Kelly Grant isn't typically one to speak in hyperbolic terms.

The veteran coach has led several successful prep programs to league and state championships and has served as head coach of the boys' team at his alma mater, Maryknoll School, for more than a dozen years. 

So when Grant says that current Spartans' senior Nixis Yamauchi is a rare talent, his words certainly carries some weight behind them. 

"When he wants to be, he can be the most dynamic player I've ever had, to be honest with you. His skillset is off the charts," Grant said of Yamauchi, a 6-foot-3, 175-pound combo guard. 

Both Yamauchi and fellow senior Justice Pascual are in their second season at Maryknoll since having transferred from Kamehameha-Hawaii on the Big Island, where they played their first two seasons of prep ball. 

With regard to Yamauchi, Grant explained that it took a while for the Hilo native to get acclimated to the faster pace of life in Honolulu. 

"Hilo is just a slow-paced kind of town so he needed to make adjustments about just being prompt, that kind of stuff, practice times. If practice was at 10 a.m., he would show up at 9:58 and I told him, ‘Nixis, you cannot do that buddy. You gotta come 15 to 20 minutes earlier and he understood and made the adjustments to come on time, but he would always stay after practice and shoot for an extra hour," Grant said. 

He went on, "I think it's just how it was on the Big Island, right — just real slow — even when he walks to school he just kind of walks at a slow pace; it looks like he's in deep thought, but both him and Justice are great kids. They're very respectful and appreciative and Nixis' dad is here but he's working a lot, so a lot of the families of the other players do try to help out and stuff."

As far as on the basketball court, it did not take Yamauchi very long to figure things out with his new teammates. 

A year ago Yamauchi was the Spartans' third-leading scorer and averaged 8.3 points per game in the ultra-competitive Interscholastic League of Honolulu. His junior season was highlighted by a season-high 19-point performance in a win over Iolani en route to honorable mention all-league recognition. 

Maryknoll mostly relied upon the senior duo of Zion Milare and Hunter Marumoto, both of whom earned All-ILH first team honors. However, with Milare and Marumoto both having graduated last spring, Yamauchi has been thrust into a much more prominent role this winter. 

"The thing that is holding Nixis back — and he'll agree with me — is that he has that point guard-first mentality and with our team I tell him all the time that we need scoring out of him, so he's got to think score first. When he first came to us we had Zion and Hunter and he was the point guard at first and was trying to set those guys up, (but) now he's most playing (shooting guard) and sometimes (point guard)," Grant explained. 

To say that Yamauchi has adjusted well to his new role is an understatement. His 18.0 points per game in league games ranks second in the ILH. He has scored in double figures in all but one of Maryknoll's 12 league contests and has eclipsed the 20-point mark five times. 

Grant can recall the very first time he laid eyes on Yamauchi during a offseason tournament at the Hawaii Convention Center. 

"I had no idea who the boy was until somebody told me that there's two boys from the Big Island that are looking to come and play on Oahu, so once they put the application in I went to watch him play and I told our (athletic director) that this guy is legit, he can play," Grant asserted. 

In the little that he did bear witness to it was evident to Grant that unlike Yamauchi's disposition, his game spoke volumes about him.

"Nixis is a kid from Hilo. He's quiet by nature but when he speaks, the boys listen. He does state his thoughts and it's all constructive and mostly positive, but he does get on his teammates when he needs to when he feels they're not trying hard enough and the other thing about him is he takes blame when he makes mistakes and I think the kids really appreciate that," Grant said. 

Before the ILH regular season, the Spartans put together a stellar preseason campaign that saw them go 13-2, including a tournament title at their very own Tony Sellitto Hawaii Invitational in December. Yamauchi was selected as the most valuable player of the tournament. 

The ILH season, however, saw Maryknoll get a bit of a slow start out of the gates. It lost its first free games to Punahou, University Lab and Saint Louis and sat at 2-6 heading into last week. 

Since their 48-45 loss to top-ranked Saint Louis on Jan. 25, however, Maryknoll has turned things around and has reeled off four straight victories. Yamauchi has been a big part of that turnaround. He posted 15 points in a 55-49 win over Iolani to ignite the win streak. Yamauchi netted a game-high 22 points three nights later in a 64-43 win over Kamehameha and followed that up with 23 points in Saturday night's 78-72 overtime victory at Iolani. 

"He's peaking at the right time and the team is peaking at the right time. I think we're establishing our roles, establishing our mindset to be great and every coach's dream is to have kids buy in and take ownership. This year it took a little longer, but we did have a really tough schedule to start off with UH Lab, Punahou and Saint Louis. It was tough, but not making excuses because they could have won a couple of those games," Grant said. 

