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Jonny Philbrick

Kailua basketball  •   #3  G  Junior

Seeing is believing when it comes to Jonny Philbrick.

The junior guard certainly opened some eyes with his 29-point performance to help the Kailua boys basketball team rally to a 50-45 win at then-No. 6 Kahuku Thursday night.

"Jonny doesn't really show what he can do unless you see him and you watch him," Surfriders coach Wally Marciel said of Philbrick, who stands 5 feet, 10 inches tall and weighs about 155 pounds.

"His quickness is unbelievable, especially with a ball in his hands. He's one of the quicker guys I've ever coached, that's for sure and his speed helps him and guides him a lot on the way he plays," Marciel said.

Philbrick can play anywhere from point guard, to shooting guard, as well as small forward. He is the team's lone returnee from the 2019-'20 season.

"He was the only freshman on our varsity team that year and he got minutes and played," Marciel noted.

He averaged 3.3 points per game that season and scored a season-high nine points against Kahuku in his very first OIA regular season game. Philbrick totaled 29 points in nine league contests that year.

He matched that in Thursday's win over the Red Raiders that doubled as a matchup of undefeated teams and the regular-season finale for both teams in the OIA East.

"We've been waiting for that all year," Marciel said. "At any moment he could take over a game and he showed his abilities and his true quickness against Kahuku — which, we were playing against, those are football athletes that we're playing against and strong athletes and he showed what he could do against them."

Not only did Philbrick light it up with his hot shooting, he also took on the primary ball-handling duties out of necessity.

"Our point guard, Roscoe Eddins, didn't play that night so Jonny had to step in that role and also play solid defense and he showed true leadership. He did go out for about thirty seconds with a cramp, but he really wanted to win that OIA East championship at Kahuku," Marciel said.

Philbrick's defensive contributions should not be understated, the coach pointed out.

"Every game this year we put him on the best shooting guard on the opposite team, so his defense gets overlooked a lot of times but he's playing against one of the better guys on the opposite team and also being a scorer for us, so he has double-duty," Marciel explained.

The Surfriders are limiting opponents to only 35 points per game this season — primarily with a man-to-man defense.

Philbrick's prowess and production on both ends of the floor — without getting into foul trouble — is indicative of both his conditioning and body control.

"Majority of our defense this year has been man-to-man and he plays a good thirty minutes, sometimes the whole game; sometimes he hasn't come off the floor, but he does a good job on defending and putting himself in the right position to avoid fouling somebody," Marciel said.

Earlier in the season, Philbrick posted three consecutive 20-point games in wins over Kalani, Kaiser and Kaimuki. He is averaging 16.4 points per game, which ranks him fourth among the OIA's top individual scorers this season.

"He's our go-to guy, he's very important to our success so far this season. I mean, not just scoring, but defense, pushing up the ball, sharing the ball with other players — he has really helped us be where we're at today," Marciel expressed.

While Philbrick's multiple roles of prominence and statistics certainly back up his importance to the team, there is no individualism when it comes to his approach to the game, nor with his teammates.

"His success is the team's success and he knows that and the special part about Jonny is he thinks for the whole team. I mean, we're a whole team and it's not just about Jonny Philbrick, but it's about the whole team and everybody gotta do their job," Marciel said.

Philbrick has worked diligently to add to his already wide array of offensive skills in his arsenal.

"He's a slasher, a strong penetrator, he can handle contact and put in the shot and then he can also hit the 3 from the outside and in the last year and a half he's worked on a pull-up (jumper) that was kind of missing from his game," Marciel said. "He's worked really hard on getting that into his game."

But for as skilled as Philbrick is on the hardwood, he is also a stand-up guy outside of the gym.

"He's not just an outstanding basketball player, but he's also an outstanding person," Marciel said.

The Surfriders rallied from a nine-point deficit after three quarters to outscore the Red Raiders by a 21-to-7 margin in the final stanza. The win gave Marciel's squad the East's top seed in this week's OIA tournament.

