Posted on: Tuesday, December 21, 2004

Xaverian eases past Punahou

By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer

Shortly after the Punahou School boys basketball team's 61-36 quarterfinal loss to Xaverian (Brooklyn, N.Y.) last night — the seventh straight by Hawai'i squads against Mainland competition in the Iolani Prep Classic — a measure of validation came from the coach of Street & Smith Magazine's No. 9-ranked squad in the country.

"Punahou plays basketball the right way," said Xaverian coach Jack Alesi. "They're a New York-type of team: they move the ball around and kick it out to the open man. I think we just had a little too much size for them tonight. But I'll tell you what, if we hadn't (scouted) them the other day, I think we would have had some problems with them. They are very well-coached."

Host Iolani played Rice of New York City in a late game last night.

Poor shooting plagued the Buffanblu, especially in the first half. Punahou made just one of eight field goals in the first period and was 3 of 16 (18.8 percent) in the first half.

The Clippers led 10-1 before the Buffanblu made their first basket — a baseline jumper by Danny Cho — and took a 17-3 lead into the second quarter. Punahou went 6 minutes, 24 seconds between field goals, as Brenton Lee's layup made it 21-5 with 5:36 remaining in the half.

Then the Buffanblu's shooting finally warmed up, but Xaverian still took a 25-15 lead into the locker room.

"Against a team so athletic and dynamic, we're not going to give ourselves a chance if we shoot 3 of 16," Punahou coach Greg Tacon said. "But it wasn't for a lack of good looks at the basket. We just have to get better at hitting shots in pressure situations."

The Clippers started the second half with an 8-0 run to take a 33-15 lead, but Miah Ostrowski answered with consecutive 3-pointers to pull the Buffanblu to 35-21 with 4:10 left in the third quarter. That was as close as Punahou would get, however, as Xaverian stretched its lead mostly with fast-break and second-chance layups.

"On a competitive level, I'm pleased about our focus on doing the things we've worked on, with the exception being boxing out," Tacon said. "But I don't know if we have an answer for that against these kind of teams. Their perimeter guys are quick to the basket, and then they're above the rim, too."

Alesi said the Buffanblu shouldn't feel too bad about that.

"What you're seeing in this tournament is the best of the Mainland teams, not the normal ones," Alesi said. "Two of the Hawai'i teams I've seen — Punahou and Iolani — they can play with anybody on the Mainland."

Reach Wes Nakama at wnakama@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2456.

QUARTERFINALS

Montverde (Fla.) 48, Male (Louisville, Ky.) 47, OT: Trailing by a point in the final 22 seconds of overtime, Male grabbed three offensive rebounds on its final possession but could not capitalize as time expired. Montverde was led by Luc Mbah A Moute's 12 points, and Giedrius Kynsas added 10. Jacob Bream led Male with 23.

FAIRFAX (CALIF.) 58, ROMAN CATHOLIC (PA.) 48: Jamal Boykin scored 18 points to lead the Lions into the semifinals. Donovan White added 11 for Fairfax. Mike Ringgold led Roman Catholic with 14 points.

CONSOLATION

Kamehameha 49, Kalaheo 44: Rykin Enos scored 16 points to led the Warriors. David Moore had a team-high 9 points for the Mustangs.

Roosevelt 49, Kaua'i 47: Kerstan Ho scored 18 points and Keo Keola added 12 points to lead the Rough Riders. Jeremy Manuel led Kaua'i with 17 points.

St. Anthony 58, 'Aiea 41: John Powley's game-high 23 points — including 13 of 17 from the free-throw line — led the Trojans. Korri Kamaka added 14 for St. Anthony. Nicholas Helsham scored 17 for Na Ali'i.

Radford 64, McKinley 44: Juan Lewis scored 14 points and William Kerins added 12 for the Rams. Kapena Quisano led McKinley with 12 points.