California Teams Finish 1-2
Defeat Raiders and Puns at 'Iolani Classic
by Al Linsky
The girls' basketball team from Narbonne High School in Harbor City, CA, the Gauchos, may have thought they could hop over to Hawaii and walk away with the 'Iolani Classic crown. They are a talented team, big and fast, with many strong individual skills.
Those skills weren't enough, though, when they went up against the Buffanblu on Friday night as Punahou had the size, skill, and speed and, most importantly, the teamwork to stay with the Gauchos and beat them 47-39.
The host 'Iolani Raiders have a typical Raider team this year, undersized, but fast, featuring good shooting, and superb teamwork. 'Iolani's only six-footer, Jamie Smith, would have her hands full with the Gauchos who had a large size advantage and could put three girls on the floor who are all taller than Jamie.
The first quarter went well for the Raiders as they shot well from outside and the Gauchos inexplicably missed quite a few from inside. It was 13-8, Raiders, at the end of the first quarter.
The Gauchos started to run better and hit their shots in the second quarter to close the gap to two and an 18-16 lead for the Raiders to finish the half.
With 2:42 left in the third quarter, the Gauchos took their first lead at 26-25. The lead energized the Gauchos who then went on a 5-0 run to take a 31-25 lead. The lead stretched to 11 points before the Raiders could adjust and make a desperate run to try to get back in the game. With 24 seconds left, the Raiders had closed to 44-40, but they could get no closer. The final score was 48-42.
In the finals, Redondo Beach Union, from Redondo Beach, California, defeated the Punahou team that beat the Gauchos by
a score of 45-35.
Read the gory details, courtesy of The Honolulu Advertiser:
The Division II boys' tournament starts on Monday, 3:30 p.m.
Local teams participating are University, Kalani, Aiea, St. Joseph (Hilo), McKinley, Kaahumanu Hou (Maui), and host 'Iolani's Division II team. LeFlore, from Mobile, Alabama, is also entering a Division II team.
The Division I boys tournament starts on Tuesday, 3:30 p.m.
There are sixteen teams entered, eight local, seven from the
mainland, and one from China.
