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They have, in the space of just one month, righted the ship, so to speak.
Senior Trey Boatwright was certain of this on Tuesday night, with 16 points and nine rebounds as No. 9 Leilehua pulled away for a 46-31 boys basketball win over Mililani at the Mules’ gym. The Mules improved to 6-0 in Oahu Interscholastic Association West play. Mililani dropped to 3-2 before a rowdy but respectful crowd of Mules and Trojans fans at Leilehua.
“It’s a rivalry game, so it was more intense,” said Boatwright, a 6-foot-2 forward.
Junior Liam Fitzgerald was also integral with 13 points, four rebounds and five dimes in a versatile performance. The 6-foot-5 multi-position ballhandler had no turnovers, playing the top of Leilehua’s 1-2-2 zone and occasionally in the middle of their 2-3 zone.
Most of the time, Leilehua went at the visiting Trojans with man defense. The mix of defenses worked — Mililani shot 28 percent from the field (12-for-43) and the Mules, with a concerted effort from the entire lineup on the boards. Leilehua outrebounded Mililani 26-14.
“Trey, everybody on this team knows his role,” coach Russ Fitzgerald said. “Tashaun (Wright) really stepped up, Kaleo (Aloha Piceno) gives us a lot of energy on defense. Our reserves gave us high-quality minutes.”
Wright, a junior guard, had eight points and five rebounds. Another junior, Raymond Agdinaoy, added eight points and three assists.
Cameron Henry hustled for nine rebounds, three steals and three assists to lead Mililani. Matthew Amistoso and Kaleo Pogue chipped in eight points apiece.
“Credit to them,” Trojans coach Jason Tittle said. “They executed when they had to on offense and defense. They took us out of our game.”
The home team was on point from the start, taking a quick 6-0 lead. The Trojans were within 13-7 early in the second quarter after Amistoso went coast to coast for a layup. However, the Mules went on a 14-4 run against Mililani’s man defense. Agdinaoy swished a corner 3 and Boatwright scored back-to-back buckets as Leilehua opened a 27-11 lead.
Mililani chipped the lead down to 34-24 late in the third quarter after free throws by Pogue and a steal and layup by Henry. From there, the Trojans were cold from the field again, however, shooting 3-for-9 from the field in the final quarter. The Mules spread the floor with Fitzgerald at the point and dissected the defense for drive-and-dish layups.
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