"Any time that you can beat Kahuku at Kahuku, it's a huge win. We were both undefeated, the crowd is there — we finally have fans that can watch our players play — but just being in that atmosphere and playing at Kahuku and being able to win there is a huge success for our team and our program," Marciel said.

Kailua moved up one spot to No. 7 in this week's ScoringLive/Hawaiian Electric Power Rankings.

Philbrick and the Surfriders (13-0) held off Kalaheo, 33-31, in Monday's quarterfinal round and edged Roosevelt, 42-37, in Tuesday's semifinals and will face fellow-unbeaten and sixth-ranked Mililani in the tournament championship at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Moanalua.

BOYS BASKETBALL

Quintan Akana, Baldwin — Scored 17 points in a win over Seabury Hall

Aiva Arquette, Saint Louis — Scored 22 points in a win over Punahou

Hayden Bayudan, Saint Louis — Scored 16 points in a loss to Maryknoll

CJ Bostic, Kalaheo — Scored 19 points in a win over Radford

Jacob Brown, Mid-Pacific — Scored 21 points with three rebounds, three steals and a block in a win over Damien

Kahiau Bruhn, Kamehameha — Scored 17 points with 11 rebounds and two blocks in a loss to Iolani

Basil Caley, Anuenue — Scored 23 points in a loss to Castle

O'Shen Cazimero, Kohala — Scored 24 points with six rebounds, four assists, three steals and a block in a win over Honokaa

Malu Cleveland, Kaimuki — Scored 20 points in a win over Kaiser and scored 26 points in a win over McKinley

Gerald Gallardo, Farrington — Scored 16 points in a loss to Moanalua and scored 18 points in a loss to Waialua

Ayden Gambino, Lanakila Baptist — Scored 17 points in a loss to Island Pacific

Tyler Grover, Radford — Scored 20 points in a win over Campbell and scored 27 points in a win over Nanakuli

Max Itokazu, Kaiser — Scored 17 points in a win over Kalaheo

Ellice Kapihe Jr., Kamehameha — Scored 19 points with eight rebounds, two steals and two blocks in a loss to Iolani and scored 22 points in a loss to Maryknoll

Keaka Kauhane, Kapaa — Scored 18 points in a win over Waimea

Laakea Kauka, Kohala — Scored 19 points with nine rebounds, one steal and an assist in a win over Hawaii Prep

Kayman Lewis, Roosevelt — Scored 16 points in a loss to Kailua and scored 19 points in a win over Kalani

Andrew Lu, Island Pacific — Scored 16 points in a win over Assets

Peyton Macapulay, Punahou — Scored 16 points in a win over Mid-Pacific

JJ Mandaquit, Iolani — Scored 18 points in a win over Maryknoll

Reece Matsukawa, Kailua — Scored 22 points in a win over Roosevelt

Zelston Militante, Nanakuli — Scored 31 points in a win over Waianae

Flavio Sailiai-Leon, Waianae — Scored 30 points in a loss to Nanakuli

Ehu Schenk-Lee, Kalaheo — Scored 21 points in a loss to Kaiser

Hawkins Souffrant, Radford — Scored 20 points in a loss to Kalaheo

Duke Thomas, Le Jardin — Scored 23 points in a win over Hanalani, scored 16 points in a win over Hawaii Baptist and scored 18 points in a win over Iolani II

Ian Venzon, McKinley — Scored 21 points in a win over Castle

Maddux Vilardi, Castle — Scored 19 points in a win over Anuenue

Drake Watanabe, Punahou — Scored 19 points in a loss to Iolani

Amari Westmoreland-Vendiola, Kahuku — Scored 32 points in a win over Moanalua and scored 16 points with eight rebounds and a block in a loss to Kailua

Jeremiah White, Kaimuki — Scored 19 points in a win over Kaiser

James Zara, Waialua — Scored 18 points in a win over Waipahu and scored 22 points in a win over Farrington

BOYS SOCCER 

Matthew Enriquez, Kealakehe — Scored two goals in a win over Parker

Jedidiah Griffin, Punahou — Scored the lone goal in a win over Mid-Pacific

Anuhea Aluli

Kamehameha soccer  •   #21  F  Senior

Anuhea Aluli let out a season of frustration in two games last week.

