Sometimes clutch is better than pretty.
No. 6 Moanalua did the job down the stretch at the free-throw line to fend off a resilient Roosevelt squad 71-59 on Wednesday night in the quarterfinals of the OIA Division I boys basketball playoffs.
Na Menehune got 19 points from Geremy Robinson and a powerful performance from 6-foot-5 center DiAeris McRaven, who had 18 points, eight rebounds and six blocks. Isaiah Sugiura added 17 points for Moanalua (18-6 overall), which has won 10 games in a row. Moanalua will meet Kahuku on Monday in the semifinals.
“We’ve just got to do what we’ve got to do,” McRaven said. “We’ll just play our game.”
Moanalua struggled at times against Roosevelt’s 2-3 matchup zone, but never lacked for inside presence.
“DiAeris did a tremendous job. He played to his potential. I like the grit we showed. I’m proud of this team,” Coach Byron Mello said of Na Menehune, who shot 24-for-30 (80 percent) at the foul line.
Robinson was 9-for-11 at the charity stripe and Sugiura was 7-for-8. In the final quarter, the two guards were a combined 11-for-12 at the line.
“Coach told us to keep our poise, stay together as a team,” Robinson said.
Micah Visoria had 17 points and four steals, and Ty Shishido added 16 points and eight rebounds for Roosevelt (15-10). The Rough Riders will meet Mililani on Monday in a consolation game with big ramifications. The winner will secure a state-tourney berth. The loser is done for the season.
“We didn’t rebound well, but our shots stopped falling,” Rough Riders coach Steve Hathaway said.
Moanalua opened the lead to 34-23 on a Sugiura trey during the third quarter, but Roosevelt stormed back and got within 51-49 after Visoria sank a baseline jumper off a feed from Jason Doyle with 6 minutes remaining in the contest.
Moanalua then went on an 8-0 run, getting a steal by Sugiura that led to a Robinson layup along the way. Roosevelt never recovered.
Na Menehune are now 10-0 on their home court this season.
