There was more than the falling of one giant tree in this jungle.
Maryknoll knocked off No. 2 Kamehameha and No. 1 Punahou in a three-day span this week. Today, coaches and media rewarded the Spartans with a No. 1 ranking in the new Star-Advertiser Boys Basketball Top 10. Maryknoll received six of the 10 first-place votes.
This also means that Maryknoll has the top ranking in both boys and girls basketball polls for the first time in a decade.
Maryknoll (21-4) won at home against Kamehameha 50-39 on Tuesday, then walked up the slope and upset Punahou 49-48 on Thursday. The Spartans are 6-1 in league play, tied with Punahou for first place. They capped the week with a 62-37 win over Saint Louis.
Even with the rare 1-2 knockouts, Maryknoll coach Kelly Grant didn’t vote for his own team at No. 1.
“Both Punahou and us are one win apiece against each other. They beat us by five (47-42, Jan. 4) and we beat them by one,” Grant said. “This was the most difficult week to vote. I went to watch Kahuku. They are really good and should receive voting acknowledgment.”
Punahou (22-2) dropped to No. 2, the first time all season the Buffanblu haven’t been at the top of the poll. They received three first-place votes. Punahou’s loss to Maryknoll was bookended by wins over ‘Iolani (52-39) and Mid-Pacific (64-40).
Kamehameha (18-5) also dropped one notch and is No. 3. After the loss to Maryknoll, the Warriors won at Saint Louis 78-59 and edged ‘Iolani 37-36.
St. Francis (22-3) remained at No. 4 and earned one first-place vote after defeating Hanalani 85-32 and University 59-43. The Saints are 5-3 against teams in the Top 10 this season, including a 55-48 victory over Maryknoll during the Punahou Invitational. Their three losses were against Punahou (twice) and Kamehameha.
No. 5 Kahuku (21-3, 9-0 OIA East) eked out wins over Farrington (64-56) and Kaiser (48-42) to remain unbeaten in the OIA East. The Red Raiders have won 10 games in a row since losing to Punahou 50-48 at the St. Francis Hoops Classic.
The rest of the Top 10 is also status quo with Kapolei (14-4), Lahainaluna (13-6), Kamehameha-Hawaii (16-3), ‘Iolani (12-10) and Campbell (15-5). Aside from the 10 ranked teams, only two other teams received votes: Kalani and Leilehua.
Honolulu Star-Advertiser Top 10
| FOOTBALL | ||
|---|---|---|
| Updated: 10/23 | ||
| RANK | SCHOOL | VOTES |
| 1. | Kahuku (10) | 100 |
| 2. | Miililani | 86 |
| 3. | Campbell | 81 |
| 4. | Punahou | 73 |
| 5. | Saint Louis | 53 |
| 6. | Kapolei | 50 |
| 7. | Konawaena | 40 |
| 8. | Farrington | 23 |
| 9. | Lahainaluna | 18 |
| 10. | Kamehameha | 8 |
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