No. 1 Raiders throttle Buffanblu
If a victory like this can make Alana Matayoshi smile, imagine what may happen when Iolani plays a better game.
Of course, the No. 1-ranked Raiders can take away a lot of pluses from last night's 37-27 win over No. 2 Punahou.
Jamie Smith, despite getting into foul trouble in the second half, scored 15 points and hauled in 17 rebounds to power Iolani over a slow-starting Punahou squad. Matayoshi, a senior slasher on the wing, had seven points and two steals in the defensive battle.
"It was an ugly win, but we'll take it," Matayoshi said.
Top-ranked Iolani holds off Punahou
A tale of two halves had Iolani fans feeling nervous, and then happy in the end.
Jamie Smith's 15 points and 17 rebounds lifted the No. 1-ranked Raiders over second-ranked Punahou 37-27 last night at Iolani gym.
Punahou, which is now 1-1 in league play, had its coach stumped. "We weren't disciplined. We knew exactly what Iolani was going to do, but we froze," Mike Taylor said of the first half. "In all my years at Punahou, I don't think we've ever been outhustled and outplayed like that. To our kids' credit, we came back in the second half."
Iolani (4-0) clicked on all cylinders early, storming to a 15-0 lead. By the second half, the lead was still double-digits when the Raiders slowed the tempo. The plan almost backfired.
Using a tenacious man-to-man defense, Punahou chipped away at the lead and pulled within 28-23 with 2 minutes to play. Iolani closed out the game with clutch plays from Smith and Alana Matayoshi.
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Punahou, which trailed by 16 in the first half, made a big run in the fourth quarter to unsettle Iolani's home crowd of about 300.
Both teams had not played in more than two weeks due to a long hiatus in the ILH schedule, and the rust showed -- more so for the young Buffanblu.
Iolani, now 4-0 in Interscholastic League of Honolulu play, shut out the two-time defending state champions for more than 11 minutes to start the contest.
After Smith hustled for an offensive rebound and a follow shot, Iolani led 15-0 with 6:55 left in the second quarter.
"It still felt like a close game 'cause Punahou is a good team," Smith said. Punahou finally broke the drought with a pull-up bank shot by Janelle Nomura with 4:41 to go in the first half.
The Buffanblu (1-1 ILH) struggled against man-to-man and zone defenses by Iolani in the halfcourt, and the Raiders' fullcourt pressure made life tough.
"We don't have the size, so we have to mix it up," Iolani coach Glenn Takara said.
Punahou, which turned the ball over 15 times, shot just 5-for-38 from the field (13 percent).
And yet, the Buffanblu made a game of it as Iolani went conservative in the second half.
"We just tried to burn the clock," Takara said.
Showing resolve, Punahou went on a 12-4 run in the fourth quarter. Chelsea Deptula's putback cut Iolani's lead to 28-23 with 2:08 left to play.
The Raiders responded with free throws by Smith, and the 5-foot-11 junior fed Matayoshi upcourt for a 3-point play that gave Iolani a 33-25 lead with 56 seconds remaining.
Five seconds later, Dara Tompkison hit two foul shots to bring Punahou within six, but the Buffanblu got no closer. Dayna Jandoc, Smith and Chelsea Unemori put the game away with free throws in the final 37 seconds.
"We definitely learned that we can do this if we fight back," said Melanie Feldman, who led Punahou with eight points, all on fourth-quarter free throws. "We have to come out a lot stronger, with a lot more competitive spirit. I thought we came out with our own game in the second half. We definitely had a chance."
Iolani will be on another break of sorts, taking a week off before facing Kamehameha next Tuesday.
"It'll be good for us," Matayoshi said. "We'll have lots of time to work on the things we didn't do good today."
