ILH Boys Basketball
No. 6 Kamehameha dismantles No. 5 Mid-Pacific, 56-42


  

Tue, Jan 19, 2016 @ Mid-Pacific


Final 1 2 3 4  
Kamehameha (8-6, 15-12) 10 17121756
Mid-Pacific (3-8, 10-14) 6 13 9 1442
Justin Daise 12 pts  4/6 FTs
Kaeler Kahana 13 pts  9/9 FTs
Zion Shepherd 10 tot  4 off  6 def




MANOA — On a night when its 3-point shot wasn't falling, Kamehameha excelled in other aspects of the game in its 56-42 win over host Mid-Pacific Tuesday night.

A crowd of about 200 at Mills Gymnasium was on hand to see the Warriors pick up their third straight win in Interscholastic League of Honolulu Division I play. The victory put the Warriors over the .500 mark in league play as they improved to 3-2 and 10-8 overall.

Kamehameha held the Owls to 17-for-52 shooting (32.7 percent) and forced 16 Mid-Pacific turnovers — 11 coming in the first half — in the win.

"Our coaches did a good job of scouting them and everything they told us to do we executed it tonight," said Kaeler Kahana, who led the Warriors with 13 points and six steals.

The Warriors knocked down 19 total triples in wins over Maryknoll and Saint Louis, but shot 2-for-12 from beyond the arc against Mid-Pacific. The visitors made up for their lack of 3-point makes at the free throw line, where it was 24-for-27 against the Owls.

Kamehameha's high volume of free throw attempts can be attributed to its 27-19 halftime lead. The Owls tried to generate turnovers to get back into the game, but was whistled for 25 total fouls that allowed the Warriors to take 22 free throw attempts after the break.

"Our free throw shooting in the third and fourth quarter was huge," said Kamehameha coach Greg Tacon. "We weren't going to try and be aggressive offensively, but they were coming after us. We didn't knock down 3's tonight, but we knocked down a bunch of free throws."

While Kamehameha is trending upward, Mid-Pacific is heading the opposite direction after starting the ILH play with two wins. It was also the first league game that the Owls played in (2-3 ILH, 9-9 overall) that wasn't decided by a single possession.

"Kamehameha just straight up outplayed us," said Mid-Pacific coach Ryan Hirata, whose team was outscored in every quarter. "We weren't strong with the basketball. You can't turn the ball over like we did in the first half and we dug ourselves into a hole yet again. They basically were steady throughout the second half and they put us away."

Kahana was one of 10 Kamehameha players to enter the scoring column. Seniors Saint Gelacio and Fatu Sua-Godinet added nine points each and Jayden Zarriello scored seven points and had the team's first 3-pointer at the 7:40 mark of the third quarter. The Warriors were 0-for-8 from beyond the arc before Zarriello's triple.

Most of the fouls that the Owls were whistled for were their own fault. The Mid-Pacific players would go after a rebound that was out of their reach and get called for a loose ball foul, or they would overextend their defense and foul one of the Kamehameha guards. Kahana benefitted the most from the Owls' eagerness and went 9-for-9 at the free throw line.

"When we got down early, we had to chase and when you chase like that you don't put yourselves in a good position on defense," said Hirata. "We mad some real terrible decisions to go out and foul. We gave them maybe seven free free throws because we decided to reach. We have to get better because we keep shooting ourselves in the foot. We really have to buckle down and play smart because the ILH will eat you up if you don't play that way."

Justin Daise had 12 points and six rebounds to lead the Owls, but spent a good chunk of the game on the bench after picking up some ill-advised fouls. His first two fouls were of the loose ball type and his third foul was an illegal screen. He was one of four Mid-Pacific players to finish the game with four fouls.



Reach Michael Lasquero at [email protected].




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