Boys basketball

(11 a.m. Adds comment by Kamehameha coach Jesse Nakanishi.) Top-ranked ‘Iolani and No. 2 Kamehameha began play in The Holiday Classic, a 79-team tournament at five sites in San Diego, Calif. Kamehameha downed Madison-Ridgeland (Ms.) 58-46 behind 21 points by Micah Christenson on Monday night. Christenson, a 6-foot-5 senior, shot 9-for-19 from the field and had a team-high nine rebounds, four assists and four steals, plus two blocks. The Warriors had just eight turnovers, but didn’t shoot well from deep […]

Dexter Williams scored 16 points and Keven Amaral had 15, including 10 in a pivotal second quarter, as No. 9 Moanalua caged McKinley 63-45 Monday in the opening round of Na Menehune Holiday Classic at Moanalua High School. Moanalua rolled to a 14-1 lead, but McKinley chipped away and pulled within 15-11 on a 3-pointer by Jason Ramano early in the second quarter. Moanalua smothered the Tigers with halfcourt traps and went on a 27-10 run. Five consecutive points by […]

Best games of Monday? Turns out I was spot on about No. 7 Roosevelt and University. I just couldn’t get there at 9 a.m. with all the usual Monday morning work. Roosevelt won 47-45 in overtime. Pearl City, No. 3 AOP and Kapolei won early games. Kaiser advanced with a solid 60-47 win over Waiakea, which could use Jason Kauhi clone or two. Leilehua, which is picking up momentum in the Star-Advertiser Top 10, struggled past Kalaheo 41-37. McKinley was […]

The marathon is underway! • Na Menehune Holiday Classic At Moanalua √ No. 3 AOP 67, Waipahu 29 √ No. 7 Roosevelt 47, University 45, OT √ No. 9 Moanalua 63, McKinley 45 √ Kaiser 62, Waiakea 50 √ El Toro (Calif.) 76, Mid-Pacific 50 √ Waianae 59, Kaimuki 42 √ St. Joseph 56, Maryknoll 41 √ Mililani 51, Punahou I-AA • St. Francis/Merv Lopes Prep Classic At Manoa Rec. Center √ No. 5 Punahou 53, No. 3 Farrington 52, […]

Two ginormous tournaments. Thirty-two teams. Four days and nights. This is a roundballer’s marathon of sweet delight, except for one thing. The tournaments run concurrently. When Na Menehune Holiday Classic and the St. Francis/Merv Lopes Classic tip off this morning, basketball aficionados will have choices to make. Some will be simple. Some will be painful. But there is one small gift this year: The Merv Lopes Classic has moved from King Armory in Kaneohe to Manoa Recreation Center. That means, […]

Finally, the whole thing is up. VIDEO: ‘Iolani Classic Slam Dunk Contest, Part 1 VIDEO: ‘Iolani Classic Slam Dunk Contest, Part 2 Paul Honda, Star-Advertiser

. (Here’s the extended version of the game story for the Punahou-Melbourne Grammer [Australia] game yesterday.) It seemed only fair that a basketball team from Australia led in part by Dane Pineau — the son of a former UH Rainbow — would be destined to win the Punahou Invitational title in Stan Sheriff Center. Nick Velasquez thought otherwise. The sophomore guard was all net on a 3-pointer with 47 seconds left to give Punahou a 42-40 win over Melbourne Grammer […]