No. 2 Punahou (1-1) |
0 |
5 |
6 |
16 |
-- |
27
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No. 1 Iolani (4-0) |
13 |
5 |
5 |
14 |
-- |
37
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PUNAHOU--Ciana Aiwohi 0, Rebecca Lau 8, Melanie Feldman 6, Erin Moon 1, Ashley Satterwhite 0, Janelle Nomura 4, Anna Merrifield 2, Chelsea Deptula 4, Devon Yamauchi 2, Taja Wong 0, Tressa Torres 0, Tiera Jenson 0.
IOLANI--Chelsea Unemori 1, Tami Konishi 5, Kylie Ahlo 2, Alana Matayoshi 7, Chanel Hirata 3, Dayna Jandoc 4, Jamie Smith 15, Raechele Takara 0, Sarah Turgeon 0.
3-point goals--Punahou 1 (Tompkison), Iolani 2 (Konishi, Hirata).
ILH Division II scores
Yesterday
Iolani 63, Christian Academy 47
St. Andrew's 46, Redemption 15
St. Francis 49, University High 34
Punahou 49, Word of Life 25
Hanalani 41, Le Jardin 11
Sacred Hearts 51, Hawaii Baptist 36
Kamehameha 48, La Pietra 29
Saturday
Sacred Hearts 54, Redemption 2
High scorers--CA: Ashley Medcalf 28. Iol: Jessica Sasaki 13, Kaz Masutani 12, Allison Nojima 11. StA: Sarah Kleinschmidt 13. StF: Jamie Iwashita 13, Bryanna Batts 10. UHS: Melanie Cortez 15, Ku'ulei Baba 10. Pun: Aubrie Lau 9. WoL: Marietta Ranche 6, Rayane Alvarado 6. Han: Janelle Fetui 12. SHA: Nalani 12, Raecha-Ann Kauahikaua 10. HBA: Jennifer Young 11. KS: Jamie Ferrigno 11. LP: Leah Kaina 7.
Junior varsity II
La Pietra 41, St. Andrew's 22
Sacred Hearts 36, Lanakila Baptist 20
University High 56, St. Francis 45
OIA Red East
Moanalua 55, Kaimuki 41
Sisters Britni and Jamie Ronolo led Na Menehune to their first OIA win of the season with 17 and 11 points, respectively.
Moanalua jumped out to a 16-6 advantage after one quarter and led comfortably the rest of the way.
Mindy Hirokawa led the Bulldogs with 11 points.
At Moanalua H.S. gym
Kaimuki (0-6) |
6 |
12 |
7 |
16 |
-- |
41
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Moanalua (1-5) |
16 |
14 |
12 |
13 |
-- |
55
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KAIMUKI--Olivia Phommachanh 8, Mindy Hirokawa 11, Janelle Shimabukuro 0, Melanie Maglaya 1, Maria Colon 5, Denisha Fa'asoa 2, Sinead Scovil 9, Monica Umeda 0, Louise Fiamate 2, Ashley Fortson 3, Ayesha Shepard 0.
MOANALUA--Brianna Lagat-Ramos 12, A.J. Verdida 0, Hoku Dela Cruz 6, Michelle Hardy 2, Jalencia Brown 0, Janelle Uncangco 3, Jamie Ronolo 11, Indah Widyakusuma 2, Britni Ronolo 17, Dawn Dela Cruz 0, Tahirah Gibson 2.
3-point goals--Kaimuki 2 (Hirokawa, Scovil), Moanalua 0.
Junior varsity--Kaimuki 42, Moanalua 33
OIA Red West
No. 9 Radford 52, Leilehua 18
The Rams used a balanced attack to outgun the Mules, with 10 points from Ta Nitra Byrd and nine apiece from Celina Cruz and Chelsea Villanueva.
Ashley Gonzales scored 16 of Leilehua's 18 points.
At Radford H.S. gym
Leilehua (1-5) |
3 |
4 |
8 |
3 |
-- |
18
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Radford (5-1) |
11 |
16 |
10 |
15 |
-- |
52
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LEILEHUA--Ashley Gonzales 16, Josette Bocobo 0, Sabrina McBride 0, Cassey Borromeo 1, Ashley Momiyama 0, Brittaney Stafford 0, Claudia Veikune 0, Tete Moore 0, Shanee Henderson 1, Kyra Gorton 0.
