Hilo's Sharlei Graham-Bernisto puts up a shot as Westview's Jaime Nared defends. Greg Yamamoto | SL

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121213_Hilo_4022.jpg - Greg Yamamoto | SL

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Jaime Nared poured in a game-high 29 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead Westview to a 62-46 win over Hilo in the opening game of the Iolani Girls Classic.

Nared, a six-foot-two forward heading to the University of Tennessee, added 4 assists, 6 steals and 3 blocks for the Wildcats, part of a frontline for the Wildcats that used their superior size to their advantage while avoiding any serious personnel issues despite foul woes throughout.

"Jaime has stepped up tremendously as a leader," said Wildcats' head coach Lindsay Strothers. "She's put her team on her back and she's decided that she's going to carry us to the promised land."

And she certainly did that to the letter just about, leading her team not only in points scored and rebounds, but in essentially every category across the board, including steals, blocks and assists.

Despite the aforementioned size advantage, the Vikings countered with physical, aggressive play that drew praise from Hilo head coach Ben Pana.

"Being outmatched as far as size, but being able to handle the physical play they came in with, and at times scoring some easy buckets, against a team like this, that's always a positive." said Pana.

Westview led 28-18 at halftime, capped off by a buzzer-beating shot by Nared, a momentum shifter of sorts for the visiting team in what was foul-laden half of play.

"We got in a whole lot of foul trouble, and we gotta cut down our turnovers if we're gonna win another game," remarked Strothers.

Both teams had a combined 44 fouls in the contest, with 26 of those whistles going against the Wildcats. Westview had 18 turnovers, while Hilo committed 23.

Aliyah Pana was the standout for Hilo, scoring 22 hard-earned points, 13 of them coming in the second half, and did much of her damage in the painted area against the much taller Westview bigs. She shot a sparkling 11-of-12 from the free throw line and also grabbed 9 rebounds.

"I think we did alright," said Aliyah Pana of her teams' performance against Westview. "But I know we can do much better, cause we know the size difference and they are a pretty big team (compared) to teams in the BIIF."

Next up for Westview is Long Beach Poly, a 62-36 winner over Maryknoll, in the 6:30 p.m. semifinal, while Hilo will face off against Maryknoll in the 3:30 p.m. game of the consolation bracket.