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FL MORRIS / FMORRIS@STARBULLETIN.COM Kerstan Ho of Roosevelt drove around Kahuku's Viliami Tilini in the first half of last night's game.

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Roosevelt hands No. 3
Kahuku first league loss

When the going got tough, Kerstan Ho got defensive.

The 6-foot-3 senior came up with a blocked shot and a steal in the final minute of play, lifting Roosevelt over Kahuku 54-53 last night in Oahu Interscholastic Association East boys basketball.

A raucous homecoming crowd at Kahuku's Thomas Walker Gym saw their team suffer its first loss after eight league wins.

Roosevelt won its fifth straight game and improved to 7-2 in OIA play (15-6 overall) with the win over Kahuku, which is ranked No. 3 in the Star-Bulletin Top 10. La'akea Moikeha, who made three wide-open treys, led the Rough Riders with 17 points. Ho finished with 10 and Danton Balbas added nine.

"We wanted it," Ho said. "It's a big win to win here. We wanted to win so bad.

"We want to send a message to the rest of the OIA. I think we're peaking."

Clinton Parks, who hit four 3-pointers, scored 14 points to pace Kahuku. Okesene Ale added 12 and Devin Unga finished with 10.

With the game tied at 50, Kahuku had the ball and just 1 minute left when its comeback derailed. Ho blocked a shot under the basket by Unga, leading to a breakaway layup by Balbas for a 52-50 lead with 26 seconds left.

Kahuku chose to play without calling a timeout, and Ho stripped the ball from Shane Hayden on a drive near the right elbow. Ho came up with the ball and was fouled.

"I just thought of being at the park, shooting free throws," he said.

The junior sank both shots with 7 seconds left to push Roosevelt's lead to 54-50.

Parks hit a tough 3-pointer from the left wing with 1 second left to bring the Rough Riders to within one. Kahuku called time out, but Roosevelt burned the final seven-tenths of a second with a long pass down the court.

It was a tough loss for Kahuku (15-2 overall), which had not lost since a 1-point loss at Campbell more than a month ago. Kahuku trailed by 16 in the first quarter.

"Our kids came ready to play, and lucky for us, Kahuku was a little off tonight, especially at the beginning," Roosevelt coach Jon Chung said. "This year, it's been one thing after another, having eight guys at practice sometimes. But now we have everyone back, and the guys have stuck together."

The Red Raiders opened the game a bit on the lackadaisical side, getting beat constantly for loose balls. Roosevelt's 1-2-2 zone dictated the tempo.

Kahuku settled for quick 3-point shots without rotating the ball and getting rebounding position.

"Coach Bobby (Keanini) scouted them and we just hoped they wouldn't get hot against it," Chung said of his assistant.

Kevin Fujii and Balbas hit open treys to spark a 10-2 run to start the game. Ale then left the game with a cut on his chin, and things went from bad to worse for Kahuku. In all, five turnovers by the Red Raiders helped Roosevelt take complete control.

Micah Dutro hustled after an offensive board and fed Moikeha for a 3-pointer from the top, giving Roosevelt a 17-2 lead with 1:55 left in the opening quarter.

Ale finally returned to the game with 1:28 left in the first, but horrid shooting hurt (2-for-17 in the first quarter) and the Red Raiders trailed 20-6.

Kahuku, which finally went to a 2-up offense against the 1-2-2 zone late in the first, began to pick the Rough Rider zone apart.

Ale drained a 3-pointer from the right corner, one of Kahuku's four treys in the stanza. Hayden nailed 3-pointers from 23 and 24 feet away, sandwiching a 23-footer by Clinton Parks.

Moikeha sank a trey from the left corner against Kahuku's 1-3-1 zone to keep Roosevelt's lead substantial. The Rough Riders led 31-23 at intermission.

The Red Raiders pulled within 31-26 after a pull-up jumper by Parks, but Roosevelt got open looks against Kahuku's full-court press to maintain control, leading 41-32 with 1:57 left in the third.

