Dahlis Sablay scored 16 points and dished out five assists as No. 8 Mililani overpowered Kaiser 51-28 on Wednesday night in OIA girls basketball quarterfinal-round action at the Lady Trojans’ gym.
Mililani (14-7), the first-place team in the West, advances to the semifinals and will meet Kalani on Monday at McKinley Student Council Gymnasium. The Lady Trojans also secured one of the league’s six state-tournament berths with the victory over a young Kaiser squad.
The win was bittersweet, though. Mililani senior Kalena Gibson, the Trojans’ defensive stopper, suffered a knee injury in the third quarter.
“The trainer said it might be an ACL (tear),” Mililani interim head coach Francis Dagan said. “We’ve had adversity all year. This is another one we’ve got to overcome.”
Gibson was having one of her best offensive performances of the year, Dagan added. She had 11 points when she drove to the basket and fell under the Lady Trojans’ backboard.
“She’s my go-to, my one-two punch,” point guard Sablay said. “It’s going to be a bigger challenge without her.”
Taysia Canon added 10 points and center Cheyenne Ardona had nine rebounds to go with six points for Mililani. It was a strong, balanced attack for the experienced Trojans, who are still unbeaten in Oahu Interscholastic Association play.
Kaiser, a young team with just two seniors, stayed close with Mililani early on, down just 6-4 after Taryn Kimura’s free throw with 4:50 left in the first quarter.
Mililani then got a 3 from Canon, a follow shot by Ardona, a steal by Sablay that led to a layup for Gibson. After Gibson hit two free throws a minute later, the home team suddenly had a 15-4 lead.
The lead increased to 19-4 after recent JV call-up Kianna Ponce hit a mid-range jumper early in the second quarter. Mililani opened in man-to-man defense, but switched to a 2-3 zone after the first quarter, and Kaiser couldn’t take advantage. The Cougars shot 0-for-8 from the arc in the first half.
Mililani closed the half with a 6-2 run to open a 28-10 lead by intermission. The Lady Cougars got within 33-19 late in the third quarter after Trinidee Kahunahana swished a baseline runner and Taeya Blakeney hit a foul shot.
The visitors got no closer the rest of the way. Blakeney, a 5-foot-9 junior, battled the 6-1 Ardona all night and finished with 14 points and eight rebounds. Kaiser finished the game shooting less than 20 percent (8-for-41) from the field and 41 percent from the foul line (9-for-22).
“We’re pretty inexperienced, but we’ve been fighting all season,” Kaiser coach Bri Lagat-Ramos said. “We’ve had wonderful games, but tonight was one of those games we didn’t show up.”
Kaiser (10-10) will meet Leilehua on Friday in consolation play. The winner will secure a state berth, one of six allotted to the OIA.
Moanalua 42, Radford 36
Raven Rosa-Lasco led all scorers with 15 points as Na Menehune, seeded third out of the East Division, advanced to the semifinal round of the OIA Division I Tournament with the victory over the Rams.
The win also gives Moanalua a berth into the Division I State Championship for the first time since 2014. Radford, the West No. 2 seed, falls into a fifth-place semifinal.
Kalani 61, Leilehua 20
Alayna Akiona and Logan Luke each scored 12 points as the Falcons soared past the Mules in the quarterfinal round of the OIA Division I Tournament.
With the win, Kalani secured a Division I State tournament berth for the first time since 2009. Leilehua, the third seed out of the West, heads to a fifth-place semifinal against Kaiser.
