Kaiser holds off late rally by KS-Hawaii, 50-44

Kaiser put defensive pressure on Kamehameha-Hawaii throughout the contest. Greg Yamamoto | SL

In the nightcap of the Kaiser Girls Basketball Invitational, the host Cougars established a lead early and held off a second half charge by the Warriors of Kamehameha-Hawaii to come away with a 50-44 victory.

Kaiser got off to blazing start, as senior Micaela Bitanga rang up eight straight points, including two from three-point range, as the Cougars established a comfortable margin at the end of the first quarter, 21-13.

The game took a decidely defensive slant in the second quarter, as both teams would combine to score just 13 points in the quarter, giving Kaiser a 28-19 advantage at the half.

Warriors' post Casey Poe led all scorers with 13, while Bitanga would score all 12 of her points in the first half to lead the Cougars.

Kamehameha-Hawaii mounted a comeback in the second half, trimming to lead down to just 39-36 with 4:55 left in the fourth period, but the Warriors, with just eight players in uniform, would eventually run out of gas against the just about constant stream of defensive pressure exerted by the Cougars.

Kayla Soong and sister Ashley both made major contributions in the victory, with Kayla leading the team in points (13), while Ashley added 6 points and 7 big rebounds anchoring the low post.

Poe had a monster game for the Warriors, notching 17 points to go along with 9 rebounds, 3 steals and a pair of blocks, and Riana Arima was a second-half factor, scoring all 10 of her points after the intermission.

Reach Brien Ing at [email protected].