Maryknoll sophomore guard Justice Sueing and Roosevelt junior forward Keala Quinlan each had huge offensive performances last week. ScoringLive photo illustration

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Male Athlete of the Week: Justice Sueing, Maryknoll basketball
It comes as no surprise to Kelly Grant the amount of success Justice Sueing is having in his debut season at Maryknoll.

After transferring from Arizona over the summer, the sophomore guard has acclimated himself well to his surroundings. Sueing, who stands 6-5, leads the Interscholastic League of Honolulu in scoring average, posting 19.3 points per game. He had a season-high 25 points in a 50-48 loss to reigning Division I state champion Iolani last Tuesday and followed that up with 19 points in a 51-47 win over then-No. 4 Saint Louis Saturday.

"When he came down during the summer and he worked out with our team, I was shocked at how good he was," Spartans' coach Kelly Grant said. "People were telling me he was good, but he's got all the tools — I think he's already D1 (college) material — and he's a really good kid."

Grant noted that Sueing is a straight-A student and takes the same methodical approach in the classroom, as well as on the basketball court.

"He takes his studies real serious," Grant said of Sueing. "For me, it's nice to go to school and not have to ask him if he finished his homework, is he studying — that's one thing I don't have to worry about him. As far as basketball, we require the kids to show up three hours before a game, (but) he shows up five hours before a game and goes through his routine."

If the name sounds familiar, it's because Sueing's father — of the same name — was a standout for the University of Hawaii in the mid '90s.

"It helps that his dad played D1 basketball, so he can give him insight on what to do, but this kid has the drive like I've never seen before," Grant said. "He's been clutch all season. When we need baskets, he comes around. He's also a good defender, so whoever he's on he usually shets them down. He's a long, strong defender and he's probably the hardest worker I've had in my 30 years of coaching on the defensive side."

Despite his scoring prowess, Grant said Sueing is hardly a selfish player.

"The rest of the players all know that he's a spectacular player and the difference with some of my players in the past and Justice, is that he will do whatever it takes to win," Grant said. "He's a competitor, so if he's attacking the basket and he sees somebody open, he will give it up. He's not the type to shoot it 25 times. He'll do whatever it takes to help us win games."

Grant said another aspect to Sueing's game that makes him special is the fact that he is left handed.

"I'm left handed, so it makes it easier for me," Grant said. "When I had my state championship team at Kaimuki we had like four or five lefties and that's the case with this team, too. I love having left handers. It makes us a more versatile team, because you can do more things with left handers and even for us, when we look at other teams, we look at how many left handers the other team has. It's kind of like a left-handed pitcher in baseball."

Off the court, Grant says he couldn't ask for a better person in Sueing.

"He gets along with everybody and he's just a humble, quiet kid," Grant said.

Sueing and the Spartans (2-4), who have lost four league games by a combined six points, will try to put together consecutive wins for the first time this season when they visit second-ranked Punahou Tuesday night.

Female Athlete of the Week: Keala Quinlan, Roosevelt basketball
Keala Quinlan is looked up to in more ways than one by her teammates on the Roosevelt girls' basketball team.

The 6-foot junior is a key piece on the fourth-ranked Rough Riders' squad that boasts an 11-0 record and the top seed out of the Eastern Division in the upcoming Oahu Interscholastic Association Division I Tournament.

Quinlan helped Roosevelt close out an unblemished regular season with wins over Kailua and Kaiser last week. The forward scored 20 points against the Surfriders Tuesday and 19 against the Cougars Thursday.

"She's a big presence for us being the only big player we have," Rough Riders' coach Hinano Higa said. "Other than Keala, we're all 5-4 and below, so we try to get the ball in to her, but what's special about her is she's able to get the defense to extend out, because she can step out and hit the 3, and she can also drive past the defender, too."

Roosevelt has no shortage of capable scorers in senior guards Starr Rivera (19.6 points per game) and Sharice Kawakami (10.5 ppg), to go along with Quinlan (14.8 ppg).

"We have guards that can shoot the ball on the outside, so we mixed it up and got (Keala) her touches inside and when defenses collapse on her, she's able to get the ball out to our shooters or step out to the corner or top of the key herself and hit the outside shot," Higa said. "Even from last year she's always been a great shooter, but I think it's just the comfort of knowing that she can do it and this year she's gained a little more confidence dribbling the ball, taking people off the dribble and making the right passes, as well."

