Posted on: Friday, January 2, 2004
OIA boys basketball season starts tonight
By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer
The O'ahu Interscholastic Association boys basketball season tips off this weekend, with one more team added to the mix.
Myron B. Thompson Academy, one of the nation's only on-line charter schools, officially becomes the OIA's 23rd varsity participant when it visits McKinley at about 6:30 tonight. MB Thompson, based in downtown Honolulu, will play in the OIA Eastern Division.
Kapolei joined the OIA West in 2002; it had been a 21-team league for the previous 28 years.
Other games tonight — all following JV games at 5 — have Castle at Kailua, Roosevelt at Kaiser, 'Aiea at Waipahu, Leilehua at Pearl City and Radford at Wai'anae. Leilehua and Pearl City finished second and third, respectively, in the OIA West last season.
Tomorrow, an early East showdown between Kaimuki and Moanalua at Moanalua highlights a five-game slate. Other games have three-time defending OIA champion Kalaheo at Farrington, Kalani at Kahuku, Kapolei at Waialua and Mililani at Campbell.
Admission is $5 general and students without activity books and $3 for students from non-participating schools with activity books and students eighth grade and younger.
The teams will play a single round-robin schedule in their respective divisions (11 games in the East, 10 in the West), with the top six teams in each division qualifying for the single-elimination league tournament Feb. 12, 13, 18 and 20.
The semifinalists will advance to the state tournament, set for Feb. 25 to 28 at Blaisdell Arena.
TIP-INS: Former Kalaheo coach Pete Smith is progressing at the Rehab Hospital of the Pacific in his recovery from a heart attack suffered Oct. 31, Mustangs coach Chico Furtado said Wednesday night. Smith, who underwent cardiac arrest immediately following colon cancer surgery, was in a coma-like state for more than a week after the heart attack but has slowly regained his senses and motor functions in the past month. "He's doing much better," Furtado said. "He even got to come home for Christmas for about six hours." ... The Interscholastic League of Honolulu season begins Tuesday with four games, including Iolani at Saint Louis — a rematch of last year's state finalists.
Reach Wes Nakama at wnakama@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-2456.