Yamauchi averaged 20 points a game in the Spartans' three wins last week, but took things to another level Monday night. He poured in a career-high 38 points to lead his team to a 80-74 win over Mid-Pacific.

"That night he demonstrated what he can do. There's still room for growth, but if you're going to just use that game as a measuring stick, that was like the pinnacle. I mean, to score 38 points in an ILH game is amazing," Grant said.

To his point, Grant's squad averaged 42.5 points per game in its six losses this season.

Grant noted that Yamauchi scored the first nine points of the game against the Owls and at one point scored 15 straight points. 

"I think everything that he could possibly do went right; He was just unstoppable," Grant added. 

Yamauchi made three 3-pointers and shot 7 of 8 from the free-throw line to help Maryknoll extend its winning streak to four games. Beyond his scoring ability, however, Granted pointed out that many of Yamauchi's other contributions don't always show up in the box score, like the five steals he recorded Monday night.

"He definitely loves getting assists. He loves the dynamic pass and at some of his passes, at the college or pro level they would catch the ball, but he was getting turnovers because some of his teammates weren't expecting a pass of that sort and he understands, so we talk about bounce passes and also his teammates are adjusting and they're better at expecting that these passes are coming at a little bit brisker pace and might zip by an opponent's ear," said Grant, who likened Yamauchi's vision and passing ability to former Punahou and University of Hawaii point guard Miah Ostrowski. 

Grant also drew comparisons to former Saint Francis and Kamehameha guards Kameron and Kordell Ng. 

"I would say a combination of them. Kameron didn't have the jumping ability of Kordell, Kordell did improve his shooting, but Kameron was the shooter while Kordell was the playmaker and had that quickness and could jump out of the gym," Grant said. 

Another area where Yamauchi has shown vast improvement is with his free-throw shooting. He made 65.7 percent of his free throws a year ago, but has upped that average to 86.8 percent this season. 

Grant added that Yamauchi has also worked diligently to improve on the defensive end of the floor. 

"He knew he wasn't a strong defender last year, but at practice he's really worked hard on his craft of defense — defending on ball, stopping dribble penetration — Nixis knew he had some issues with off-the-ball issues, but in practice, if I was to film him, you could just see that his mind is working and he's trying to figure it out. If you were to say lead by example, that's the guy," Grant said. 

Yamauchi has certainly put in the sweat equity to grow his game, but to be sure, he possesses the type of athleticism that is anything but run of the mill. 

"In the open court he's hard to deal with because he's so crafty with his moves, so quick — he has a 40-inch vertical — so that makes it hard to contend the guy. He's definitely good enough to play at the next level, but he knows that he needs get in the weight room and put on 15 to 20 pounds to play at the next level," Grant said. 

Yamauchi and the Spartans (6-6) are seeded fourth in the ILH's second round (single-elimination tournament) and host seventh-seeded Mid-Pacific 10 a.m. Saturday at the Clarence T.C. Ching Gymnasium on the Maryknoll campus. 

BOYS BASKETBALL

Alika Ahu, University Lab — Scored 20 points in a win over Punahou 

David Aiona, Honokaa — Scored 25 points in a win over Keaau 

Mystique Akina-Watson, Kahuku — Scored 23 points with four rebounds, two assists and two steals in a win over Roosevelt 

Trey Ambrozich, University Lab — Scored 20 points in a loss to Punahou 

Anthony Bautista, Pearl City — Scored 27 points in a win over Waianae 

Kyran Canete, Pahoa — Scored 37 points in a win over Christian Liberty and scored 22 points in a loss to Konawaena 

Darius Chizer, Mid-Pacific — Scored 26 points in a win over Kamehameha 

Hunter Darnell, Kalaheo — Scored 18 points in a win over Kalani 

Raider Dias-Varize, Kamehameha-Hawaii — Scored 23 points, including six 3-pointers, in a win over Laupahoehoe

Bromo Dorn, Seabury Hall — Scored 37 points, including six 3-pointers, five steals, two assists, two blocks and a rebound in a win over Kihei Charter 

Regan Fritz-Betiru, Kaimuki — Scored 22 points, including five 3-pointers, in a loss to Kaiser 

Garrett Hadley, Island School — Scored 23 points, including four 3-pointers, in a loss to Waimea 

