KALAHEO — Nicole Palacio of the Kaulupono-White got a nice birthday present as she finished with eight points along with Kaelyn Aquino-Kamakele to help the Blue to a 33-7 showing over the Kilauea Hui, Friday. Mariyah Oliver, key to White
KALAHEO — Nicole Palacio of the Kaulupono-White got a nice birthday present as she finished with eight points along with Kaelyn Aquino-Kamakele to help the Blue to a 33-7 showing over the Kilauea Hui, Friday.
Mariyah Oliver, key to White low post duties and rebounding on both sides of the court, topped the match with a game-high 10 points as the Kaulupono program split in the opening games of the Kaua‘i Youth Basketball Association 6th Annual 14 Under Invitational tournament at the Kalaheo Neighborhood Center.
In the second Kaulupono outing, the Blue team came as close as tying the visiting Kalama Basketball, but succumbed to a six-player roster as the visiting Maui squad tapped into its 11-player bench to outdistance Kaulupono-Blue 46-35.
The Gee’s Angels and Kamikaze were the other two Kaua‘i teams to post opening night wins as veteran player Lauren Claypoole posted a game-high 16 points to lead the Angels to a 30-4 win over the visiting Hawaiian Hearts out of Molokai.
Kristle Henry netted 14 points and Mahea Hanie-Grace added 10 points as the Kamikaze pulled ahead of a tenacious Kula Stars to end with a 34-29 edge.
The Kula Stars, visiting from Maui, faced the same problem shared by Kaulupono-Blue — a short bench with just one player available to replenish the floor.
That almost became critical when Jennifer Treu fouled out with 1:45 remaining in the contest and the Stars still within striking distance in the quick-moving game that came down to ball movement on the court.
Princess Lauvao finished with a game-high 16 points to lead the Kula effort that saw some of the student coaches from Kaulupono-Blue cheering on the Maui squad. Following Lauvao, Taylor Fernandez added six and Trina Valencia netted five points. A pair from Brooks Carillo rounded out the effort that closed the gym.
“I’ve been waiting a long time to play basketball, again,” said Blue’s Cheyanne Duarte who helped coach the White team from the bench in its opener against the Hui. “We were supposed to have some games after the Kaua‘i Interscholastic Federation season, but there weren’t enough teams, so I’m looking forward to this tournament.”
Duarte combined with Casey Anacleto for 28 points, Duarte leading the charge with a game-high 15 points and a strong prescense in moving the ball through traffic. Anacleto netted 13 points including a critical second period bomb from outside the three-point arc that pulled Blue to a stalemate with four minutes in the half.
Duarte followed that with a quick inside bucket for a 15-13 lead, its first of the game, only to have the Kalama blueshirts deadlock the match, 17-17 at the 1:54 mark before going on to a 21-17 halftime lead.
Ariana Valdez and Ashley Tanoe-Singson led the Kalama victory with 13 points apiece followed by Dasya Tavares and Samantha Alakai adding eight and seven points, respectively.
“The Kalama Basketball has been here before since the coaches, Donald and Danielle Shepherd, have relatives in Hanapepe,” Matsumoto said. “They were excited about being able to play on the new floor since they read about it in the newspaper.”
In the Gee’s Angels match, Tuafa Paua added eight points with Joy Claypoole, Uilani McCabe and Reggie McCabe each netting a pair for the victory.
Karley Kaulili and Kayla Martin-Galam each netted a field goal for the Hawaiian Hearts who also played with just two players on the bench.
“They started out strong with at least 10 players,” said Karen Matsumoto, one of the KYBA coordinators. “But as they neared the tournament, they lost a couple of players to injuries. They’ve had a long trip here, spending almost the whole day to get here from Molokai.”
The finals are scheduled for Sunday starting at 9 a.m. with the championship game to tip off starting at noon at the Kalaheo Neighborhood Center.