The Red Raiders kept attacking the low post with positive results. Ale hustled for an offensive board and fed Unga for an easy layup. Parks followed with a 23-foot trey from the top, cutting the lead to 45-40 with 6:07 remaining. Kahuku was within 45-41 when Roosevelt spread the floor, pulling Kahuku out of its 2-3 matchup zone.

At first, the spread worked, thanks to two free throws by Ho. After that, Kahuku went on a 7-1 run, tying the game on Ale's putback with 2:20 left.

David Rivers missed two free throws for Roosevelt, but Moikeha hustled for the follow shot to give Roosevelt a 50-48 lead with 2:02 remaining.

Moikeha then threw the ball away on a 2-on-1 break, and Kahuku responded with a baseline drive by Ale to tie the game at 50 with 1:24 left. Roosevelt turned the ball over again moments later, but Ale fouled out on a drive to the basket.

"I thought Junior made a great steal. I didn't agree with the call on that," Kahuku coach Nathan James said.

At Kahuku H.S. gym

Roosevelt (7-2)	20	11	13	10	--	54
Kahuku (8-1)	6	17	12	18	--	53

ROOSEVELT--Micah Dutro 3, Kevin Fujii 3, Danton Balbas 9, Kerstan Ho 10, La'akea Moikeha 17, Keo Keola 6, David Rivers 4, Troy Quon 2.
KAHUKU--Hapaki Kaululaau 0, Devin Unga 10, Shane Hayden 6, Joshua Wily 0, Okesene Ale 12, Clinton Parks 14, Kevin Unga 11, Viliami Tilini 0.
3-point goals -- Roosevelt 6 (Moikeha 3, Dutro, Fujii, Balbas), Kahuku 7 (Parks 4, Hayden 2, Ale).

Kailua 41, No. 10 Kalaheo 36: Justin Pedro scored 15 points as the Surfriders handed the Mustangs, their crosstown rivals, their first OIA East defeat.

Kalaheo closed to within three points with less than 30 seconds left in the game before Kailua hit its free throws to seal the win.

Marvin Judd led the Mustangs with 13 points.

At Kalaheo H.S. gym

Kailua (5-4)	4	14	11	12	--	41
Kalaheo (8-1)	3	8	10	15	--	36

KAILUA--Kelroy Kohatsu 4, Kama Crowell 0, Tyler Harrison 3, Zack Akamine 1, Cory Nemoto 2, Justin Pedro 15, Bobby Bordner 8, Hogan Paleafei 0, Nathan Botts 0, Kainoa LaCount 8, Pat Murphy 0.
KALAHEO--Elias David 10, Chris Tumaneng 1, Jason Tanaka 0, Mana Guerreiro 0, Kahua Hollinger 0, Tate Brown 1, Marvin Judd 13, David Moore 5, Cliffton Pires 0, Tyler Caswell 2, Isaac Higa 0, Jeff Whitworth 4, Chase Moses 0.
3-point goals -- Kailua 0, Kalaheo 2 (Judd, Moore).
Junior varsity -- Kalaheo 51, Kailua 40

Moanalua 62, McKinley 42: Wayne West hit four 3-pointers en route to a 22-point performance as the Menehunes routed the Tigers.

Nainoa Lessary scored 12 points for McKinley.

At Moanalua H.S. gym

McKinley (0-9)	6	6	16	14	--	42
Moanalua (5-4)	20	6	17	19	--	62

MCKINLEY--Kapena Quisano 10, Dat Vo 2, D'mitri Gee 2, Brandon Barbasa 2, Eastwood Campania 0, Nainoa Lessary 12, Devin Santos 2, David Hsu 0, Bobby Shimabukuro 2, Christopher Quiocho 2, Oliver Diguc 0, Daniel Liliu 4, Raphael Ieru 2, Joshua Liliu 2.
MOANALUA--Bao Lei 0, Stephen Kina 7, Jay Yoshizawa 2, Stanford Leti 2, Paul Nicholson 0, Gregory Morgan 0, Christopher Holt 2, Wayne West 22, Zachary Pendergast 6, Samuel Lowe 6, Ira Rodrigues 1, Quinton Tang 10, Paul Dudley 0, Chiedozie Orji 4.
3-point goals -- McKinley 2 (Quisano, Lessary), Moanalua 5 (West 4, Kina).
Junior varsity -- Moanalua 57, McKinley 47

Kaimuki 66, Kalani 45: Jordan Wong scored 12 points, including three 3-pointers, to lead the Bulldogs past the Falcons. Kalani Ahmad also nailed three 3-pointers to add nine points.