RADFORD--Leslie Lazo 3, Itali Lindsey 2, Bui Baravilala 3, Celina Cruz 9, Disa Brown 5, Brittini Fuller 6, Kiara Dykes 2, Chelsea Villanueva 9, Marsh DuPont 3, Ta Nitra Byrd 10.
3-point goals--Leilehua 0, Radford 1 (Brown).
Junior varsity--Leilehua def. Radford (score unavailable).
Kapolei 48, Mililani 42
Ashlee Dela Cruz scored seven of her game-high 21 points in the third quarter to help the Hurricanes in a come-from-behind effort over the Trojans.
Mililani went cold in the final period (2-for-14 from the field) and Dela Cruz went 4-for-6 from the free throw line in the quarter to help seal the win.
Jamielyn Kaleiwahea and Joleen Realin led the Trojans with eight points apiece.
At Mililani H.S. gym
Kapolei (3-3) |
11 |
10 |
18 |
9 |
-- |
48
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Mililani (1-5) |
10 |
13 |
12 |
7 |
-- |
42
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KAPOLEI-- Loleina Lapina 3, Danniel Tapat 1, Ashlee Dela Cruz 21, Tiffany Kasoga 0, Jasmine Gipson 0, Regina Simanu 5, Kesha Miller 2, Tamara Satcher 8, Jay Abbondanza 0, Cassidy Calio 0, Tahnee Foki 8, Leilani Tuani-Fifita 0, Hartley Marquez 0.
MILILANI--Jordan Sakai 6, Chelsea Basilio 5, Kimi Ebina 3, Glenelle Nitta 1, Jamielyn Kaleiwahea 8, Breana Locquiau 0, Haunani Richardson 0, Chantel Tanuvasa 4, Courtney Senas 0, Joleen Realin 8, Meilin Akiu 7, Laneisha Lewis 0.
3-point goals -- Kapolei 4 (Dela Cruz 2, Foki, Lapina), Mililani 4 (Kaleiwahea 2, Basilio, Ebina).
Junior varsity--Mililani def. Kapolei (score unavailable).
OIA White
McKinley 57, Castle 35
Chelsie Sato scored 19 points and hit four of the Tigers' 10 3-pointers in a rout of the Knights.
Sato hit three 3-pointers in the first half to help McKinley build a 25-14 halftime lead.
Kaitlyn Ikehara, Jackie Tihano, and Kylie Sato each added two treys in the win. Tihano scored 10 points.
At McKinley H.S. gym
Castle (3-4) |
6 |
8 |
10 |
11 |
-- |
35
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McKinley (5-1) |
7 |
18 |
19 |
13 |
-- |
57
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CASTLE--Kori Berinobis 2, Candy Ames 5, Niki Kobashigawa 6, Kelsea Berinobis 6, Sarah Phromisiri 6, Brandee Sasaki 3, Chevy Au-Stein 3, Leesha Domingo 0, Ette Ameperosa 2, Nicole Aberilla 2.
MCKINLEY--Jackie Tihano 10, Kaitlyn Ikehara 6, Chelsie Sato 19, Jaelynn Lopez 0, Pearly Togiai 6, Joelle Sagapolu 0, Maribel Hebron 0, Kylie Sato 9, Sasha Hong 0, Allyson Villanueva 0, Crystal Tafai 7.
3-point goals--Castle 1 (Sasaki), McKinley 10 (C. Sato 4, Ikehara 2, Tihano 2, K. Sato 2).
Junior varsity--McKinley 55, Castle 37
BIIF
Waiakea 40, Hawaii Prep 29
Waiakea |
11 |
6 |
10 |
13 |
-- |
40
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Hawaii Prep |
4 |
4 |
13 |
8 |
--a29
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High scorers--Waia: Kamie Imai 15.
HPA: Kela Fitzgerald 14.
Junior varsity--Waiakea 55, Hawaii Prep 8