HondaReport.com - Boys’ Basketball: Oak Hill, Fairfax power into the Iolani Classic semifinals

Boys’ Basketball: Oak Hill, Fairfax power into the Iolani Classic semifinals

Even against the will of Dr. Phillips, Oak Hill refused to take any medicine. Instead, the Warriors pushed until the game became a dunk-a-thon, advancing to the semifinals of the Iolani Classic. Standing in their way: two-time defending tournament champion Fairfax, which marched on with an old-fashioned staple known as defense.

HONOLULU—When Harvey Kitani asks his Lions to clamp down, they don’t respond with a meow or purr.

The two-time defending Iolani Classic champions roar. Fairfax stifled Saint John’s with an airtight man defense in the third quarter en route to a 61-48 win Thursday night. The victory propelled Fairfax (Los Angeles, Calif.) into the semifinal round. Fairfax, ranked 18th in the USA Today high school basketball poll, will battle top-ranked Oak Hill Friday, 8 p.m.

Oak Hill, looking more like an NBA expansion team than a high school squad in its first two games, reached the semifinal round with a 78-51 win over Dr. Phillips (Orlando, Fla.).

In consolation play, Punahou rallied past Waimea 60-48, and Kalaheo outlasted Kapolei 59-43.

Fairfax, which landed in Honolulu Wednesday just three hours before its opening-round game, didn’t shoot particularly well against Saint John’s (Washington, D.C.). Defense, however, carried the Lions.

Playing the passing lanes with precision, Fairfax turned a plethora of steals into easy layups to turn a tight game into a double-digit lead in the third quarter.

Joshua Shipp led the way with 23 points and eight rebounds. Jamal Clay added 12 points, six boards and five steals. Shipp made all eight of his free-throw tries as the Lions made 17-of-22 in all. They shot 48 percent from the field.

Chris Wright scored 13 points and Dwayne Anderson had 12 to pace the Cadets. Wright shot 5-of-11 from the floor, while Anderson was 3-of-14. As a team, Saint John’s shot 40 percent from the field and 59 percent from the line (10 of 17).

All 16 teams are slated to play Friday. At 9:30 a.m., Kalani meets Hamilton (Chandler, Ariz.), followed by Kapolei and Waimea at 11, Mid-Pacific and Moanalua at 12:30 p.m., and Kalaheo and Punahou at 2.

Host Iolani battles Fairley (Memphis, Tenn.) at 3;30 p.m., followed by Saint John's and Dr. Phillips at 5 p.m.

The semifinals begin with Montrose Christian (Rockville, Md.) and Mount Vernon at 6:30, followed by Fairfax and Oak Hill at 8.

Oak Hill 78, Dr. Phillips 51—The Panthers refused to relent against an Oak Hill squad that turned its first-round game into a dunk-a-thon.

In this second-round matchup, however, the Warriors executed in the halfcourt game, hitting open treys and powering inside against the smaller Panthers to take a 45-21 halftime lead.

By the third quarter, the Panthers were weary, and Oak Hill provided a crowd of about 400 with another dazzling display of high-octane dunks.

Josh Smith scored 24 points and grabbed four rebounds, wowing the crowd with a scintillating windmill jam on a breakaway in the third quarter. Sharpshooting K.C. Rivers connected on 6-of-6 attempts from 3-point range and finished with 22 points. Brian Johnson tallied 11 points and 11 rebounds, Dayshawn Wright added 10 points 10 boards for the Warriors, who outrebounded Dr. Phillips 43-24.

Jason Rich, bound for Florida State next fall, led the Panthers with 24 points and seven rebounds. Trey Hopkins added 10 points.

Punahou 60, Waimea 48—Reid Fowler poured in 21 points, including four 3-pointers, as the Buffanblu steadily rallied to a win over the Menehune. Fowler also had six rebounds and five steals.

Scott Otake added 12 points and five assists, and Jeremiah Ostrowski tallied 10 points, three assists, two steals and no turnovers for Punahou, which played without 6-5 freshman Spencer McLachlin.

It was a test of patience for the Buffanblu, who trailed 20-10 in the opening quarter. They rallied in the second quarter with better shot selection, even with Ostrowski on the bench. By the time the freshman re-entered the game with 2:41 to go in the second quarter, the game was even. “Whatever helps the team,” said Ostrowski, a 5-7 combo guard.

“I think we came out underestimating them,” said Ostrowski, who is the team’s leading scorer through preseason. “Coach (Greg Tacon) said to focus in, play good defense and keep pushing the ball.”

Punahou extended its lead to 44-37 in the fourth quarter, but Jordon Dizon came to life, hitting buckets on short jumpers to pull Waimea within 46-44. Ostrowski stole the ball from Jeremy Manuel, leading to an easy Punahou layup, and Reid Fowler connected on an open trey from the left wing as the Buffanblu opened up a 5-point lead with less than two minutes to play.

Dizon, who has committed to play football at the University of Colorado next fall, led Waimea with 17 points. Manuel added 14 points, six rebounds and four steals. Lanikai Kanahele tallied 10 points and Casey Kaohilauli’i grabbed a game-high nine rebounds.

Waimea outrebounded Punahou 33-29, and outshot the Buffs (46 percent to Punahou’s 39 percent). Punahou’s ability to take care of the ball against Waimea’s man defense was crucial. The Buffanblu had only seven turnovers to Waimea’s 19.

Kalaheo 59, Kapolei 43—Even with center Sam Wilhoite on the bench, the Mustangs managed a pivotal 9-0 run midway through the second half to break open a close game.

Wilhoite committed his fourth personal foul with 2:34 left in the third quarter. Kalaheo’s 40-36 lead seemed precarious; both teams gave up plenty of layups in an uptempo, full-court pressure battle.

However, Kalaheo was patient offensively against Kapolei’s man defense. Theo Fujita drained a 3-point shot as the Mustangs took a 43-36 lead, and shortly before the end of the third, Neil Bowers connected on his second trey of the game for a 46-36 lead.

Using its flex offense, Kalaheo ate more than two minutes off the clock before Bowers drilled his third and final 3-pointer, a shot from the left wing. The Mustangs led 49-36 with 5:30 to play in the game.

Fujita finished with 17 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field. Wilhoite led Kalaheo with 19 points on 9-of-11 shooting, mostly from the low post. He grabbed six rebounds. As a team, the Mustangs shot 56 percent from the floor (22 of 39).

Brad Padayao paced Kapolei with 12 points and four rebounds. Center Warren Simanu, beset by foul trouble, played just 13 minutes and finished with four points and one rebound.