Post-game: Punahou-Kamehameha, boys hoops

By Paul Honda
It’s been quite a week for prep basketball fans. Talk about intensity levels!
After the girls state championships — kudos to Lahainaluna and Kaimuki for such clutch performance — the boys gave us some fantastic pace. Moanalua and Mililani provided a statewide TV audience with the most pinball-type action in the first half of [...]

Green with envy: Wildcats ponder what could’ve been

By Paul Honda
They were a sea of red, just Lahainaluna loyalists clamoring for new heights, night after night.
The hunger of the West Maui community for a noble champion was immense. The Lady Lunas of Lahainaluna obliged on Friday night. A breathtaking 47-45 come-from-behind win over defending champion Konawaena put Lahainaluna in the record books.
The first-ever [...]

Championship night photos

Lahainaluna and Kaimuki won state championships in girls basketball on Friday night, and the Star-Bulletin’s Jamm Aquino was there with his camera for every minute of the action.
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Pre-game: Konawaena-Lahainaluna, girls hoops

He doesn’t have to acknowledge anything or anyone, and neither does his team.
Yet, Todd Rickard does so. When he coached Lahainaluna girls basketball years ago, along with the Menehune hoops program in the community, it was a simple process that involved day-to-day workouts.
It was all about commitment, the kind that lacked in so many communities [...]

Post-game: ‘Iolani-Farrington, girls hoops

By Paul Honda
Coach Eddie Maruyama put it simply.
The ‘Iolani Raiders played as one team, he said, just as the athletic program’s mantra dictates. But there was more to the Raiders’ stunning 63-58 overtime win over fourth-seeded Farrington last night in the quarterfinal round of the Hawaiian Airlines/HHSAA Girls Basketball State Championships.
It was the kind of [...]

Post-game: Waiakea-Moanalua, girls hoops

By Paul Honda
One quarter into the Waiakea-Moanalua game, it was clear enough.
These aren’t the 1990s Waiakea Warriors, walking the ball upcourt, operating methodically efficient sets. Since Grant Kauhi took the helm some years back, the Warriors have morphed into a run-and-gun squad. It was expected; Kauhi and his assistant, brother Jason Kauhi, were prominent gunners [...]

Post-game: Roosevelt-Mililani, girls hoops

By Paul Honda
Some post-game notes from last night’s opening-round Roosevelt-Mililani game at Radford in the Hawaiian Airlines/HHSAA Girls Basketball State Championships.
The Rough Riders, runners-up from the Oahu Interscholastic Association, won 62-49 and will play second-seeded Lahainaluna tonight at Radford.
• Mililani tried to attack Roosevelt’s primary weapons, particularly Mikela Thoemmes, but had limited success. Thoemmes wisely [...]

Girls hoops state tourney update: Tuesday

Updates from Division I opening-round games, Hawaiian Airlines/HHSAA Girls Basketball State Championships.
Division I
James Alegre Gymnasium, Radford High School
Waiakea 57, Moanalua 43, final
Roosevelt 62, Mililani 49, final
McKinley Student Council Gym
Kapolei 37, Baldwin 35, final
7 p.m. ‘Iolani vs. Pearl City
Division II
Earl Holmer Gym, Kalani High School
Kaiser 54, Hawaii Baptist 38, final
7 p.m. Word of Life vs. Kahuku
Richard [...]

Preview: Division II state tourney, girls hoops

By Paul Honda
Of all the teams in the Hawaiian Airlines’/HHSAA Girls Basketball Division II State Championships, Molokai has reason to stand out.
Literally.
Center Kalei Adolpho, at 6-foot-1, has been a fixture since her freshman season. As a sophomore, she led the Farmers to the D-II state crown. Before her junior year, she gave the University of [...]

Preview: Division I state tourney, girls hoops

By Paul Honda
There’s not a single team in the Hawaiian Airlines/HHSAA Girls Basketball State Championships that is flawless.
True of any year, but more so now with talent levels and depth in a down cycle. Sure, Konawaena is a clear No. 1 — and has been since winning the state title last year on the heels [...]

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