine (2-1) will never be confused with Division III Fisk, Hawai'i head coach Jim Bolla did find the achievement worth mentioning during his team's early morning practice yesterday, if only to guard against complacency.

As usual, the tournament boasts a formidable field, including No. 21 Texas, Virginia, Minnesota, Kentucky, Hartford and Alabama-Birmingham. The Rainbow Wahine will seek to win their first Rainbow Wahine Classic in eight years.

Despite its offensive outburst against Fisk, Lipscomb is primarily a walk-it-up team that relies on high-low and spread-offense sets. Bolla said the Lady Bisons also employ a four-out, one-in set to isolate their forwards and center in the post.

While no Lipscomb player averages double figures in points, six players average at least seven points (Valerie Bronson leads the team at 9.3 ppg) and the Lady Bisons bench goes seven deep.

Defensively, Lipscomb alternates between man-to-man and a 2-3 zone.

"They will press, but our guards will be able to handle the press without any problems," Bolla said.

The Rainbow Wahine will counter by trying to impose their preferred uptempo game on the Lady Bisons.

"We need to rebound effectively in order to push the ball," Bolla said. "We should have a size advantage and we want a generally uptempo game."

Defensively, Bolla expects to unleash the team's havoc-inducing amoeba defense to force the Lady Bisons to make quick decisions and to create scoring opportunities off of turnovers.

Bolla said he'll stick to the starting lineup that proved effective in the Rainbow Wahine's last game against Northern Arizona: Keisha Kanekoa, Saundra Cariaga and Amy Kotani in the backcourt, and Dita Liepkalne and Western Athletic Conference player of the week Tanya Smith in the frontcourt.

Iwona Zagrobelna will spell Smith in the post, and Leilani Galdones and Megan Tinnin will sub in at the guard and swing positions.

Forward Ebony Jones, who has made strides in practice, will also see time backing up Liepkalne.

The Rainbow Wahine enter their second consecutive three-day tournament still smarting from their last. Kanekoa, Tinnin and Jones are each dealing with sore shoulders, and Galdones, who nailed four 3-pointers in her UH debut, has been hampered by a finger problem.

Still, Bolla doesn't consider any of the conditions serious or unusual.

"We make a distinction between 'hurt' and 'injured,' " he said. "We have a few players who are hurt, but they'll take care of it on their own and they'll be fine."

Hawai'i plays Lipscomb this morning at 11:10 a.m. to accommodate this afternoon's UH-Boise State football game.

Reach Michael Tsai at mtsai@honoluluadvertiser.com.