The Kamehameha senior forward totaled four goals in wins over Punahou's I and II teams. The 5-foot-6 Aluli scored twice in a 3-0 decision over the Buffanblu's II squad on Monday. She followed by up with two more goals in Thursday's 4-3 win over the D1 team that secured a league championship for the Warriors (8-1).

"It was pretty big win," Kamehameha coach Melissa Moore said. "Punahou is a fantastic team. They have really good players on their team and they're very athletic so it was a big-time win."

Aluli gave her team a 1-0 lead with her first goal. After the Buffanblu equalized, Aluli's second goal put Kamehameha back ahead, 2-1.

Moore said Aluli's two goals were representative of her strengths as a player.

"She definitely does a lot of things well, but in my opinion, what she does best, I would say just her ability to try to combine with her teammates and getting balls back is her strongest attribute. She knows where to move without the ball and she knows the spaces to attack when she has the ball," Moore said.

"Her goals against Punahou Thursday were just like that: teamwork and she found the space. The first one she followed up on one of our other forwards and the second one she got a one-touch, thru-ball from another forward; it was just beautiful off-the-ball movement," she described.

Although the Buffanblu equalized twice more to even the score at 2- and then 3-all, the Warriors eventually netted the game-winning goal in regulation to cap off a wild back-and-forth match between the top two teams in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu.

The Kamehameha win, which extended its winning streak to four games, served as revenge for Punahou's 2-1 win in the first meeting between the teams at Alexander Field back on Jan. 31.

"That first game they were good and we had a few chances, they had a few chances, the game could have gone either way — just like this past Thursday's game could have gone either way — but any time you have Punahou, Kamehameha or Iolani playing against each other the game can go any way," Moore said.

As if the seven combined goals weren't wild enough, the Warriors had a few golden opportunities that they failed to capitalize on with two missed penalty kicks — both by Aluli, ironically enough.

"She had a very good game, minus the PKs that she missed, but we haven't taken those all season and it's definitely something we need to work on, but she's been so close all season long that you could see her frustration because she's been so close to scoring in so many games: off the post, at the keeper, over the goal," Moore said of Aluli.

She went on, "Every game it was like, ‘oh my gosh, how did that not go in?' So to see her finally get her goals and put it in the back of the net was so rewarding for us and I'm sure for her as well because she's been so close all season to those breakthrough performances so it was good to see her come through, especially in a huge game like Thursday's game for the ILH championship."

Not only did the victory secure the league crown for the Warriors — along with a seeded berth and first-round bye at next week's Division I state tournament — it was also the team's first game on the brand new playing surface at Kunuiakea Stadium, which underwent a refurbishment since last summer.

"It was our first game at our stadium since the new construction and just to have one home game after playing all of our games away the entire season was really special. It was a special moment for the girls, the school and our program to get that first win on our new turf," Moore said.

The win also vaulted Moore's squad to the No. 1 spot in this week's ScoringLive/Hawaiian Electric Power Rankings.

When the Niu Health Urgent Care/HHSAA State Championships get underway next week, Aluli will find herself in familiar territory. She has been a starter for the Warriors since her freshman season and helped them capture the state title that year as well as the following season in 2020 — the last state soccer tournament that took place before the COVID pandemic.

"With her being a starter since she was a freshman, she has a very good idea of the style of play that we ask them to play, so that experience definitely helps her on the field," Moore said of Aluli, who has signed a national letter of intent to play for and attend the University of Oakland, in Michigan.

