Boys basketball

Kahuku is the top seed of the Snapple/HHSAA Boys Basketball Division I State Championships, which tips off on Monday. The brackets and pairings were released late Saturday night. The Red Raiders, unbeaten in OIA play, will meet Monday’s Kalaheo-Maui winner on Wednesday at McKinley Student Council Gymnasium. Defending state champion ‘Iolani open against Moanalua at ‘Iolani gym. In other Monday openers, Kalaheo plays at Maui, Kailua travels to play Konawaena and Leilehua plays at Kapolei. Punahou is the No. 2 […]

The Villa effect is real. A month ago, Jessiya Villa was on the court when Kahuku played Kailua and won, 53-37. Fast-forward to the OIA playoffs on Tuesday: Villa is out with a concussion and Kahuku has to scramble for a 42-40 win over that same Kailua team. His return on Thursday did more than energize No. 1 Kahuku. The Red Raiders captured their eighth OIA boys basketball championship with a 70-60 victory over No. 6 Kapolei. It was Kapolei’s […]

Every follicle on Nathan Davis‘ head is screaming for intervention. The follicles will have to obey their host because Kalani’s boys basketball coach is a man of his word. Before the Falcons played Farrington in the Oahu Interscholastic Association Division II championship game on Thursday night, he confirmed that the deal was on. What deal? Back in preseason, flying home from a 3-0 run and the title at Waiakea’s tournament, his players expressed their dreams to him in a way […]

Allan Silva doesn’t have to go back very far to recall the last time he’s seen a special moment or two on the basketball hardwood. The Saint Louis coach was at Farrington just a few seasons ago when the Governors made a big splash, going deep into the postseason. They went from Division II champions to OIA D-I champions, and reached the state final before falling to ‘Iolani in 2014. In year three at Saint Louis, Silva’s Crusaders have hardly […]

There was almost nothing more difficult for Jessiya Villa. He sat there, moments after running through pre-game warmups, T-shirt and game shorts on. Sneakers, too. Normally, a player ruled out by a coach due to injury won’t suit up for a game. But Villa was two-thirds dressed and ready to jump onto the court at McKinley Student Council Gymnasium on Tuesday night. He wanted to play. Surely, the Kahuku Red Raiders wanted him there, too. But Brandyn Akana stuck by […]

After two nail-biting, down-to-the-final-second thrillers against Maryknoll in the last three days, the ‘Iolani boys basketball team is one win away from a stunning finish to the first round of ILH play. After losing by two to Punahou on Jan. 21, the defending state champion Raiders dropped a game behind both Maryknoll and the Buffanblu. They have since rattled off four straight wins, including a 43-41 victory over the Spartans on Senior Day on Saturday and a 43-42 victory in […]