Isaiah Harmon, Radford — Scored 21 points in a loss to Campbell 

Reese Jenkins, Kauai — Scored 21 points in a win over Kapaa 

Laakea Kamahele, Le Jardin — Scored 22 points in a win over Hanalani 

Koa LaBoy, University Lab — Scored 19 points in a loss to Punahou 

Kaleb Loo, Hawaii Prep — Scored 20 points in a win over Parker 

Alex Martinez, Konawaena — Scored 19 points in a win over Pahoa 

Logan Mason, Mid-Pacific — Scored 23 points in a win over Kamehameha 

Jenisen Pave, Kapolei — Scored 18 points in a loss to Leilehua 

Beckson Pierce, Le Jardin — Scored 20 points in a win over Island Pacific 

Rhenz Punzalan, Waimea — Scored 18 points, including four 3-pointers, in a win over Island School 

Everest Rodriguez, Farrington — Scored 24 points, including four 3-pointers, in a loss to Moanalua 

Elijah Salanoa, Saint Louis II — Scored 24 points in a win over Punahou II

Tanoa Scanlan, Punahou — Scored 23 points in a win over University Lab 

Pupu Sepulona, Saint Louis — Scored 19 points in a win over Mid-Pacific 

Matthew Shigetani, Hawaii Baptist — Scored 19 points in a win over Hawaiian Mission and scored 17 points in a win over Island Pacific 

Trystin Stevens, Leilehua — Scored 19 points in a win over Kapolei 

Kukia Tagabi, Honokaa — Scored 30 points in a win over Waiakea and scored 28 points in a win over Keaau 

Kailana Tavares, Hawaiian Mission — Scored 18 points in a win over Assets

Emmanuel Tiritas, Kaiser — Scored 18 points in a win over Kaimuki 

Mission Uperesa-Thomas, Maryknoll — Scored 17 points in a win over Iolani and scored 21 points in a win over Iolani 

Zion White, Punahou — Scored 24 points in a win over University Lab 

Richard Windsor, Campbell — Scored 17 points in a win over Radford 

Aidan Wong, Iolani — Scored 20 points in a loss to Maryknoll 

BOYS SOCCER

Micah Chung, Kamehameha-Hawaii — Scored five goals in a win over Makua Lani 

There has been no sophomore slump for Justice Kekauoha. Frankly, it's been quite the opposite. 

Kekauoha, a 5-foot-7 sophomore guard for the five-time defending state champion Iolani girls basketball team, has seemingly improved in every aspect after a breakout freshman campaign a year ago. 

In her first varsity season, all Kekauoha did was lead the Raiders in scoring at 11.8 points per game on her way to Interscholastic League of Honolulu Division I Player of the Year honors, in addition to First Team All-Hawaii distinction. 

Iolani went 9-0 in league play and 23-2 overall, capped off by a down-to-the-wire one-point win over Kamehameha in the state final. Kekauoha averaged 10.3 points in three state tournament games and was one of three Raiders selected to the all-tournament team. 

This winter Kekauoha has taken her game to the next level. The combo guard is averaging 18.3 points per game in ILH play and has scored no fewer than 12 points in every league contest. Kekauoha has scored 15-or-more points in 11 of Iolani's 12 regular season games and has eclipsed the 20-point mark on four occasions. 

"I think she's had a great season," Raiders coach Dean Young said of Kekauoha. "She's been our most consistent scorer and there's been times she's put us on her back and she's carried us."

Kekauoha is the ILH's second-leading scorer behind Maryknoll's Pua Herrington (20.9 ppg) and ranks fourth amongst all D1 players in the state. 

Even before the ILH season got underway, Kekauoha turned one solid performance after another during the preseason. She averaged 12 points per game to help her team compile an 11-4 mark against non-league competition. 

Iolani saw three players graduate from last year's state-championship winning team in guard Keiki McGee (6.7 ppg), wing Kanoe Hanohano (4.1 ppg) and center Mele Sake (7.1 ppg), who was tabbed All-Hawaii Player of the Year as a junior the year prior. In addition to the trio who completed their prep eligibility, post Callie Pieper (3.9 ppg) opted not to play basketball this season to focus on volleyball. 

Young stated that Kekauoha has certainly stepped up to help fill that void. 

"I think this year she's probably leaned on more for her scoring and kind of jump-starting the team," Young said. 

Getting buckets is simply second nature to Kekauoha, who plays club ball for the elite-level Jason Kidd Select team. 

"She's a natural scorer. She really has a feel for the game and she's really good at getting to the rim. She's improving a lot and she still has some room to grow, which is kind of scary," Young expressed. 

Kekauoha tallied a total of 21 3-pointers last year, including 11 in ILH play, but she has already eclipsed those marks this season. Kekauoha has splashed 19 treys in 12 league games, which ranks eighth statewide in D1, and 27 in all. 