Quinlan isn't just a threat offensively. She has proved her worth on the defensive side of the floor as well, averaging about seven blocks in Roosevelt's last two games, according to Higa.

"She's got a great hunger to learn," Higa said of Quinlan. "She's never satisfied with what she does. She's usually the first one through the doors at practice and is just ready to take on whatever she needs to."

Despite her ultra-competitive nature on the hardwood, Higa said Quinlan is "actually kind of different off the court."

"She's soft hearted," Higa said. "She's a great person to be around. The younger girls and even the managers, she takes care of them. She'll listen if they have problems and she's someone that a lot of the girls look up to. She tries to be that friend that everybody needs. She's helpful, she's personable and on the court she's always just ready to play basketball."

The Rough Riders will open defense of their OIA crown this week. They will host the winner of Friday's opening-round matchup between Leilehua and Moanalua at 6 p.m. Saturday. A win would secure their spot in the 12-team state tournament next month.

Roosevelt has seen their state title hopes dashed at the hands of Hilo the past two seasons. The Vikings won 47-44 in a first-round meeting in 2013 and edged the Rough Riders 62-61 in a quarterfinal last year.

"They're definitely hungry and a little more experienced," Higa said of her team. "We had a great preseason, as far as the teams we played. We had some very competitive games, but this whole week is about getting back to work, being able to move up and down the court and making right decisions at a fast pace. We're expecting everything and they're ready to play."

BOYS BASKETBALL
Shaun Aque, Aiea — Scored 20 points in a loss to Radford

David Benevedes, Castle — Scored 20 points in a loss to McKinley and scored 30 points in a loss to Kaimuki

Dane Blake, Punahou II — Scored 21 points in a win over Kamehameha II

Josh Chapital, Lahainaluna — Scored 28 points in a win over Maui

Kekoa Fields, Mililani — Scored 18 points in a win over Kapolei

Kevin Foster, Roosevelt — Scored 20 points in a win over Moanalua

Kupaa Harrison, Kalaheo — Scored 19 points in a win over Kaiser

Michael Gabrelcik, Le Jardin — Scored 23 points in a loss to Damien

Kaleb Gilmore, Kalaheo — Scored 19 points in a win over Kaiser

Kobe Ikari, Damien — Scored 36 points in a win over Le Jardin

Chance Kalaugher, Kaiser — Scored 24 points in a win over Roosevelt and scored 23 points in a loss to Kalaheo

Kris Kumon, Assets — Scored 19 points in a loss to Island Pacific

Gerald Lawson, Le Jardin — Scored 22 points in a loss to Damien

Ryan Madera, Lahainaluna — Scored 21 points in a win over Maui

Keoua Mahiko, Kaiser — Scored 22 points in a win over Roosevelt

Jerrold Mariano, Lanakila Baptist — Scored 23 points in a win over Hawaiian Mission

Kyrie McRaven, Moanalua — Scored 23 points in a loss to Kahuku

Jimmy Nunuha III, Saint Louis — Scored 22 points in a loss to Kamehameha and scored 19 points in a loss to Maryknoll

Christian Ono, Kaimuki — Scored 26 points in a loss to Kalani and scored 17 points in a win over Castle

Macjun Otarra, McKinley — Scored 26 points in a loss to Farrington

Jordan Riley, Radford — Scored 19 points in a win over Aiea

Kimo Romena, Anuenue — Scored 22 points in a loss to Kailua

Marcus Silvestre, Kamehameha II — Scored 20 points in a loss to Punahou II

Iverson Sione, Nanakuli — Scored 20 points in a loss to Leilehua

Jake Smith, Farrington — Scored 22 points in a loss to Kalaheo and scored 24 points in a win over McKinley

Fatu Sua-Godinet, Kamehameha — Scored 18 points in a loss to Punahou

Alexander Tungpalan, Kalani — Scored 21 points in a win over Kaimuki

Dan Villejo, McKinley — Scored 23 points in a win over Castle and scored 19 points in a loss to Farrington

