ILH Division I: Iolani's Low chosen league's top player for fourth time

By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer

The Iolani Raiders basketball team was 49-1 with Derrick Low in the lineup during the past four Interscholastic League of Honolulu seasons. Advertiser library photo

In the past 26 years, only University High's Leroy Lutu (1978-80) won three ILH Player of the Year awards. In the O'ahu Interscholastic Association, Moanalua's Sam Johnson was named Western Division Player of the Year three times (1979-81).

But Low, a 6-foot-1 point guard, has long been recognized as a once-in-a-generation type player.

Though he finished second in the ILH with an average of 14.6 points per game this past season, his most impressive statistic is the Raiders' 49-1 record the past four ILH seasons with Low in the lineup (he missed two games this year with an ankle injury).

Low is joined on the ILH All-Star first team by teammates Todd Blankenship and Kyle Pape, Damien's Ranson DeCosta, Kamehameha's Waika Spencer and Punahou's Jeremiah Ostrowski.

Blankenship, a 6-2 senior center, averaged only 6.7 ppg. But he played solid defense against much bigger post players and was able to sneak in crucial baskets and rebounds to provide Iolani with a valuable inside game.

Pape, a 6-2 junior forward, averaged a modest 8.7 ppg but like Blankenship, he hit big shots when the Raiders needed them. He scored 19 points against Punahou in a game when Iolani struggled with its outside shot, helping the Raiders to a 63-58 victory and their fourth straight ILH championship.

DeCosta, a 5-9 senior guard, won his third straight league scoring title by averaging 17 ppg. He is believed to be the ILH's first three-time scoring champ in at least 24 years.

DeCosta drained five 3-pointers in a 47-34 victory over Saint Louis and scored 31 points in a 56-46 win over Mid-Pacific.

Spencer, a 6-4 junior center, averaged 12.4 points per game and was an athletic presence in the post for the Warriors. He scored 15 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to help Kamehameha defeat Mid-Pacific, 54-45, in the ILH third-place tournament championship game, clinching a state tournament berth for the Warriors.

Ostrowski, a 5-9 freshman guard, averaged 14.1 ppg and drew comparisons to Low as one of the league's best freshmen in the past two decades.