Hawaii’s top two boys basketball high school teams had mixed results in Wednesday’s action at The Holiday Classic in San Diego, Calif.
Top-ranked ‘Iolani (9-3 overall, 2-0 ILH) defeated Vista del Lago (Calif.) 66-53. Josiah Sukumaran had 19 points, six rebounds, three steals and two blocks — and no turnovers — to pace the Raiders.
Trevyn Tulonghari added 13 points, six boards and four steals for ‘Iolani, which led 46-34 at halftime. Adam Ching added 10 points, including a pair of treys. ‘Iolani shot 44 percent from the field (25-for-57).
The Raiders won its second game in a row since losing its opener in the Governor’s Division of the 79-team, five-site tournament.
Brooks Lambertson led Vista del Lago with 21 points.
‘Iolani’s injured players had limited action. Post Kainoa Scheer (knee) continued to rest and did not play. Gabriel Vega (wrist) and Duke Pauli (ribs) did get on the hardwood. Vega had six points and six rebounds in just 17 minutes. Pali, who suffered his injury during the tourney opener, played just nine points and had a blocked shot.
Frank Ho scored a season-high 15 points, but second-ranked Kamehameha (9-5, 2-1 ILH) fell to powerful Bellevue (Wash.) 65-49 yesterday in the American Division of the tournament. Micah Christenson added 12 points, nine boards, four steals and two blocks. The Warriors shot 33 percent from the field (18-for-54) and lost the battle on the boards, 35-23.
“We didn’t play our best game and Bellevue was solid, pushing the ball and applying a lot of defensive pressure,” Warriors coach Jesse Nakanishi said. “We’ll grow from these two games and learn how to play at a high level for a complete game instead of spurts. We’re learning the hard way the importance of playing with urgency every possession.
“Hopefully, we can come away with a ‘W’ tomorrow for a good taste in our mouth heading into our ILH play.”
Kendrick Van Ackam led Bellevue with 15 points.
The American Division, playing at La Costa Canyon High School, is the second-highest of the five tiers. The Governor’s Division, at Rancho Bernardo High School, is the fourth-highest.
See tournament scores and statistics at ESPN Rise.
Paul Honda, Star-Advertiser
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