Hawaii Basketball

2008 Hawaii State Player-of-the-Year Shawna-Lei Kuehu is featured in the May 2008 issue of Slam Magazine. (Regional Covers - Eric Gordon, Derrick Rose, Michael Beasley; Released in March)

The ILH is expected to be a tightly contested race this season with as many as five teams contending for the title and one of the league’s three berths (actually more like 2.5) to the 2008 Hawaii Basketball State Tournament.

With practice opening today, HawaiiHoops.com previews the top teams in the ILH (in reverse order):

5. Mid Pacific Owls - With one of the top players in the state in 6-3 junior Marcus Holyfield (shown far right), the Owls have enough talent to be considered a legitimate contender in the ILH. Whether or not they live up to their potential will depend on their supporting cast as well as their coaching staff and the style they elect to employ. Several of the team’s core players already compete together in preseason NJB leagues which is a big advantage for the young squad, but it remains to be seen if these players will be able to transition to a different coach (School coaches are not allowed to coach outside leagues during certain time periods) and a different style.

Strengths: Holyfield and Devon Takenaka are two of the better players in the ILH and with their supporting cast of Kellar Ellsworth on the inside and Sampson Won at the point, they have a strong starting unit that thrives in transition and is very familiar with each other’s game.

Weaknesses: Beyond their top 4-5 players, there is a significant drop-off for the Owls, so it will be interesting to see how they deal with fatigue and foul trouble. The lack of depth may also hurt their ability to get out in transition which is one of their apparent strengths as they have been successful in the preseason getting out and finishing.

Prediction: The Owls may not have the consistency to finish in first or second, but they will provide the top tier teams with a few scares and possibly take one or two of them down. Look for Mid-Pac to give teams like Kamehameha and Iolani a lot of trouble when they meet up in January.

4. Kamehameha Warriors - The Warriors have a lot of gifted athletes, but it remains to be seen if they’ll be able to put it all together and play consistently at a championship level. Several players return from last year’s squad, but noticeably missing in 2007-08 will be ILH First Team guard Rykin Enos who graduated last season.

Strengths: With spot up sharp-shooter Kawika Lyons on the outside, Kamakoa Jovanovich on the inside and swingmen Conrad Scheidt, Pii Minns, Auwae De Rego, and Jon Hew Len roaming the wings, the Warriors have the pieces to make a strong run at the title. Add to that, talented point guard Brandon Dumlao and there could be even greater possibilities…

Weaknesses: Having so much individual talent could be the team’s biggest downfall as it will be their ability to play TOGETHER that will make or break them.

Prediction: Coach Nakanishi usually does a good job at finding a way to win even if its a little ugly so its likely that the Warriors will show flashes of brilliance at some point this season but will also lose a couple of games they probably shouldn’t. Look for Kamehameha to finish in a fight for third or fourth place - outside of the top two (who receive an automatic berth to the state tournament).

[Photo: Star Bulletin]

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According to the Honolulu Star-Bulletin, Kameron Steinhoff, a 6-4 forward for the Punahou Buffanblu, is recovering from surgery after having his spleen removed following last Friday night’s game against the St. Louis Crusaders. Also a standout wide receiver, Steinhoff suffered the injury on a hit taken during a Punahou pass play and was transported to the hospital prior to the end of the game.

While no specifics were given, the expected recovery time for a splenectomy is about 4-6 weeks, but for competitive athletes that time can be as long as 4-6 months (to return to competition). Following this type of surgery, patients are more susceptible to bacterial infections because without the spleen, the body loses some of its ability to filter blood (part of the immune response).

Chris Sims, a QB with the Tampa Bay Bucaneers, had a splenectomy around the same time last season and while he did miss the rest of the season, was able to return to the team this year to secure the backup role behind recently signed Jeff Garcia.

Steinhoff was expected to be among the top players in the ILH and the state this season after having a breakout performance in the 2006-07 State Tournament and helping the Buffanblu to the finals. While his family, friends, teammates and coaches, not to mention fans of high school basketball, would love to see him in uniform this year, let’s all join in and pray for his quick and healthy recovery first and worry about the sports part later…

[Photo: Jon B Photography]

After a so-so regular season where they finished 7-5 in the OIA Red Division, the highly-touted Kaimuki Bulldogs hit the “on” switch just in time to make a run in the post season. As the #4 seed going into the OIA Tournament, the Bulldogs calmly made their way through to the finals where they defeated the Kalaheo Mustangs to earn their second consecutive OIA title.

Going into the state tournament, Kaimuki was awarded the #2 seed and placed in what was probably the toughtest bracket in the tournament which featured two of the top three teams in the state, the St. Louis Crusaders and the 5-time defending State Champion Iolani Raiders. Needless to say, the Bulldogs made it through to the finals with a 2 point win over the St. Louis Crusaders and a 54-44 win over Kamehameha-Hawaii who upset Iolani the night before.

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Football may be the sport that gets Jeremiah Ostrowski (Punahou ‘07) a scholarship at the next level, but basketball has been a part of his life since the day he was born. As a member of the legendary Ostrowski family, he has been around the sport nearly all his life, traveling along with his father Kui to play in men’s leagues since he was in elementary school.

Read the article in the Honolulu Advertiser, “Basketball is a way of life for Ostrowski” »

In a showdown between the state’s two top teams, it was two of the state’s top players that shined the most. Punahou seniors Miah Ostrowski and Spencer McLachlin put forth dominating performances to help the Buff-n-Blu win their first ILH title since 1999 ending an Iolani streak of 6 consecutive championships.

Ostrowski (shown, Honolulu Advertiser) was simply “ridiculous” scoring 18 of his 26 points in the second half, nearly all of which were spectacular. On several occasions, he was able to get by his first defender and the trap man, slide by the help and finish with a double clutch layup around the fourth and fifth guys. Spencer was equally as dominant, though mainly on the boards and in the paint on defense. He sucked down seemingly every defensive rebound and anytime the ball was in his area, he knocked it back into the stands.

Up only 26-20 at the half, Punahou opened the game up in the 3rd quarter, outscoring the Raiders 17-9 and then finished them off in the fourth with timely stops and buckets on their way to a 60-46 win.

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