Homecoming night wasn’t so homey for the Maryknoll Spartans.
Second-ranked Punahou made it a double whammy on Monday, routing No. 3 Maryknoll 63-40 in the second game of a girls/boys basketball doubleheader at Maryknoll Community Center.
Homecoming night began with Maryknoll’s 41-36 loss to ‘Iolani in the girls matchup.
The Buffanblu boys turned a 12-all battle after one quarter into a runaway. Punahou (17-3, 2-0 ILH) will visit No. 1 Saint Louis at 6 p.m. Thursday.
Tanoa Scanlan led the Buffanblu offensively with 22 points on 9-for-11 shooting from the field. The 6-foot-6 sophomore also shot 4-for-4 at the free-throw line.
“Dash (Watanabe) did his thing. He’s a really unselfish guy, but he can hit those 3s,” Scanlan said.
Zion White led the charge defensively, using his athleticism and dynamic skill set to supercharge the Buffanblu. The 6-5 sophomore finished with 13 points, 13 rebounds, three assists and two blocks with just one turnover.
“My coaches told me, if you don’t foul, you’re not coming out of the game,” White said.
Watanabe had a hot second quarter as a scorer and distributor, finishing the game with 11 points and five assists. Punahou’s efficiency was a key against Maryknoll’s mix of defenses. The Buffanblu had 16 assists with just eight turnovers while shooting 55% (24-for-44) from the field.
“Zion and Tanoa are great on defense,” Watanabe said. “It makes my job easier.”
Guard Nixis Yamaguchi led Maryknoll (16-4 overall, 0-1 ILH) with 13 points, while Rome Lilio had 10 points. Mission Uperesa-Thomas added seven points and a team-high six rebounds. The Spartans shot 30% from the field (15-for-50).
“That’s our calling card to win, being gritty defensively. Our motion offense is like their motion, so we practice against it every day,” Punahou coach Darren Matsuda said. “That’s how we’re going to have to win right now. Offense always takes longer, and we were patient today, but we’re not where we want to be yet.”
It was the ILH opener for Maryknoll. With 11 more games on the league schedule, there is plenty of time to sharpen up.
The Spartans will host No. 9 University at 6:30 p.m. Thursday.
Maryknoll switched from man to zone defense, and dropped its fullcourt press during a rugged first quarter. The Spartans shot 3-for-10 from the field against Punahou’s man defense in the second quarter while Watanabe became a key factor. He splashed a straightaway 3, then fed Houston Hosoda for a corner 3 in transition. Watanabe fed Scanlan for a bucket in the paint as the visitors went on a 17-6 run.
Punahou led 29-18 at intermission. The Buffanblu then turned up the intensity and quickened the pace, going on a 20-9 run. With White dominating the paint, the Buffanblu pushed in transition and opened a 19-point lead.
After Maryknoll coach Kelly Grant gave his team a stern message during a timeout, the Spartans got fired up and got the better shot selection he asked for.
Punahou began to get sloppy after Watanabe missed a pull-up 30-footer, but Maryknoll was not able to get a consistent run going.