"She's getting better at the 3-point shot. I think she's starting to gain confidence in that 3-point shot, which makes her drives even more dangerous. She's learning how to finish through contact and her mid-range has always been good," Young said. 

While she has been prolific to say the least, Kekauoha isn't the flashiest player, nor does she do much talking. Rather, Kekauoha lets her game do all the talking for her. 

"Her knack at getting buckets is what makes her special, I would say. It can be a really quiet night and at the end of the day she's got 25 (points) and she gets it in a variety of ways. She attacks the rim, she's a great free-throw shooter, she gets steals and layups and she's a pretty good rebounder for her size, so her all-around game is really good," Young assessed. 

To Young's point, Kekauoha has grown by leaps and bounds at the charity stripe. She shot a respectable 62.2 percent on free throws as a freshman, but has sunk 89.7 percent of her attempts from the line this year. 

"It's huge. We definitely want her as one of the people with the ball in her hands at the end of the game. We're confident she's going to knock down the free throws in big moments and I'm trying to teach her that her ability to shoot free throws is a weapon in itself and that she needs to get to the free throw line as much as possible instead of getting away from contact," Young said. 

As a team, the Raiders have converted on a state-best 77.4 percent of their free throw attempts in league play. 

It's not just with the basketball in her hands that Kekauoha has stood out. Young commended her for being the consummate teammate. 

"I think when she gives a teammate an assist, or even sometimes when other teammates score a great basket, she totally celebrates and has a huge smile on her face, is clapping and her excitement when another teammate scores and not her, is pretty amazing. The joy she has when someone else scores and not herself, you can see how genuinely happy she is for them and that's great because yeah, she's our leading scorer, yet she's our biggest cheerleader when someone else scores," Young said. 

Young added that Kekauoha has added some strength since last season. 

"Yeah, a little bit, I think. I think she got a little bit bigger. She's only a sophomore so I think she's still filling out a little, so I expect her over the next two years to get even bigger and stronger and that's going to help," he said. 

However, the Raiders were dealt a major blow when two of their guards, junior Dylan Neves, and senior Kylie Chong Kee, suffered year-ending knee injuries early in the season. 

"That definitely changed our depth at the guard spot, so we're kind of limited in what we can do. We have to be a little more mindful of fatigue and foul trouble, but Justice has matured in that sense in terms of understanding that we need her on the court, so she limits her fouls and conserves her energy when she has the opportunity," Young explained. 

Although she's not officially a captain this year, Kekauoha is undoubtedly looked to as a source of leadership on the court.

"I think there's a lot of leadership placed on her shoulders in terms of when the team needs a bucket. I think a lot of times they're going to lean on her, but she welcomes it, I think, and she does a good job of trying to take on the big moments," Young said. 

Kekauoha has come on strong as of late. In back-to-back games two nights apart a few weeks ago, she scored 20 points and a career-high 28 against Kamehameha and Maryknoll, respectively. 

In three games against Maryknoll last week, Kekauoha averaged 20 points, including 26 in a two-point loss to the Spartans on Jan. 28 and 24 in a nine-point win over them two nights later, which locked up a state-tournament berth for the Raiders. 

Kekauoha scored 17 points in Monday night's 82-33 rout of Nanakuli in the opening round of the Pacific Century Fund Team Aloha/HHSAA Division I State Championships. 

Kekauoha and the Raiders (7-6), who are ranked fourth in this week's ScoringLive Power Rankings, will face third-ranked Kahuku in the first game of a doubleheader at Damien in Thursday's state quarterfinal round. 

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Pihaeu Akiona, Hanalani — Scored 17 points in a win over Damien 

Naiara Bal, Maui — Scored 15 points in a win over Baldwin and scored 13 points in a win over Kamehameha-Maui 

Brooklyn Barrett, Le Jardin — Scored 14 points in a win over La Pietra 

Shailan Benevides, Kamehameha-Hawaii — Scored 19 points, including four 3-pointers, in a win over Kau 

Norah Brown, Kekaulike — Scored 16 points, including five 3-pointers, in a loss to Kamehameha-Maui 

Nihoa Dunn, Kamehameha — Scored 16 points in a win over Punahou 

Kamryn Felipe, Farrington — Scored 19 points in a loss to Kailua 

Myah Galdeira, Kailua — Scored 15 points in a win over Farrington 

Alyssa Gummerus, Waimea — Scored 21 points in a win over Kapaa 

Pua Herrington, Maryknoll — Scored 20 points in a loss to Iolani and scored 24 points in a win over Iolani and scored 25 points, including four 3-pointers, in a loss to Iolani 

