OIA RED
Mililani’s Dela Cruz eats up Waianae
The Pink Starburst at Jamba Juice is just the fuel that Brandon Dela Cruz relies on.
Dela Cruz, a 6-foot-3 All-State offensive lineman in football, got his pre-game boost and had 13 points and eight rebounds as No. 5-ranked Mililani rallied past Waianae 68-63 last night at the Trojans' gym.
A raucous crowd saw sparkplug Curtis Murakami, Dela Cruz's football teammate, add 13 points of his own off the bench.
"Curtis comes in, he changes the whole tempo of the game, and Brandon was really tough," Mililani coach Hiram Akina said.
Mililani improved to 9-0 in Oahu Interscholastic Association Red West play thanks to a 7-0 run that broke open a 58-all game in the final 3 minutes.
"Mililani is a well-coached team. They went from the 1-3-1 to a 2-3 and we had a hard time setting up," Waianae coach John Simbahon said. "This is helping us, though."
Akina's defensive demands are paying dividends now. "It's taken awhile. They're picking it up quicker, but Waianae hurt us on the baseline. From the beginning I liked Waianae. John has taken those kids and they're believing," he said.
After Waianae's Ramsey Beers hit his only two free throws of the game to tie it at 58, Mililani went on a 7-0 run. Waianae, which went nearly 3 minutes at the start of the fourth without scoring, had some hesitation against the mix of zones called by Akina.
By the time Murakami and Dela Cruz hit their last free throws, Mililani led 65-58 with 23 seconds left. Bryson Kekahuna cut the margin to five with a couple of foul shots, and after a quick Mililani turnover, Jesse Lafua stepped back and swished a 3-pointer to bring Waianae within 65-63 with 15 seconds to go.
Jonathan Keen hit his first foul shot and missed the second, but Kendrick Clarke kept the long rebound alive, and Keen scored on a layup to put the game out of reach with 3 seconds left.
The Trojans used their depth -- seven players scored at least seven points -- and a constantly changing defensive look to wear down the talented, but thin Seariders.
Keen and Jordan Torres added nine points each for Mililani (18-5 overall), which got plenty of strong defense under the glass from reserves Scott Burns and Clarke.
Dela Cruz, however, had one of his best performances against Waianae's strong frontline. "The Pink Starburst was delicious. I think it helped me get those rebounds," the senior said. "But no, I owe it to the team."
At Mililani H.S. gym
Waianae (3-6) |
10 |
19 |
23 |
11 |
-- |
63
|
Mililani (9-0) |
8 |
20 |
18 |
22 |
-- |
68 |
WAIANAE--Bryson Kekahuna 10, Kapena Bungo 7, Ed-Recco Eli 0, Jeremy Green 2, Kaipo Punihaole 2, Ramsey Beers 18, Jamerson Smith 2, Jesse Lafua 12, Jarred Burns 10, Austin Cunningham 0.
MILILANI--Scott Burns 7, Jordan Torres 9, Curtis Murakami 13, Kendrick Clarke 8, Fred Nillo 0, Donovan Olmos 7, Nick Kanno 2, David Otte 0, Brandon Dela Cruz 13, Jonathan Keen 9.
3-point goals -- Waianae 8 (Kekahuna 3, Beers 3, Lafua, Bungo), Mililani 3 (Olmos 2, Burns).
Campbell 51, Pearl City 45
Jayden Delizo and Walter Daniels combined for nine points during a pivotal 11-0 fourth-quarter run as the Sabers (8-2) rallied past the Chargers at Mililani's gym.
Delizo, who finished with a game-high 17 points, sank a 3-point shot to spark the Saber comeback. Trailing 37-31, they scored 11 unanswered points before spreading the floor in the final 4 minutes, ending a flurry of eight lead changes. Pearl City pulled within one, but went scoreless in the final 55 seconds against Campbell's swarming halfcourt pressure defense.
Delizo shot 6-for-10 from the field and added seven rebounds and six of his team's 12 steals. Daniels finished with six rebounds.
Karlo Rarangol led Pearl City (1-9) with 15 points and nine rebounds. Jahron Castillo had a team-high 12 rebounds. Pearl City outrebounded Campbell 40-21, but committed 14 turnovers in the second half.
Campbell coach Bobby Samson was away on a trip to California. "Any win is a good win," assistant coach Glenn Flores said.
Mike Makinano didn't start the game due to disciplinary action.
At Mililani H.S. gym
Pearl City (1-9) |
10 |
14 |
13 |
8 |
-- |
45
|
Campbell (8-2) |
9 |
10 |
12 |
20 |
-- |
51 |
PEARL CITY-- Kellen Oshiro 5, Micha Choy 0, Skye Kaapuni 6, Jon Giron 0, Troy Antoque 3, Lawrence Acasio 4, Anthony Ferretti 2, Allen Agni 5, Ryne Calbero 2, Jahron Castillo 3, Karlo Rarangol 15.
CAMPBELL--Danny Mau 0, Mike Makinano 6, Michael McDonald 4, Jayden Delizo 17, Patrick Ward 2, Walter Daniels 11, Joseph Atimua 6, Terence Tafai 5, Rashaad Battle 0.
3-point goals -- Pearl City 3 (Oshiro, Agni, Rarangol), Campbell 2 (Makinano, Delizo).
Radford 58, Kapolei 33
Gary Satterwhite scored 16 of his game-high 23 points in second half as the Rams rolled over the winless Hurricanes.
Mason Koa led Kapolei with 8 points.
