Girls basketball

After all this time, I finally got to see the team that beat Lahainaluna. When the week began, the Campbell Sabers were 7-0 in the OIA West, a team ranked No. 8 in the Star-Advertiser Girls Basketball Top 10. Built on solid leadership from top to bottom, with a fourth-year court general in Gieani Balino. Tonight, the Sabers were coming off a 37-34 loss to Leilehua, facing the unbeaten Mililani Trojans with first place at stake. A Campbell win would […]

In Tuesday’s Honolulu Star-Advertiser, Paul Honda wrote about the top 10 prep stories of 2017. You can read it here. Here’s a deeper look at one of the 10 stories. 4. Konawaena girls basketball dynasty continues The dynasty at Konawaena might turn out to be as impressive as the football one at Saint Louis. In the last 14 seasons, coach Bobbie Awa has guided the Wildcats to eight state championships. Konawaena is a smaller school in rural Kealakekua and there […]

In Tuesday’s Honolulu Star-Advertiser, Paul Honda wrote about the top 10 prep stories of 2017. You can read it here. Here’s a deeper look at one of the 10 stories. 5. MIL teams choosing to forfeit The Lahainaluna Lunas have one girls basketball state championship, forged during the senior years of Maiki Viela (Tihada), who went on to play at Gonzaga, and center Milika Taufa (Indiana). In the Maui interscholastic League, the Lunas are not just a one-time state champion. […]

Only by digging through the differences between OIA, ILH, MIL, BIIF and KIF teams that have yet to ascend from the middling positions of their respective league standings do I get a better perspective. Kapolei, for example. The Hurricanes start preseason on fire with seven wins in their first eight games. Then some struggles, including a 1-4 start in the OIA West. They’re now 3-4 and could be 5-4 by the end of this week. It’s a classic example of […]

The Eagles have landed in the Star-Advertiser Girls Basketball Top 10. Hawaii Baptist (15-5) is at No. 10, replacing Kalani. The rest of the poll is mostly as it was a week ago with front-runner Maryknoll collecting all 10 first-place votes. Campbell, which is 6-0 in the OIA West and 13-2 overall, moved up a notch to No. 8. Sacred Hearts, which lost two ILH Division II games last week, switched places with Campbell. Led by Ally Wada, the HBA […]

There’s something to be said for a five-game win streak. After all, not all humans have experienced this, whether it was youth league, professional sports or right here in high school. The Kalani Falcons had this. They arrived in Kahuku on a cloudy, cool evening ready to defend their place atop the OIA East girls basketball standings. Kalani. In first place. By 9 o’clock, the lofty perch was one to be shared. Kahuku’s young hoopsters opened a 16-point lead and […]