Maryknoll's Kodee Viera led the way with 12 points for the Spartans, one of four players in double figures in a win over Hilo. Sylvia Lee | SL

×

02111620_5X0A8071.jpg - Sylvia Lee | SL

Purchase this image
4x5 5x7 8x10 image download

Maryknoll got double-figures scoring from four players in a 68-53 win over Hilo in the second quarterfinal of the OC16/HHSAA Division I Girls Basketball Championships at Kalani Gymnasium.

Kodee Viena led all scorers with 15, with Kamalu Kamakawiwoole and Rhianne Omori scoring 13 and Chayse Milne adding 10 for the Spartans in the victory.

"He's (head coach Chico Furtado) just been telling me to be confident in my shot, because in season I didn't really look for that," said Viena. "Now that I see the openings I just shoot the ball with confidence."

In the early going it was all Viena, who led the way for the Spartans, scoring 11 of the 22 points scored in the quarter, including three triples. The frenetic pace in the first definitely was to Maryknoll advantage, and it showed on the scoreboard.

Hilo made its run in the second quarter, as the tempo slowed and became decidedly more deliberate. The Vikings outscored the Spartans 19-9 in the period, led by five points each by Shalyn Guthier and Alexis Pana.

"We had a great start, we played with intensity and then we get kind of rag-tagged and we take some bad shots, and we lose focus defensively," said Maryknoll head coach Chico Furtado. "I think three of the 3s they hit in the second quarter, two of them were off offensive rebounds and one was when the person in the corner shouldn't be helping."

Despite the lapses, Spartans still led 31-25 at the half.

If it was the Viena show in the first quarter, Kamakawiwoole took the stage in the third, where she did the majority of her damage, scoring seven points in quarter, including a pair of jumpers to close out the third, spotting the Spartans a 48-35 lead heading into the final quarter of play.

"I was just playing my game. I felt like they were kind of getting tired (defending) us. Just had to score more and be aggressive," said Kamakawiwoole.

With a double-digit margin in hand and the double bonus in effect, Maryknoll padded the margin further via the free throw line, with nine of the first 11 points in the quarter coming at the charity stripe.

In fact, free throw shooting was the silent hero for the Spartans, who hit on 19-of-22 attempts at the line in the second half and shot 83.8 percent for the contest. Hilo shot a respectable 70.6 percent, connecting on 12-of-17.

Another under-the-radar contributor was Isabella Cravens, who rang up a 'quiet' seven points, fourteen rebounds and two blocks. The Vikings had no real answer for her length in the middle and her domination on the defensive glass kept second chances for Hilo to a minimum.

Pana led the Vikings with 12 points, Faith Loeak added 11 and Guthier 10. The Vikings put up more shots than the Spartans (56 to 46) but shot just 32 percent in the game.