It’s the 15th edition of the James Alegre Invitational and, as always, easy to remember the legendary coach.
Before he passed, every time I came to the tourney, there he was, asking if I was hungry, if I’d had something to eat. I always said yes, because the food at Radford’s concession stand was always A+. There were always experienced hands in the kitchen, like athletic director Kelly Sur’s mom.
Alegre played at Honokaa High School back in the years when the town was still fairly big and sugar was still king. Then he matriculated to Radford and became one of the finest coaches in state history. Always had that even-keeled presence, the competitive drive just beneath the surface.
One game is in the books so far in today’s opening round. I’ll have more scores later.
Thursday’s games
Farrington 58, Pearl City 38
Leilehua 60, Roosevelt 41
Mid-Pacific 42, Radford 41
Punahou 76, Kalani 55
Friday’s games
3 p.m. — Pearl City vs. Roosevelt (consolation)
4:30 p.m. — Radford vs. Kalani (consolation)
6 p.m. — Farrington vs. Leilehua (semifinal)
7:30 p.m. — Mid-Pacific vs. Punahou (semifinal)
Punahou 76, Kalani 55
Dayson Watanabe scored 17 points and reserve forward Blake Wade also tallied 17 as the Buffanblu outraced the Falcons.
Dallas Asuncion and Alex Tungpalan had 10 points each for Kalani, which cut the lead to 13 in the third quarter on back-to-back treys by Tungpalan. Cory Mitchell added nine points.
Mid-Pacific 42, Kalani 41
Hot shooting by guard Jordan Riley lifted the Rams to a 13-9 lead after one quarter. Kyle Husslein has been the spark for the Owls so far.
Update: The Rams have hung on and have a 23-17 lead at halftime. They’ve been content to drive and kick for open threes against MPI’s man defense. Same with the Owls. This may seem strange since MPI is losing, but they have a little more offensive flow and spacing. But the threes by Riley and another by Malcolm Hill have helped Radford a lot.
Update: Kyle Husslein sparked a fourth-quarter rally, hitting the typing basket with 51 seconds left. With the score at 39-all, he missed the ensuing free throw try, but the Owls rebounded and called time out. Out of the break, Husslein drove and scored again for a 41-39 lead.
After the Rams tied it on Jordan Riley’s layup with 23 ticks left, MPI’s Daniel Florenco drove and drew a foul with 6.7 seconds left. He hit the second shot for a 42-41 lead.
Radford’s Derrick McLamore missed a contested 17-footer from the elbow as time expired.
Radford led most of the way, then began to spread the court in a delay offense with 1 minute left in the third quarter. MPI stayed in its man defense until midway through the fourth quarter, when it began to use traps to change the tempo.
Husslein and low post Justin led MPI with 15 points each. Riley paced Radford, which led 18-9 in the first half, with 15 points.
“I know we are capable of playing so much better,” Owls coach Dwight Holiday said.
Leilehua 60, Roosevelt 41
The Rough Riders came out running and led for most of the first half, but the Mules have managed to adjust their transition defense since. The game has turned into a grind. When they’re running, really pushing upcourt, Roosevelt is fun to watch. They’re probably the smallest team in the tourney, but Coach Steve Hathaway has his team taking advantage of their best asset: speed.
Update: The Mules finished strong, pulling away in the fourth quarter by dominating the glass against the feisty Rough Riders. It was a 34-33 game midway through the third quarter.
Bryan Mason led the Mules with 14 points. Joe Gouty added eight.
Guard Chaston Marcos had 15 points and Justin Furtado tallied 13 for the Rough Riders.
Farrington 58, Pearl City 38
Fairly close for a half, then Farrington got rolling with their fastbreak and fullcourt press. Shades of Harry Pacarro’s running Govs! Jacob McEnroe led the way with 20 points, crashing the boards, hitting post shots, and he hit a corner 3.
Everything the Govs did today had good planning. They stuck with their double-post halfcourt offense, trying to put their bigs — 6-foot-5 Mason Semisi especially — to work. They’ve got versatile 4s who can pound inside and handle the ball. They have depth at guard with sharpshooter Van Hugo, quick penetrator Isaiah Smith and transfer Isaiah Visoria (Roosevelt).
Depth is allowing Coach Allan Silva to use a fairly tough fullcourt press, and having a big man who has guard quicks like McEnroe is a major factor. The only issue for the Govs was the play of reserves. When Silva took his first five out after they built up a 41-22 lead in the third quarter, the Chargers went on a 9-2 run.
Pearl City has some nice potential with three bigs over 6-2. They’ve got some nice shooters, including Eric Dela Pena and Taylor Canon. They’ve also got a bunch of first-year seniors, which means Coach Lionel Villarmia will need plenty of patience. He guided the Chargers to the state tourney last year, summoning all of his experience and persuasion in a maestro-like performance.
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