By Paul Honda
We’re still in the opening round. If that sounds confusing, just remember that this is a 16-team field, so the first round is split into two days.
Why two days? Well, ‘Iolani School is still in session, so that limits the hours the gym is available. Besides, not everyone loves to travel all the way to Hawaii from Georgia, North Carolina, Maryland, Philly … and get stuck with a 9 a.m. opening-round game.
Scores so far today…
Yates (Houston, Texas) 87, Kamehameha 60
They’re big, bad (as in really good) and a force of nature from Texas.
Joseph Young, a Providence recruit, poured in 26 points as the Yates Lions overwhelmed defending Hawaii state champion Kamehameha 87-60 in the final opening-round game of the night. Clyde Santee (13 points), Alexander Davis (12), Marshall Lange (11) and Brandon Peters (10) chipped in as the Lions went to the bench early, saving their legs for Saturday’s quarterfinal round.
“We took our starters out in the middle of the first quarter and in the fourth quarter,” Yates coach Greg Wise said. “The kids knew that going into the game.”
Wearing mohawk haircuts and flame-red uniforms, the high-scoring visitors — they were averaging 130 points per game — had their match in Kamehameha for a half or so. The Warriors stayed close, breaking the Lions’ vaunted fullcourt press often enough to stay within 10 points for most of the half. When Micah Christenson picked up his fourth foul late in the second quarter, however, things went downhill for the Warriors.
The 6-5 junior wasn’t a force offensively — most of his 3-pointers were short — but his rebounding and presence inside were missed after he went to the bench.
Yates’ interior game, led by the 6-9 Davis, was nearly unstoppable. The tempo slowed, though, as Yates dealt with Kamehameha’s 2-3 zone in the second half.
Taylor Taliulu led Kamehameha with 17 points, hitting three of his team’s eight treys. Guard Shane Matayoshi added 14 points and Christenson finished with 12.
Yates (Texas) 27 25 20 15 — 87
Kamehameha 15 19 8 18 — 60
Yates: Joseph Young 26, Darveon Trahan 2, Elton Roy 0, Trey Dickerson 2, Marshall Lange 11, Gary Jackson 5, Ronnie Lewis 2, Gregory Watts 4, Charles Lewis 0, Brandon Peters 10, Darius Gardner 0, Shuneric Martin 0, Clyde Santee 13, Alexander Davis 12, Chris Hill.
Kamehameha: Chris Bright 0, Shane Matayoshi 14, Frank Ho 0, Micah Christenson 12, Branden Orpillia 6, Brent Auyong 0, Chaz Bajet 0, Davis Achong 0, Devin Kuhns 2, Taylor Taliulu 17, Charlton Tang 4, Dyrbe Enos 5, Shane Yoshida 0.
3-point goals: Yates 4 (Young 3, Watts), Kamehameha 8 (Taliulu 3, Matayoshi 2, Christenson 2, Yoshida).
Gonzaga (Washington D.C.) 84, Moanalua 56
Considering the visitors are still thawing out — it’s snowing in D.C. — they had more than enough to withstand a 26-point effort by Moanalua guard Josiah Kauhola.
Gonzaga guard Cedrick Lindsay was a dime dropper, dishing eight assists to lead a balanced attack (four double-digit scorers).
Kauhola hit six 3-point bombs and Marcus Monroe had three (15 points) for Moanalua against the Eagles’ halfcourt man defense.
Gonzaga (Washington D.C.) 22 20 20 22 — 84
Moanalua 16 11 20 11 — 56
Gonzaga: Tyler Thornton 14, Cedrick Lindsay 10, Cahli Thomas 11, Danny Williams 0, Nate Britt 4, Malcolm Lemmons 14, Ben Dickinson 4, Kevin Hogan 6, Malek Williams 5, Will Rassman 1, Kris Jenkins 11, Oliver Ellison 4.
Moanalua: Bronson Kepa 2, Reece Racoma 2, Jeremy Puulei 4, Kevin Amaral 0, Aaron Davis 0, Alex Braswell 0, Brandon Guerreo 0, Josiah Kauhola 26, Wesley Armburst 0, Marcus Monroe 15, Dexter Williams 3, Carl Ko 0, Marcellis Turner 0, Dominique Jones 0, Dorian Peterson 0, Richard Villasenor 6.
3-point goals—Gonzaga none, Moanalua 9 (Kauhola 6, Monroe 3).
Lutheran (Orange, Calif.) 91, ‘Iolani II 35
Lutheran (Calif.) 26 20 21 24 — 91
‘Iolani II 7 8 5 15 — 35
Lutheran: James Douglas 12, Tyler Funk 13, Dylan Rice 13, Chad Moris 3, Peyton Banks 11, Mason Hahn 2, Andrew Vick 0, Brad Battenberg 5, Drake Ulmer 4, Andrew Bastien 0, Jared Carver 0, Christo Kourtzidis 3, Gabe York 19, Scott Baron 6, Matt Gest 0.
‘Iolani II: Sam Lee 0, Larsen Leu 0, Josh Seto 2, Tracy Young 0, Jordan Tottori 12, Scott Sakaida 2, Matt Talavera 4, Curtis Martin 5, Reese Zukeran 4, Taylor Kennedy 6.
3-point goals—Lutheran 7 (York 3, Douglas, Funk, Moris, Battenberg), Iolani II 1 (Tottori).
Columbia (Decatur, Ga.) 44, Hamilton (Chandler, Az.) 27
JerShon Cobb, a 6-5 Northwestern recruit, scored 17 points as the the Eagles outlasted the deliberate Huskies.
Micah Fetters led Hamilton with 10 points.
Columbia (Ga.) 13 10 11 10 — 44
Hamilton (Az). 11 6 4 6 — 27
Columbia: Lorenzo Jones 2, Jade McClendon 0, Tahj Shamsid-Deen 6, Stephon Allen 0, Christopher Grier 3, JerShon Cobb 17, Chris Daniels 2, Pierre Tyson 0, Jamil Saaka 0, Jamal Reid 6, Darnelius Session 8, Samual Mike 0, Jordan Johnson 0.
Hamilton: Jerry Harville 0, Jack Cone 6, Kyle Hartwig 0, Greg Darley 0, Bobby Hudson 0, Bayrd Goudeau 2, Zach Royal 0, Eric Jacobsen 6, Jonathan Wilt 1, Scott Bonner 0, Josh Malone 0, Micah Fetters 10, LeSean Marks 2, Nick Northrop 0, Eric James Bryan 0.
3-point goals—Columbia 3 (Cobb 2, Grier), Hamilton 2 (Fetters).
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