Carsen Chun scored a game-high 13 points in a losing effort for the Falcons.

At Kaimuki H.S. gym

Kalani (2-7)	6	4	14	21	--	45
Kaimuki (7-2)	14	10	27	15	--	66

KALANI--Carsen Chun 13, Karson Kim 0, Jonah Letoto 12, Corey Konishi 8, Brandon Liao 0, Jeff Boyne 0, Daniel Morisato 2, Mark Bonner 9, Brandon Cabacungan 0, Jeff Khautakoun 1.
KAIMUKI--Albien Montero 3, Alika Higa 3, Kalani Ahmad 9, Keha Akau 6, Jordan Wong 12, Shaun Dela Cazada 5, Isaiah Ano 4, Shadrach Ramos Dias 4, Thomas Pyo 2, Phillip Miyasaka 2, Chazz Kiua 0, Kekoa Onaga 5, Jarett Shiu 3, Jon Torres 8.
3-point goals -- Kalani 2 (Letoto 2), Kaimuki 10 (Ahmad 3, Wong 3, Montero, Higa, Onaga, Shiu).
Junior varsity -- Kaimuki 50, Kalani 23

Kaiser 44, Castle 42: Andy Uehara hit two free throws with 5.2 seconds left as the Cougars held off a late rally by the Knights.

Jon Horner had a chance to win the game for Castle, but his 3-point attempt rattled out.

Matt Ching led Kaiser with 16 points. Steven Pratt added 15.

At Castle H.S. gym

Kaiser (4-5)	14	6	12	12	--	44
Castle (5-4)	3	12	11	16	--	42

KAISER--Scott Uehara 0, Noel Okuma 2, Steven Pratt 15, Matt Ching 16, Andy Uehara 6, Jeff Peters 2, Adam Aila 0, Chad Nishihira 0, Brett Hatton 3, Teddy Toby 0,.
CASTLE--Brad Guillermo 5, Jon Horner 7, Keola Bruhn 9, Scott Keiter-Charles 5, Victor Clore 4, Scott Argue 7, Alika Kalopodes 2, Kai Domingo 3, Stephen Royalty 0.
3-point goals -- Kaiser 0, Castle 3 (Horner, Keiter-Charles, Argue).
Junior varsity -- Kaiser 48, Castle 47

Farrington 61, Thompson 34: The Sharks paced the Govs for the duration of the first quarter, but Farrington outscored Thompson 21-8 in the second quarter.

Thirteen Farrington players scored, led by Wil Tabiolo and John Carlos with 10 points apiece.

The Govs made 14 steals, including four by Nathan Serdenia.

Thompson's Mose Atuatasi and John Keen were the game-high scorers with 16 points each.

At Farrington H.S. gym

Thompson (0-9)	10	8	3	13	--	34
Farrington (3-6)	14	21	16	10	--	61

THOMPSON--Mose Atuatasi 16, Christian Kamau 2, John Keen 16, Taylor Brummel 0, Kimo Oclinaria 0, Jordan Eror 0, Keoni Mitchell 0, Julio Kameenui 0.
FARRINGTON--Winston Matas 6, Nathan Serdenia 5, Jay-Ar Mariano 2, Wil Tabiolo 10, Karl Olsen 8, Michael Secretaria 2, Devin Selman 2, Jeffrey Valoria 2, John Carlos 10, Clinton Legaspii 1, Micah Kalingo 6, Christopher Kalakau 1, Kuaika Kamano 6.
3-point goals -- Thompson 1 (Atuatasi), Farrington 6 (Tabiolo 3, Kalingo 2, Serdenia).

ILH

No. 2 Punahou 60, Maryknoll 43: Trailing by only five points at the half, the Spartans lost their momentum when their leading scorer, Tyler Tsukazaki, suffered a mild concussion following a blow to the head early in the third quarter.