"She has a very high soccer IQ. She knows when to make a pass, when to take people on, when to combine with her teammates. Her movement off the ball is very good and she's a very good forward, but she can play midfield for us as well when needed — just her diversity on the field helps us as a team," Moore said.

Aluli was voted by her teammates as one of three team captains this season. Moore describes her as a coach on the field.

"In the past she's been very quiet, but this year she's a lot more vocal. She used to be very quiet and even though she was a starter she wouldn't really say much and would kind of take a back seat, but this year her leadership alone has improved so much," Moore said.

She added, "Her leadership on the field on the field has helped us a lot, especially without having that (season) last year and pretty much more than half of our team is new this year, so having her guidance on the field to reiterate our coaching style and the team style has been huge for us."

Moore described Aluli as humble and hard-working, but certainly not demonstrative on or off the pitch.

"She's an excellent teammate and just very respectful to the whole program and stuff, but she's very stoic in a sense that nothing seems to really faze her; She just doesn't show a lot of emotion and so you wouldn't be able to tell if she's happy, or sad, or mad — it's just kind of the same expression every time — but I think she's embraced the role of being a captain, for sure, just because she's so much more vocal on the field now than in the past," Moore said. "There were seasons I would literally not hear her speak, but she just plugs away. She's very industrious; her personality is just a worker."

Aluli and the Warriors will open state-tournament play in the quarterfinal round on Thursday, Feb. 24.

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Theresa Anakalea, Damien — Scored 21 points in a win over Iolani II

Tyra Arenda, Kalaheo — Scored 11 points with 12 rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block in a loss to Kailua

Maya Barnabas, Punahou II — Scored 20 points in a win over Kamehameha II

Tiffany Castillo, Hilo — Scored 19 points in a loss to Waiakea

Miyah Galdeira, Kailua — Scored 15 points in a win over Pearl City

Myah Galdeira, Kailua — Scored 17 points in a win over Pearl City and scored 12 points with rebounds, four assists and two steals in a win over Kalaheo

KeanuMarie Huihui, Kamehameha-Hawaii — Scored 18 points in a win over Honokaa

Jolie Mantz, Waiakea — Scored 15 points in a win over Hilo

Raini Mayo, Mililani — Scored 21 points in a win over Kaiser

Ledjan Pahukoa, Lahainaluna — Scored 19 points in a win over Baldwin

Julien Parado, Campbell — Scored 13 points with nine rebounds, five blocks, four steals and an assist in a win over Mililani

Shilee Scanlan, Pearl City — Scored 18 points in a loss to Kailua

Avery Snyder, Waiakea — Scored 15 points in a win over Hilo

Rylee Velazquez, Honokaa — Scored 24 points in a loss to Kamehameha-Hawaii

Jovi Wahinekapu Lefotu, Iolani — Scored 24 points with four rebounds, three assists, three steals and a block in a win over Punahou

Kenna Wengler, Damien — Scored 16 points in a win over Iolani II

GIRLS SOCCER

Tahia Alexio, Iolani — Scored three goals in a win over Punahou II

Rushelaine Alsola, Waianae — Scored three goals in a win over McKinley

Kasi Amaral, Nanakuli — Scored two goals in a win over Waianae

Teani Bento, Aiea — Scored three goals in a win over Kahuku

Ellie Gusman, Punahou — Scored two goals in a loss to Kamehameha

Mari Ige, Mililani — Scored two goals in a win over Pearl City

Anaiyah Mahuka-Alapai — Scored three goals in a win over Farrington

Elana Melton, Moanalua — Scored the lone goal in a win over Waipahu

Kenna Nakamura, Waipahu — Scored the lone goal in a win over Kapolei

Julia Oka, Pearl City — Scored two goals in a win over Roosevelt and scored three goals in a win over Moanalua

Kira Watase, Mililani — Scored two goals in a win over Aiea