Kristie Kagawa, Mid-Pacific — Scored 17 points in a win over Sacred Hearts 

Hiialo Kala-Reantaso, Kapolei — Scored 16 points with five rebounds, five assists and two steals in a win over Castle 

Makana Kamakeeaina, Kahuku — Scored 18 points with nine rebounds and one steal in a win over Campbell and scored 17 points with five rebounds, one assist, one steal and a block in a win over Moanalua 

Brooke Kurasaki, Mililani — Scored 20 points, including six 3-pointers, with two rebounds, two steals and one assist in a loss to Moanalua

Sienna Lampblack, Hawaii Baptist — Scored 14 points in a win over University Lab 

Shailoh Liilii, Moanalua — Scored 14 points with 10 rebounds, one steal and a block in a win over Mililani 

Kalia Marquez, Kohala — Scored 14 points with 10 rebounds, two assists, one steal and a block in a win over Kau 

Maesha Muaau, Nanakuli — Scored 19 points in a win over Kalani 

Jazmyn Navarro, Kau — Scored 15 points in a loss to Kamehameha-Hawaii 

Rheanna Nobleza, Moanalua — Scored 17 points with five steals, four assists, three rebounds and one block in a win over Mililani 

Leila Paraoan, Kapolei — Scored 19 points with 10 rebounds, two assists and two steals in a win over Castle 

Dorian Pokipala, Castle — Scored 15 points with two rebounds and two steals in a loss to Kapolei 

Taylor Schnitzer, Kamehameha-Maui — Scored 17 points in a loss to Maui 

Jaynalyn Sotelo, Campbell — Scored 19 points with 11 rebounds, six steals, two assists and two blocks in a loss to Kahuku 

Adriana Jayne Soriano, Kohala — Scored 20 points with seven rebounds, four steals and two assists in a win over Kau and scored 18 points with eight rebounds and one assist in a win over Pahoa 

Alina Stephenson, Kalani — Scored 18 points in a loss to Nanakuli 

Serenity Tacgere, Moanalua — Scored 11 points with 14 rebounds, five blocks and one assist in a win over Mililani 

Lilyanah-Tiare Tamale, Kapolei — Scored 19 points with 11 steals, five assists and four rebounds in a win over Castle 

Kaya Texeira, Waiakea — Scored 21 points in a win over Hilo 

Tori Tokuda, Mid-Pacific — Scored 15 points in a loss to Sacred Hearts 

Hailey Ryann Visaya, Kamehameha-Maui — Scored 18 points, including four 3-pointers, in a win over Kekaulike 

Tailele Wily-Ava, Kahuku — Scored 22 points with six rebounds, four steals, two assists and one block in a win over Campbell 

Kaylie Yamasaki, Konawaena — Scored 15 points in a win over Keaau 

GIRLS SOCCER

Adelyn Boling, Waialua — Scored two goals in a win over Aiea 

Madie Buczyna, Hawaii Prep — Scored three goals in a win over Waialua 

Ryah Echavaria, Moanalua — Scored two goals in a win over Hilo 

Kalia Franklin, Waiakea — Scored two goals in a loss to Waipahu and scored three goals in a win over Campbell 

Caili Gambito, Waimea — Scored the lone goal in a win over Kailua 

Kacie Hayashi, PAC-5 — Scored two goals in a win over Roosevelt 

Deizha Lyn Jacinto, Waipahu — Scored two goals in a win over Waiakea 

Zinn Kurose, Waipahu — Made 12 saves in a loss to Kamehameha 

Destiny Look, Mid-Pacific — Scored the lone goal in a win over Kauai 

Iris Miguel, Waialua — Scored two goals in a loss to Hawaii Prep 

Jaeana Monalim, Campbell — Scored two goals in a win over Baldwin 

Jadyn Miller, Waialua — Scored two goals in a win over Aiea 

Madisyn Meyers, Kamehameha-Hawaii — Scored two goals in a win over Waimea 

Leah Nishibun, PAC-5 — Scored two goals in a win over Roosevelt and scored two goals in a win over Seabury Hall 

Mya Pasion, Kamehameha — Scored three goals in a win over Waipahu 

Mya Suster, Campbell — Scored two goals in a loss to Waiakea 

Maya Yoshimura, Punahou — Scored two goals in a win over Moanalua and scored the lone goal in a win over Kamehameha 

Kaiao Zoller, Punahou — Scored two goals in a win over Kamehameha-Maui 

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