Tsukazaki finished the game with 14 points and was held to only two points after the injury. The Buffanblu went on a 17-5 run in the third en route to the win.

Punahou's Jeremiah Ostrowski led both teams in scoring with 23 points.

At Damien H.S. gym

Punahou (7-1)	17	13	17	13	--	60
Maryknoll (2-6)	15	10	5	13	--	43

PUNAHOU--Trenton Zane 0, Jeremiah Ostrowski 23, Brandon Kapana 4, Ed Wong 0, Danny Cho 13, Brenton Lee 5, Robby Shklov 0, Freddie Hart 0, Kaohu Berg-Hee 5, Spencer McLachlin 5, Brian Matsumoto 2, Kasey Ko 3, TJ Zabriske 0.
MARYKNOLL--Tyler Tsukazaki 14, Tommy Nguyen 4, Chris Lum 11, Zachary Misajon 0, Riley Tang 0, Chris Hsia 1, Jordan Ho-Ching 4, Richard Herring 8, Richardson Talavera 0, Kyle Lambert 1.
3-point goals -- Punahou 5 (Ostrowski 3, Cho, McLachlin), Maryknoll 2 (Nguyen, Ho-Ching).

No. 7 Kamehameha 54, Mid-Pacific 25: Ikaika Hardie scored a game-high 12 points as the Warriors routed the Owls.

Mid-Pacific trailed by just five after the first quarter before being outscored 14-5 in the second.

Bryson Beirne and Kellen Hastie had eight points apiece to lead the Owls.

At Mid-Pacific Institute gym

Kamehameha (5-3)	11	14	16	13	--	54
Mid-Pacific (1-7)	6	5	10	4	--	25

KAMEHAMEHA-- Keo Pacarro 5, Ikaika Hardie 12, Brandon Ahlo 4, Rykin Enos 9, Jacob Ho 5, Quincy Crowell 6, Michael Nii 4, Randy Cummings 0, Mitchell Kauweloa 1, Matthew Hoapili Jr. 0, Kea Smith 2, Kamalu Miller 6.
MID-PACIFIC--Chris Young 0, Chad Takabuki 1, Allen Ko 0, Kellar Ellsworth 2, Daniel Gordon 3, Jarryd Yasui 1, JD Lum 2, Grant Gannon 0, Kellen Hastie 8, Steve Hilton 0, Bryson Beirne 8
3-point goals -- Kamehameha 5 (Wright-Pacarro, Hardie, Ahlo, Enos, Ho), Mid-Pacific 1 (Gordon).

University 54, Damien 51, OT: Alfred Clark dropped two 3-pointers and had a game-high 18 points to lead the Jr. 'Bows past the Monarchs.

Lolomana Mikaele scored 10 points to lead the Monarchs.

At Damien H.S. gym

University (3-5)	16	9	11	12		6	--	54
Damien (1-7)	16	13	9	10		3	--	51

UNIVERSITY--Scott Nishimoto 0, Michael Tenorio 5, Matt Bayan 0, Alfred Clark 18, John Duro 15, David Johnson 11, Rance Yanabu 1, Lucion Holyfield 4, Levi Goeas 0.
DAMIEN--Justin Casil 9, Devin Shiroma 8, Matthew Gochenouer 11, Michael Sipili 6, Kealoha Pilares 0, Antonio Cerezo Jr. 3, Winni Boy Gapuz 4, Lolomana Mikaele 10, Ferd Paredes 0, Gary Ontai 0.
3-point goals -- University 3 (Clark 2, Tenorio), Damien 3(Shiroma 2, Cerezo).

ILH
Division II
Hawaii Baptist 58, Lutheran 43
Iolani 59, Christian Academy 26
High scorers--HBA: Brandon Arquero 16. Luth: Shayne-Keith Searle 15, Jeff Yong 13, Matt Uffmann 11. Iol: Josh Starbuck 12, Kyson Morikumi 10. CA: Josh Dirnberger 7.
Junior varsity Division I
Maryknoll 61, Punahou Gold 48
Punahou Blue 40, Iolani 33
Junior varsity Division II
Hawaii Baptist 56, Mid-Pacific 45