LIHUE — Kaone Miguel and Joseph Cumlat each netted 14 points to fuel the Kauai High School boys basketball team to a 57-46 win over Waimea on Wednesday night at the Kauai High School gym. Waimea took an early lead,
LIHUE — Kaone Miguel and Joseph Cumlat each netted 14 points to fuel the Kauai High School boys basketball team to a 57-46 win over Waimea on Wednesday night at the Kauai High School gym.
Waimea took an early lead, but the Red Raiders turned the tables behind its quickness and the bombs from outside the three-point arc.
Overall, the Red Raiders launched 10 treys while the Menehune was limited to a pair.
“We just didn’t execute,” said Dino Pabre of the Waimea coaching staff. “We suffered turnovers and couldn’t make the free throws. When you turn the ball, it compounds to other areas.”
Waimea finished the night 18-for-32 at the foul line while the Red Raiders were 6-for-9.
Kauai coach Ipo Yoshioka said the boys were “complacent.”
“We had the first half,” Yoshioka said as the Red Raiders posted a 39-22 margin at the break. “But they (Waimea) got the second half (slowing down the run-and-gun game). We got complacent. The boys need to learn how to control the entire game.”
Waimea outdid Kauai in the third quarter, firing off 10 points to Kauai’s nine behind four points each from Keoni Gaoiran and Seaton Farias.
“Keoni had the inside,” Pabre said. “Seaton made the shots, but we need more energy. Briggs Agu, who scored 27 points in the last game, wasn’t taking that many shots tonight. We don’t have a point guard, so when something happened to DJ (Pabre), he had to be facilitator.”
The Menehune continued to trim the deficit in the fourth stanza, outgunning Kauai 14-9, but came up short.
“If the boys were able to execute, take care of the ball, and make the free throws, things would have been different,” Pabre said. “We needed this win, and a win against Kapaa Saturday to force a tie for the first round.”
The Kauai junior varsity posted a 52-30 win over the Menehune behind 11 points from Christopher Cromartie and eight points from Vincent Agreda. Taylor Yadao topped the Waimea JV scoring with a game-high 18 points.
Waimea next hosts Kapaa, Saturday with the JV game tipping off at 5:30 p.m. at the Clem Gomes Gym and the varsity matchup starting approximately 20 minutes following the completion of the JV match.
“There is still a lot more ball to play,” Pabre said. “The boys have the potential, we just need to put it together.”
Kauai can’t afford to be idle despite the win.
“If Waimea wins Saturday, we get the first round,” Yoshioka said. “A Kapaa win means we have a playoff for the first round Monday. We still need to work.”
