Boys basketball

. By Paul Honda After struggling often in preseason, No. 7-ranked Kahuku (9-5, 5-0) has found a sense of consistency and rhythm. The Red Raider boys basketball team has made big improvements in the past few weeks, and last night’s 58-53 win at No. 4 Moanalua is proof positive. Moanalua (10-5, 3-1) was terrific in one quarter, the second, but wasn’t steady enough shooting the ball the rest of the time. I’ll get to that later. First, here’s the rest […]

By Paul Honda Nearly two years have passed since the last time Moanalua beat Kahuku in boys hoops. The one holdover from that 48-46 win by Na Menehune in late January of 2008: Marcus Monroe, who was only a sophomore and scored 14 points. It was Stevie Austin’s free throws in the final 2 seconds the gave Moanalua the final margin of victory. Ryan Hua had 13 points in that win. Kahuku? Much different today. Jray Galeai, who had 24 […]

By Paul Honda The Kaimuki Bulldogs are gaining momentum. The Farrington Governors? Depends on how you look at it. Kaimuki is 3-2 in OIA Red East play (8-9 overall) following a big 49-46 win on Tuesday over sixth-ranked Kalaheo. The Bulldogs have played better each week under Coach Kelly Grant. Whether Desmond Tautofi returns after tomorrow (Jan. 15) from Las Vegas (Calvary Chapel) or not, the ‘Dogs are starting their usual ascent. Grant knows how to get his team peaking […]

By Paul Honda Some thoughts from veteran Big Island sportswriter Hugh Clark on the 44-point performance by St. Joseph guard Jacob Andrade in a win over Hilo on Tuesday. “In my mind it ranks up there with the giants I watched since the 1966-67, season — Alan Tanabe, Reed Sunahara and Bruce Ferreira. I recall Bruce cutting and slashing for 31 in state semis (I think) against Moanalua. Reed shared scoring duties with Rene Sanchez and had to control the […]

By Paul Honda The last time these teams met, Roosevelt wiped out Moanalua 58-31 on Na Menehune’s court. This time, Moanalua has a relatively healthy Joanna Nicolas back. The junior guard returned from a partially torn ACL on Jan. 8 after missing a few weeks. She’s been effective enough, scoring 7.3 points per game. Her key contribution is distribution. Nicolas runs the offense and finds open teammates better than most players and she added a reliable 3-point shot this season […]

By Paul Honda Before crunching the numbers a bit, let’s just take a deep breath. Those of you who are heavily, emotionally invested in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu boys basketball race could use the breather. Last night’s 49-47 win by Kamehameha at ‘Iolani confirmed the high-pressure stakes and competitive level of the league this season. Less than one week into the regular season, Punahou has beaten Kamehameha (at Kamehameha) and the Warriors have beaten ‘Iolani (at ‘Iolani). The top […]

By Paul Honda The difference between regular-season games in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu and Oahu Interscholastic Association is simple. In the ILH, a state-tournament berth is the carrot. In the OIA, pre-playoff games are for seeding purposes. In effect, it’s all pool play. That’s why there’s very little additional motivation required for a matchup between Kamehameha and ‘Iolani. On paper: Second-ranked ‘Iolani is 2-0 in league play (9-5 overall) and coming off a decisive 47-21 win over Mid-Pacific (Saturday). […]