Day 2: Centennial, Southridge on Brink in ‘Iolani Classic

The second day of the ‘Iolani Classic girls basketball tournament is underway. Consolation results are below, and semifinal updates will also be posted here and on Twitter @hawaiiprepworld and @staradvertiser.

Centennial 72, Oregon City 60, final (semifinal)
Eboni Walker finished with 22 points and Justice Ethridge added 21 as Centennial advanced to the final of the Classic. The Bulldogs will meet Southridge (Ore.) in the 7 p.m. championship game on Saturday. Maryknoll will play Oregon City for third place at 5:30 p.m.

Brooke Bullock led the Pioneers of Oregon City with 19 points. Kylie Guelsdorf and Kaari Guelsdorf chipped in 12 each for the Pioneers, who had a 13-point lead in the first half. Rory Schedler added 10 points.


Centennial 7 27 19 19 — 72
Oregon City 15 22 9 14 — 60

Centennial 53, Oregon City 46, end third quarter
Bulldogs are fresh. Pioneers tiring.

Centennial 46, Oregon City 41, third quarter, 2:31
A 10-0 run has propelled Centennial into the lead. Daejah Phillips, a sophomore, scored in the paint with the go-ahead bucket as the Bulldogs went on a run that turned a 37-34 deficit into a 44-37 lead.

Oregon City (Ore.) 37, Centennial (Nev.) 34, half
The Bulldogs rallied from a 13-point deficit to pull within three by the break.

Southridge 63, Maryknoll 39, final (semifinal)
The Spartans put up a fight, but the Oregon 6A state champions are too cohesive and consistent. Natalie Hoff finished with 16 points, including eight during the third stanza, and Brink finished with 14 points, 13 rebounds, four steals, two blocks and an assist for Southridge. Maggie Freeman added 11 points, while Mckelle Meek and Maya Hoff chipped in eight points each.

Kamakawiwo‘ole led Maryknoll with 10 points.

Maryknoll 5 9 14 11 — 39
Southridge 18 9 18 18 — 63

Southridge 45, Maryknoll 28, end third quarter
Well, the first half was the Cameron Brink Show. She sat most of the third with foul trouble and now we see the Skyhawks playing tremendous team ball, just as they did with Brink on the floor. Natalie Hoff, a 6-2 senior, scored six of her nine points in the third.

Southridge 31, Maryknoll 22, third quarter, 4:10
Cravens faked and blew right past Brink from the high post, drew a foul and hit two free throws. Finally. That’s the game she’ll get used to at some point, probably in college. Strong and quick, just needs reps to get used to bigger competition. But she commits her fifth foul with 4:43 left in the third. Omori keeps Maryknoll in this by hitting a couple of runners in the gaps. Brink has sat out much of the quarter with foul trouble.

Southridge 27, Maryknoll 14, halftime
The Skyhawks are supremely confident, using a 2-2-1 press and a 2-3 halfcourt zone to make the Spartans use up a good chunk of the shot clock on most possessions. Brink has been dominant with 10 points, 11 rebounds, two steals and two blocks. The 6-4 sophomore is versatile enough to be a passer from the high post and is shooting 4-for-7 from the field and 2-for-5 from the foul line.

Kamalu Kamakawiwo‘ole has four points to lead Maryknoll. She is the only Spartan who has been strong and willing enough to attack Southridge’s defense consistently since the second quarter began. Maryknoll center Isabella Cravens has not looked at the basket or even squared up to pump fake when Brink has defended her. That’s pure intimidation. There isn’t a rangy, athletic 6-4 player like Brink in the islands.


Southridge 6, Maryknoll 0, first quarter, 5:54
Spartans struggling against the tall, long Skyhawks, who have three steals in the passing lanes already.

Naha Senior 60, ‘Iolani 52, final (consolation)
The Raiders were within 56-52 after a putback by Alexsandra Huntimer and had the ball after a Naha turnover. However, the Raiders’ Lily Lefotu Wahinekapu lost the ball after being double-teamed and the Bears scored to take a six-point lead. Wahinekapu was called for traveling on the sideline as Naha pressed fullcourt. Naha’s Miyu Kinjou added two free throws with 8.3 seconds left to put it out of reach.

Kinjou led the Bears with 19 points, including three treys. Anna Senaga added 11 points and Itokazu finished with nine points, all on treys. Naha made eight trifectas.

Wahinekapu led the Raiders with 16 points. Alexsandra Huntimer added 11.

Update: Kayla Malta said has an minor knee injury, and the other question I had was about volleyball standout Saige Ka‘ahaaina-Torres. The high-jumping all-state girls volleyball player of the year came to basketball practice, where she tweaked a knee. It’s not a major injury, but with a future in college volleyball, she won’t be playing basketball after all.

Naha 17 18 7 18 — 60
‘Iolani 8 13 14 17 — 52

Naha Senior 56, ‘Iolani 50, fourth quarter, 1:01
The Raiders got 3-pointers from Alexis Huntimer and Shyann Kahalehoe, plus two free throws by Alexsandra Huntimer, to cut the lead to three. However, Naha’s Yukako Itokazu calmly swished two huge 3-pointers, and that cooled off ‘Iolani’s run momentarily.

Naha Senior 35, ‘Iolani 21, half
The 30-second shot clock in use for this tournament seemed perfectly normal for the Bears. The five-time Okinawa prefecture champions were perpetual motion from the opening tip, opening a 21-8 lead in the second quarter. A corner 3 by Touko Kyan opened the lead to 30-16, and a wing 3 by Anna Senaga made it 33-18 with 1:33 left in the first half, the biggest lead of the game.

Kayla Malta, ‘Iolani’s most experienced post player, did not suit up.

Note: Probably because of the difference in international style, officials are allowing the Bears to take an extra hop when they catch a pass on the perimeter. It hasn’t made a serious difference in this first half, and they were called for a more obvious extra step one time.

Miramonte (Calif.) 64, Kalani 34, final (consolation)
The Lady Falcons pulled within 30-22 early in the third quarter before the Matadors closed the door. Guard Clair Steele, a commit to Lehigh University, led the Mats with 11 points. Emily Huston and Mia Mastrov added eight points apiece.


Kaylie Espinas led the Lady Falcons with 12 points. Heidi Kishiba finished with 10. Miramonte will play in the consolation title game on Saturday against the Naha City-‘Iolani winner.

Miramonte 16 12 15 21 — 64
Kalani 6 9 15 4 — 34

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