Sports
Far East Division I basketballKadena girls, Kubasaki boys reach finals
Stars and Stripes
February 24, 2012
Kubasaki guard C.J. Crenshaw skies to the basket in front of Father Duenas Memorial's Chris Chang during Friday's semifinal game in the 63rd Far East High School Boys Division I Basketball Tournament at Naval Station, Guam. The defending champion Dragons beat the Friars 62-54. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
Kubasaki guard C.J. Crenshaw skies to the basket in front of Father Duenas Memorial's Chris Chang during Friday's semifinal game in the 63rd Far East High School Boys Division I Basketball Tournament at Naval Station, Guam. The defending champion Dragons beat the Friars 62-54. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
Father Duenas Memorial's Bruce Merrill pulls down a rebound in front of Kubasaki's Brandon Crawford during Friday's semifinal game in the 63rd Far East High School Boys Division I Basketball Tournament at Naval Station, Guam. The defending champion Dragons beat the Friars 62-54. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
Kubasaki guard C.J. Crenshaw is fouled on the way to the basket by Father Duenas Memorial's John Ilao during Friday's semifinal game in the 63rd Far East High School Boys Division I Basketball Tournament at Naval Station, Guam. The defending champion Dragons beat the Friars 62-54. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
Nile C. Kinnick's Ronald Bolton drives around Okkodo's Airan Solangon during Friday's semifinal game in the 63rd Far East High School Boys Division I Basketball Tournament at Naval Station, Guam. The Bulldogs downed the Red Devils 48-39. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
Nile C. Kinnick's Malik White drives between Okkodo's Josh Sebastian and Maksever Kepwe during Friday's semifinal game in the 63rd Far East High School Boys Division I Basketball Tournament at Naval Station, Guam. The Bulldogs downed the Red Devils 48-39. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
Academy of Our Lady of Guam's Rebecca Rupley drives to the basket past Kadena's Maria Vaughan during Friday's semifinal game in the Far East High School Girls Division I Basketball Tournament at Yokota Air Base, Japan. The Panthers beat the Cougars 60-45 to advance to their first final since 2008. (Lilly Crown/Special to Stars and Stripes)
Kadena's Deja Caldwell shoots while Academy of Our Lady of Guam's' Isabella Denight tries to block and Caldwell's teammate Eisiah Lawson watches during Friday's semifinal game in the Far East High School Girls Division I Basketball Tournament at Yokota Air Base, Japan. The Panthers beat the Cougars 60-45 to advance to their first final since 2008. (Lilly Crown/Special to Stars and Stripes)
Okinawa put its stamp all over the Far East High School Division I Basketball Tournament finals Friday, sending Kadena’s girls to the title game for the first time since 2008, while Kubasaki’s boys were set to defend their Pacific-record 10th championship Saturday.
C.J. Crenshaw shot 17-for-22 from the foul line and Kubasaki rallied from nine points down in the third quarter to upend Guam’s Father Duenas Memorial 62-54. Maria Vaughan scored 14 points to power Kadena’s girls past island champion Academy of Our Lady of Guam 60-45 later in the day.
“Just a gutty effort by the Dragons,” Kubasaki boys coach Jon Fick said after booking his third center court appearance in his six seasons at the helm.
“You could feel a little panic set in” when the Dragons fell behind in the third period, Fick said. “But they got some stops. And that’s where it starts, with stops.”
Brandon Crawford converted a three-point play to put Kubasaki ahead to stay 42-41 with 7 minutes, 44 seconds left. Forced to foul to stay in the contest, the Friars put Crenshaw at the line repeatedly; only six of his 23 points came on field goals.
“He’s been doing that all season,” Fick said of Crenshaw. “It closed the game out.”
Mike Sakazaki led the Friars with 19 points and Chris Chang added 11.
While Crenshaw did his damage at the foul line, Vaughan and her junior center teammate Eisiah Lawson performed their Ms. Outside-Ms. Inside routine to perfection, and the Panthers outscored the Cougars 18-9 in the third quarter to pull away.
“It feels great,” Kadena first-year head coach Willie Ware said. “I told the girls the mission isn’t complete yet, but it’s great to see all that hard work pay off.”
Ware was particularly pleased that his effort to build chemistry pay off for a team that a season ago resembled a house divided.
“We have a really great group of kids,” he said. “To see the team chemistry, even on a road trip, to see a team that we can really call a team, they do everything together, it’s really great.”
Lawson finished with 12 points and Jasmine Rhodes pitched in with 12 for the Panthers. Alina Bonto led the Cougars with 14 points.
Kubasaki’s boys face Okkodo in the boys final at 2 p.m. Guam time at Naval Station’s Charles King Fitness and Sports Center.
Kadena’s girls take on Faith Academy, appearing in its fourth straight final, at 7:30 p.m. Japan time at Yokota High School’s Capps Gym.