Moanalua overpowers Kapolei in OIA girls basketball playoff

Delylah Sanerivi scored nine points and pulled down 18 rebounds as Moanalua outlasted Kapolei 38-22 on Tuesday night in the opening round of the Oahu Interscholastic Association girls basketball playoffs.

Sanerivi provided much of the power in the paint, while senior classmate Kelcie Leong provided seven points, five assists and five steals. Mariah Borce added nine points and Kylie Casinas chipped in eight points.

Moanalua’s pesky defense forced the visiting Hurricanes into 30 turnovers. That was the biggest factor on a night when neither team shot better than 28 percent from the field. Sanerivi, who also hustled for four steals, helped Na Menehune secure a narrow edge on the boards, 32-31. That was the mission that coach Tani Almont-Done mandated for her team.

“Coach just wanted us to box out. That was our main thing,” said Sanerivi, who is also a standout middle on the volleyball team.

Moanalua, the fourth-place team from the East, advanced to the quarterfinal round of the Oahu Interscholastic Association Division I girls basketball playoffs.

Moanalua (14-9) will travel up Salt Lake Boulevard on Wednesday to face Radford (9-6, 8-2 OIA), the second-place team in the West. Tip-off is at 6 p.m.

“They always execute. They know how to run an offense. They’ll want to spread the court and hold the ball,” Almont-Done said. “So we have to make sure we always have the lead.”

The winner will secure an automatic state-tournament berth. For now, Moanalua avoided elimination and has a clean slate.

“This was very important for us. It’s my senior year and we want to go far,” Sanerivi said.

Kapolei, the fifth-place team in the West, entered the game with a five-game win streak. The Hurricanes closed their season at 13-7. Alexis Correa led the ’Canes with nine points and seven steals. Sydney Faumuina added seven points and seven rebounds.

“Defense was not an issue, but on offense, we just couldn’t execute,” Kapolei coach James Aronica said. “We just couldn’t take care of the ball. Hat’s off to Moanalua.”

Na Menehune began to take control during the second quarter after the teams were stagnant offensively, tied at 5. Borce’s first 3 of the game gave Moanalua a 10-8 lead and it never trailed again.

Moanalua got a better handle on Kapolei’s 1-3-1 matchup zone and went on a 10-2 run to start the third quarter. Leong scored four points, including a layup off a steal, and Kylie Casinas splashed a corner 3 for a 24-14 lead.

Boyce added a corner 3 late in the quarter and Moanalua had a 27-16 lead entering the fourth. The home team then put the game out of reach with an 8-2 run to start the fourth stanza. Borce drilled her third trey during the blitz.

Moanalua has now won five games in a row, including wins last week over the top two teams in the East.

“Coach told us to settle down and relax, just play our game,” Leong said. “Like how we showed up at Kahuku and Kalani.”