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FL MORRIS / FMORRIS@STARBULLETIN.COM Kurt Rodrigues of St. Anthony drove to the basket against Glenn Richberg of Xaverian yesterday.

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Raiders continue
hot start

It might not be their intentions, but with the way the No. 1-ranked Iolani Raiders are playing, the name Derrick Low is quickly becoming a distant memory.

Kyle Pape scored 18 points and Vinny Nip added 14 as the Raiders mixed outside shooting with a frenzied full-court pressure defense to defeat McKinley 71-46 last night in the first round of the Iolani Classic.

With Low's departure to Washington State, many felt this would be a rebuilding year for the three-time defending state champions. But the Raiders are already 9-0 this season and have not lost a game since last year's Classic.

"The returnees are getting our shot to play now and we're making the most of it," junior Kawika Shoji said.

The Raiders exploded out of the gates early last night, going up 11-0 just 3 minutes into the game after forcing turnovers on three of McKinley's first five possessions.

"This early in the season, our defense is ahead of the offense," said Nip, a guard.

Pape nailed his third 3-pointer at the end of the first quarter to give the Raiders a 20-7 advantage after the opening 8 minutes. Iolani forced McKinley into 11 turnovers in that span.

Kapena Quisano, the lone returning starter from last year's state-tournament team, led the Tigers with 18 points, but was constantly hounded by a high-energy Raiders defense that the Tigers struggled with all night.

"I'm really thrilled with the defense they play with," Raiders head coach Mark Mugiishi said. "They play it with pride and it creates a more up-tempo game that they like playing."

Iolani was able to extend its lead to 38-21 at halftime, and a 3-pointer by Nip midway through the third quarter pushed the Raiders' lead to 23. After the Tigers went on a quick 8-3 run, Iolani put the game out of reach by scoring the final 11 points of the third quarter.

Even in a 25-point victory, there were a few things that Mugiishi knows his team needs to work on.

"We were a little sloppy on offense and turned the ball over more than I would have liked," he said. "We're not a big team, so it's something we have got to clean up."

They're going to have to clean that up in a hurry as the Raiders will meet Rice (New York) in a quarterfinal game tomorrow night. McKinley will face Radford in the consolation bracket.

Xaverian (N.Y.) 51, St. Anthony 28: Zamal Nixon scored 17 points on seven field goals and three free throws to help the Clippers rout the Trojans.

Xaverian jumped out to a 20-2 lead after the first quarter and cruised the rest of the way. Chris Lowery scored 13 points and Brian McKenzie added 10 for the Clippers.

John Powley hit four 3-pointers and led St. Anthony with 17 points.

Fairfax (Calif.) 85, Roosevelt 38: Jamal Boykin made as many free throws as Roosevelt attempted and the Lions destroyed the Rough Riders.

Fairfax went to the line 28 times -- making 20 -- against Roosevelt, which only took 10 free throws, hitting five of them. Boykin was 10-for-12 from the line.

Jerren Shipp matched Boykin's 21 points and Ja Shon Hampton added 12 points for the Lions. Laakea Moikeha led Roosevelt with 10 points.

Male (Ky.) 77, Kauai 43: Jacob Bream led four Bulldogs in double figures with 15 points in a win over the Red Raiders.

Male outscored Kauai 20-11 in the first quarter and led 41-21 at the half.

Josh Bradbury scored 13 points for the Red Raiders and Jeremy Manuel added 11.

Division II

Academy of the Pacific 75, Myron B. Thompson 59: Kaimana Komine poured in 47 points to lead the Dolphins past the Sharks for the tourney's Division II title.

Komine hit 15 of 18 free throws in the win.

Jerrome Figueroa led Thompson with 27 points. Puna Kaopuiki added 18 for AOP.

Lanai 63, ASSETS 28: Lucky Bolo led the Pinelads with 17 points as Lanai used a 20-3 second quarter to help pull away for the victory.

Camden Alboro added 11 points and Jimbon Costales 10 for the Pinelads, while Nick Castello and Matthew Murphy each scored nine to lead the Admirals.