At Radford H.S. gym
Kapolei (0-10) |
10 |
6 |
9 |
8 |
-- |
33
|
Radford (7-2) |
10 |
20 |
13 |
15 |
-- |
58 |
KAPOLEI--DJ Dubois 4, Kaleo Cajigal 2, Josh Hose 0, Landon Soriano 6, Jess Kaapuni 0, Darius Richardson 0, Nate Dixon 6, Jordan Ferreira 0, Lawrence Olive 2, Mason Koa 8, Justin Cossey 2, Kamuela Foki 0, Jon Spearman 3.
RADFORD--Andre Brown 0, Jonathan Combis 2, Travis Daniels 6, Joash Pagilinan 0, Justin Lord 6, Mario De Los Santos-Gonzalez 0, Matt Hoover 1, Jared Brown 3, Matt Alofaituli 3, Aldrin Valdez 0, Soosoo Tauleilei 10, Gary Satterwhite 23, Antonio Williams 4.
3-point goals -- Kapolei 0, Radford 3 (Satterwhite 3).
Junior varsity -- Radford 55, Kapolei 39
OIA RED EAST
Kailua 61, Kahuku 43
Zachary Akamine scored a game-high 18 points and Ryan Naluai pitched in with 16 in the Surfriders' win over the Red Raiders.
Jray Galeai led Kahuku with 10 points.
At Kahuku H.S. gym
Kailua (6-3) |
11 |
16 |
16 |
18 |
-- |
61
|
Kahuku (2-7) |
10 |
10 |
12 |
11 |
-- |
43 |
KAILUA--Jackie Uemoto 0, Gerald Ho 2, Brian Rexroat 0, Tim Maghinay 9, Zachary Akamine 18, Darren Sugimoto 0, Sammy Trueman 0, Michael Flynn 0, Dustyn Naki 3, Billy Oden 0, Ryan Naluai 16, Chauncy Makainai 0, Kenny Ellis 13.
KAHUKU--Evan Kunz 0, Nehoa Akina 5, Pele Soliai 2, Jack Damuni 6, Irwin Ah-Hoy 9, Ian Fujinaga 0, Ambrose Bridges 0, Alema Tachibana 0, Willie Ching 7, Pat Au 4, Jray Galeai 10.
3-point goals -- Kailua 0, Kahuku 2 (Akina, Galeai).
Junior varsity -- Kahuku 83, Kailua 35
Moanalua 46, Roosevelt 37
Na Menehune outscored the Rough Riders 29-14 in the second half en route to the come-from-behind victory.
Stevie Austin scored 16 points to lead Moanalua while Roosevelt's Daniel Arruda dropped in a game-high 17 in defeat.
At Moanalua H.S. gym
Roosevelt (3-7) |
7 |
16 |
7 |
7 |
-- |
37
|
Moanalua (6-3) |
9 |
8 |
13 |
16 |
-- |
46 |
ROOSEVELT--Jason Nutter 6, Lowen Kahooilihala 8, Matt Kualii Moe 0, Daniel Arruda 17, Nick Dang 0, Kenese Ola 2, Jason Bush 0, Darren Erickson 2, Kona Hew Len 0, Ethan Williams 0, Jeremy Harvest 2.
MOANALUA--Kris Lazarou 3, Jay Yoshizawa 12, Paul Wasada 0, Emanuel Vierra 0, Stevie Austin 16, Rob Munoz 3, Josh Kure 1, Roshawn Terry 0, Casey Schuler 2, Ryan Hua 0, Shawn Richey 6, AJ Kirkman 1, Montay Rover 0, Maurice Allen 2.
3-point goals -- Roosevelt 4 (Arruda 2, Kahooilihala, Nutter), Moanalua 3 (Munoz, Yoshizawa, Lazarou).
Junior varsity -- Moanalua 47, Roosevelt 40
No. 8 Kaimuki 70, Castle 46
The Bulldogs dominated the Knights thanks in part to a game-high 21 points from Beau Albrechtson and 18 from Daniel Colon.
Nickolas Tuamoheloa carried Castle with 19 points and three treys.
At Kaimuki H.S. gym
Castle (2-8) |
11 |
13 |
8 |
14 |
-- |
46
|
Kaimuki (6-4) |
17 |
25 |
18 |
10 |
-- |
70 |
CASTLE--Bronson Kekahuna 0, Nickolas Tuamoheloa 19, Layne Kihara 0, Scott Keiter-Charles 9, Keanu Bruhn-Nakihei 12, Micah Clore 0, Malani Lum 0, Shayne Carvalho 0, Vernon Mitchell 6.
KAIMUKI--Daniel Colon 18, Chezz Ramos-Dias 1, Craig Cabudol 1, Brandon Madamba 5, Bryan Lim 2, Chauncey Nicola 5, Kamahoi Cookman 0, Makalii Nahinu 3, Ryan Kakitani 5, Keone Reyes 9, Perry Faleao 0, Tyler Fessenden-Batis 0, Beau Albrechtson 21.
3-point goals -- Castle 4 (Tuamoheloa 3, Keiter-Charles), Kaimuki 2 (Madamba, Kakitani).
Junior varsity -- Castle 41, Kaimuki 35
ILH
Division II varsity boys
Assets 53, Le Jardin 49
Lutheran 64, Redemption Academy 45
Leading Scorers--Asts: Nick Castello 25. LeJ: Josh Blau 14. LHS: Shayne-Keith Searle 20. RA: Joshua Burrows 31.