Things learned, observed in Pacific high school basketball Week 10.0
Published: February 1, 2012
Musings, mutterings and the occasional schmahts as Ornauer turns the page on the calendar and sees a road map with the name Far East all over it starting mid-month:
Dragons breathing fire – For most of the game, it looked like the same ol’, same ol’ for Kadena’s girls basketball team, seizing a 36-21 lead after three quarters at home in last Friday’s third installment of the Okinawa Activities Council season series.
After all, the Panthers had clawed the Dragons in their previous three meetings by an average 25.4-point margin and a maximum 31-point margin. And Kubasaki had not beaten Kadena since a 51-47 overtime victory Dec. 8, 2009.
So, for certain, Kadena would cruise to a season series-clinching victory, yes?
Balderdash, or words to that effect, said Kubasaki sophomore Sydney Johnson.She and the Dragons then went on a tear, outscoring the Panthers 21-6 to knot the thing at 42-42 in the closing seconds.
And Johnson had a chance to win it in regulation. Her 18-foot jumper from the left side looked like it had a chance. A good chance. And it did everything but go in. Around the rim, around, around and around, then it fell out.
Much to the relief of the uber-anxious Kadena crowd. And the disappointment of the Kubasaki faithful which had trekked from Camp Foster to eyeball the proceedings.
The air sort of exited the Dragons’ balloons from that point, as Kadena outscored Kubasaki 13-3 in the extra session.
But each side’s fans got quite the surprise. This was nothing like anything either had seen in more than two years.
How did this happen?
Rewind to six days earlier, when the Dragons girls took Chatan, a Japanese team rated in the island’s top 10, to double overtime before fading 89-81.
The reaction was mixed on the surface, but unified below it. Guard Nicholle Rentas was all smiles, as if to say she knew they could do this. On Johnson’s face, a cascade of emotion, frustration knowing that the team came oh, so close, but oh, so far.
Now, within six days, the Dragons have gotten within an overtime of victory. But in other respects, they earned victory. This is a vastly different ballclub than began the season in November.
Watch and see how well they do come Feb. 9, when the teams meet again in the fourth and final OAC series installment for the season. And watch and see how they do at Far East Division I, Feb. 20-25 at Yokota. So what if they’re 2-20? It’s all about how you finish, especially where Far East is concerned.
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Black back, Davis returns – The weekend and the early part of this week saw its share of players returning from short- and long-term injury when the players were needed the most.
Jen Black had been sidelined the last 12 months by a torn knee ACL, suffered during the Far East Division II tournament last February at Camp Walker, South Korea. It also meant she couldn’t play her passion, which is soccer. And as it turned out, much of the season was truncated because of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami (can she be given a medical redshirt?).
But I digress. Back in uniform she was for Robert D. Edgren last Saturday at Sasebo Naval Base, where she led the Eagles to their first win in 10 games this season, 41-30 over E.J. King.
“I was worried I wasn’t going to be of much help to the team,” Black said by telephone Wednesday about her concern that she could take a wrong turn on the court and aggravate the injury.
It marked the first time she and her freshman sister, Vanessa, were on the court at the same time, something Jen said she had dreamed about.
On Tuesday, Yokota welcomed back to the lineup sophomore Trinity Davis, who had been sidelined since December by a knee contusion. She responded with 11 points and eight rebounds as the Panthers won 46-38 at Zama American.
“They’ve markedly improved, night and day from two months ago,” Panthers coach Paul Ettl said, adding that Davis is “not 100 percent yet, but I don’t know that we win that game without her.”
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A different Mood – Also in attendance at that Yokota game was longtime DODDS educator and administrator Darrell Mood, who was in a quandary about for whom to cheer.
He’s in his fourth year as principal of Yokota High School, but in the last week, he was named acting principal at Zama, where his predecessor, Candice Wojciechowsky, stepped down at the end of the first semester.
“It was hard,” Mood said of watching the game between his current schools. “I saw them (Panthers) off the bus. I tried not to cry. Zama is a great school, it has great kids, great support, great parents. I’ll be home soon.”
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Stith in the shadows – Sometimes, a player’s contributions, no matter how valuable, can end up being overshadowed by the accomplishments of that player designated the team’s star or featured player.
Nile C. Kinnick freshman guard De’Asia Brown has gotten the lion’s share of attention so far this season for the Red Devils, who’ve gone 19-5 thanks in part to Brown’s averaging 25 points and just under 10 assists per game.
In the shadows, behind the scenes, the work of senior center Emily Stith, more noted for her volleyball prowess, has gone largely unnoticed. But she’s averaged 14 points and 12 rebounds this season, forming a Ms. Inside-Ms. Outside tandem with the more heralded Brown.
But it’s not just Stith’s on-court contributions as it is her leadership off the court. Sort of becoming a coach within the rank and file, a coach on the court, a mentor, a leader among peers who’s involved in so many team things that don’t show up in a scorebook.
I’m sure volleyball coach Al Garrido would be the first to the plate to sing the praises and contributions of Stith to the Red Devils’ Far East D-I Tournament runner-up effort in November at Seoul American. Stith’s work for the basketball team might not be as noted, but it’s no less important.
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Torres time – Still struggling to find their offensive groove with senior forward Bryant McCray still sidelined with an injury, coach Steve Boyd and Seoul American turned to senior reserve Alex Torres , who dialed up long distance for the Falcons in their 54-24 win Friday at Korea International.
He went 4-for-6 from behind the arc, scoring 17 points off the bench. “He really gave us a spark,” Boyd said. “We needed it.”
The Falcons are just a win over Yongsan International-Seoul on Friday away from completing yet another unbeaten regular season on Boyd’s 11-season watch over Falcon Nation. Torres added nine points and five assists on Saturday as Seoul American beat Seoul Foreign 58-44.
On the girls side, Rae Rae Calloway netted 16 points, Lari Robertson pulled down 13 boards and Sarah Wright recorded eight steals as Daegu High racked up the first unbeaten regular season in school history, downing Seoul International 50-15.
Seoul American boys, Daegu High girls, top seeds in the Korean-American Interscholastic Activities Conference Division I Tournaments, girls at Seoul American, boys at Seoul Foreign … check.
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No. 1 seeds, but – One bit of advice I would impart on the Warriors girls and the Falcons boys: Don’t sleep on your opposite numbers. Daegu’s boys and Seoul American’s girls – the reigning two-time Far East Division I Tournament champions – are quite hungry and would love nothing more than to send y’all tumbling off that lofty perch.
So, too, might Edgren’s boys take heed to watch out for hungry Yokota, Matthew C. Perry and Nile C. Kinnick teams that have taken their lumps against the Eagles. And Yokota’s girls should have their hands full dealing with Stith, Brown and Kinnick.
26 days.
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