Pair of Maryknoll forwards prove too tall for Aiea to handle

Napoleon and his troops stood tall for the Maryknoll Spartans in a 73-51 win over Aiea in a semifinal game of the Na Menehune Holiday Classic at Moanalua last night.

Jordan Napoleon scored 18 points and Ross Lum added 15 to provide Maryknoll with all the offense it needed on the inside. The rest fell into place from there; by attacking the basket with a series of slashes and post moves, the Spartans befuddled Na Alii from opening tip to final horn.

The biggest difference between the teams was apparent as the teams shook hands when the starting lineups were introduced. The Spartans were taller than Na Alii at every position, and it didn't take long for them to assert themselves in the paint.

Napoleon and Lum -- both are 6-foot-3 junior forwards -- took turns punishing Aiea on the inside. Napoleon went to effective drop steps and jump hooks, while Lum, who came off the bench, capitalized on putbacks and baskets in transition.

"They struggled throughout the preseason, but I think this is a good confidence-builder for them because we're going to have a hard time in our (Interscholastic League of Honolulu play) as it is," said Maryknoll coach Blaine Gier. "With this (performance), we can get better, utilize them a little bit more, and go inside if our shots are not falling from the perimeter."

Senior guard Travis Liu chipped in 12 points for Maryknoll.

Napoleon agreed it was a good breakout game for his team's post game.

"A few games we had, we didn't really pound the ball in," said Napoleon. "Me and Ross, we have to step it up really good. We may have won the games, but we still need to work a lot of stuff out. I think this was the best game we played throughout the tournament."

Aiea, on the other hand, seemed to lack confidence in its inside game and took often-contested 3-pointers in the first half when nothing else seemed to open up in the flow of its offense. Napoleon, Lum, and 6-foot-2 guard/forward Richard Herring deterred the Na Alii guards from penetrating into the paint for kickouts.

"(The height) played a huge role," said Gier. "We were worried about Aiea's speed and the quickness of their guards. The whole team is quick ... definitely the height advantage helped us because we got two of our better post players involved early, which carried us throughout the whole game."

Na Alii were led by junior Obie Woods' 11 points. Woods wasn't afraid to take the ball inside, scoring on a mix of runners while adding a pair of 3-pointers, but his aggressiveness wasn't contagious. He fouled out in the final minute of play.

After falling behind 46-23 at halftime, Aiea mounted what would be its best comeback attempt with a 14-7 spurt that brought the deficit down to 16.

But Lum scored consecutive baskets for the Spartans and Herring added four points over the next two minutes to extend the lead back up to 20. Napoleon followed on the next possession with a quick pivot and hook shot before the third-quarter buzzer.

"We got the ball inside, and me and Jordan just did our moves and got buckets to fall," said Lum. "I think we controlled the tempo good today. The first couple games we were sluggish. We usually don't put the ball in the post a lot."

When Aiea desperately tried to press Maryknoll in the fourth quarter, the Spartans answered with three straight long passes to break the pressure and secure easy layups. Na Alii seemed resigned to defeat and didn't call a timeout in the second half.

Aiea coach Wyatt Tau spoke at length to his team after the game and was unavailable for comment. Maryknoll was the first ILH team Na Alii faced after dropping Oahu Interscholastic Association East Division foes Kahuku and Kailua in the opening two rounds.

The Spartans, meanwhile, defeated Waianae and Punahou II to earn their semifinal berth. They face McKinley in the tournament's championship game today. Farrington and Aiea will play for third place.

"We just gotta make sure we take care of the ball, or get into a sloppy running game with them," Gier said.

McKinley 48, Farrington 34

Jonathan Lee scored 13 points, Earvin Sione had 12 and Tilton Kaluna 11 to lead the Tigers over the Governors in last night's late semifinal.

Christian Hernandez and Rey Bartian scored a team-high nine points apiece in the loss for the Governors.

The Tigers held the Govs to just five points in the fourth quarter to secure the win.