Nash, Low rally No. 1 Raiders past Mililani, 62-51

By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer

And so, after all the upsets, all the oh-so-close almost-shockers, the high school boys basketball

Mililani's Rashaun Broadus soared past Iolani's Joe Udell, but missed the dunk during the first quarter of last night's semifinal game at Blaisdell Arena. Eugene Tanner • The Honolulu Advertiser

No. 1 vs. No. 2.

Iolani (14-0) vs. Kalaheo (15-0) for all the marbles.

The state championship matchup nearly everyone had predicted before the season started will materialize tonight at 8 at Blaisdell Arena.

Iolani did its part to fulfill the dream card by rallying past Mililani 62-51 in last night's semifinals before an emotional Blaisdell crowd of 3,281. Bobby Nash scored 21 points and Derrick Low added 18 points to lead the Raiders, champion of the Interscholastic League of Honolulu.

But the key player for Iolani might have been 6 foot 5 senior center Tyler McCready, who scored eight points during a third period in which the Raiders turned a 28-23 halftime deficit into a 45-35 lead heading into the final quarter. McCready entered the tournament averaging 6 points per game but finished last night with 12.

"He started posting up and getting open, and they stuck with it," Mililani coach Mike Coito said.

Defensively, McCready helped limit the Trojans' 6-5 Trey Brown to five points on two field goals.

"Tyler is our unsung hero," Nash said. "He's always there for us in the post, doing what he needs to do. Tonight, he showed a lot of leadership."

Iolani certainly was put to the test by Mililani (14-2). The Raiders jumped out to a 17-9 lead in the first period but the Trojans, runner-up of the O'ahu Interscholastic Association, went on a 19-6 run to take a 28-23 lead into the locker room.

More impressively, Mililani did it while standout guard Rashaun Broadus sat on the bench with three fouls for the final 5:45 of the half.

"Our guys might have thought they could let down a little with (the Trojans') star player out, but Mililani has a lot of good players who can score, and they did that in that quarter," Iolani coach Mark Mugiishi said. "It was a good lesson for us."

Still, the long break seemed to further disrupt Broadus, who scored only two points on one field through three quarters. He scored eight in the fourth period, but as Coito said, "We were way behind by then."

Nash, a 6-6 junior, was assigned to guard the 5-11 Broadus.

"I have a long body, with long arms," Nash said. "I just tried to stay in front of him and play for his drive, because that's his strength."

The Raiders' 22-7 third-period run also served to minimize another Trojans strength — their raucous student section known as the "Mililani Maniacs."

The Maniacs' roars of "Over-RATED" diminished in volume during the fourth-period, when Iolani went to a four-corner offense.

"We had to slow it down," Mugiishi said. "Just from the look in Rashaun's eyes, I knew they were about to make a run."