Abdel-Kader Ziane, Kapolei — Scored 18 points in a loss to Mililani

BOYS SOCCER
Tyler Allen, Mid-Pacific — Scored two goals in a win over Damien

Stirling Aponte, Mid-Pacific — Scored two goals in a win over Damien

Christopher Brubaker, Punahou — Scored two goals in a win over Kamehameha

DJ Chinen, Castle — Scored two goals in a win over Roosevelt

Jhonah Felipe, Kalaheo — Scored two goals in a win over Castle

Payad Jadsopha, McKinley — Scored three goals in a win over Kaimuki

Kalahikiola Judd, Mililani — Scored two goals in a win over Pearl City and two goals in a win over Leilehua

CJ Harvey, Kapolei — Scored three goals in a win over Nanakuli

Spencer Ho, Iolani — Scored two goals in a win over Pac-Five

Shandon Hopeau, Kapolei — Scored three goals in a win over Nanakuli

Micah Kerisiano, McKinley — Scored two goals in a win over Kaimuki

Takahiro Kosins, Kalani — Scored two goals in a win over Kaiser and two goals in a win over Kaimuki

Stanton Spencer, Waianae — Scored four goals in a win over Aiea

Christian Vasconcellos, Mid-Pacific — Scored two goals in a win over Damien

Michael Watson, Radford — Scored two goals in a win over Aiea

Blake Weatherbolt, Radford — Scored two goals in a win over Aiea

Luke Wyman, Pearl City — Scored two goals in a loss to Mililani

GIRLS BASKETBALL
Tywanna Abbott, Leilehua — Scored 18 points in a win over Campbell

Asia Almeda, Castle — Scored 18 points in a loss to Moanalua

Riana Arima, Kamehameha-Hawaii — Scored 22 points in a win over Kealakehe

Sarah Banister, Hawaiian Mission — Scored 18 points in a loss to Island Pacific

Kaylie Espinas, Kalani — Scored 18 points in a win over Kaimuki

Cameron Fernandez, Lahainaluna — Scored 21 points in a win over Maui

Alyssa Finger, Iolani II — Scored 18 points in a loss to Kamehameha II

Molimau Heimuli, Farrington — Scored 20 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in a win over Moanalua

Kaylee Ishii, Castle — Scored 26 points in a win over Kahuku

Kyle Johnson, Aiea — Scored 31 points in a loss to Campbell

Khrystyna Kanahele, Christian Academy — Scored 22 points in a loss to Island Pacific

Kacey Kuchenbecker, Le Jardin — Scored 21 points in a loss to Saint Francis

Kelcie Leong, Moanalua — Scored 19 points in a win over Castle

Jerri Maluyo, Leilehua — Scored 25 points in a win over Campbell and scored 23 points in a win over Waipahu

Markayisha Masani, University High — Scored 20 points in a win over Le Jardin

Kassidy Misaki, Kalani — Scored 26 points in a win over Kaimuki

Jasmine Moody, Radford — Scored 21 points in a win over Aiea

Alana Nuuanu, Nanakuli — Scored 19 points in a win over Waianae

Tia Odardi, Island Pacific — Scored 28 points in a win over Christian Academy

Keala Quinlan, Roosevelt — Scored 20 points, grabbed nine rebounds and had seven blocks in a win over Kailua and scored 19 points in a win over Kaiser

Starr Rivera, Roosevelt — Scored 22 points, grabbed seven rebounds and had four assists in a win over Kailua

Allani Talapu, Farrington — Scored 21 points in a win over Moanalua

Patria Vaimaona, Kailua — Scored 19 points and grabbed 12 rebounds in a loss to Roosevelt and scored 30 points in a win over Kalaheo

Ally Wada, Hawaii Baptist — Scored 22 points in a win over University High

Jazmayne Williams, Farrington — Scored 16 points and grabbed 17 rebounds in a win over Moanalua

GIRLS SOCCER
Savanna Arakaki, Kaiser — Scored two goals in a win over Kalani

Vanessa Chinen, Castle — Scored two goals in a win over Kalaheo

Karley Devens, Iolani — Scored two goals in a win over Saint Francis

Kristen Hori, Iolani — Scored two goals in a win over Saint Francis

Kori-Ann Koverman, Kapolei — Scored two goals in a win over Leilehua

Noelle Mercado, Kaiser — Scored two goals in a win over Kalani

Lauren Takasato, Castle — Scored two goals in a win over Kalaheo