Yokota freshman Trinity Davis drives to the basket on Nile C. Kinnick Red Devils defender Audrey Parker during Saturday's girls championship game in the 5th DODDS- Japan basketball tournament at Yokota High School, Japan. Yokota won, 53-28. (Greg Holladay/Special to Stars and Stripes)
Yokota freshman Trinity Davis drives to the basket on Nile C. Kinnick Red Devils defender Audrey Parker during Saturday's girls championship game in the 5th DODDS- Japan basketball tournament at Yokota High School, Japan. Yokota won, 53-28. (Greg Holladay/Special to Stars and Stripes)
Yokota senior and tournament MVP Myles Andrews finds his path to the basket bottled up by Nile C. Kinnick senior defenders Josh Adair, left, and Ken Haynes during Saturday's boys championship game in the 5th DODDS-Japan basketball tournament at Yokota High School, Japan. Yokota won, 52-33. (Greg Holladay/Special to Stars and Stripes)
Yokota junior Warren Manegan drives to the basket against Mark Dunphy of Nile C. Kinnick during Saturday's boys championship game in the 5th DODDS- Japan basketball tournament at Yokota High School, Japan. Yokota won, 52-33. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
Yokota senior and tournament MVP Myles Andrews shoots over senior Josh Adair of Nile C. Kinnick during Saturday's boys championship game in the 5th DODDS- Japan basketball tournament at Yokota High School, Japan. Yokota won, 52-33. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
Yokota's Kathryn White puts up a shot against Dusty Keolanui-Wilson of Nile C. Kinnick during Saturday's girls championship game in the 5th DODDS- Japan basketball tournament at Yokota High School, Japan. Yokota won, 53-28. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
Yokota's Sydney Glover has her shot contested by Nile C. Kinnick defenders Emily Stith, left, and Erica Carter during Saturday's girls championship game in the 5th DODDS-Japan basketball tournament at Yokota High School, Japan. Yokota won, 53-28. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
Yokota's Julia Marrin, the tournament MVP, has her shot contested by Mashiya McKinney of Nile C. Kinnick during Saturday' girls championship game in the 5th DODDS-Japan basketball tournament at Yokota High School, Japan. Yokota won, 53-28. (Dave Ornauer/Stars and Stripes)
YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan – They weren’t the most sightly of games, coaches said, but Yokota swept the boys and girls titles Saturday in the 5th DODDS-Japan basketball tournaments and got some needed momentum heading into the Far East Division I tournaments later this month.
Behind senior MVPs Myles Andrews and Julia Marrin, the Panthers got their sweep dream at Nile C. Kinnick’s expense: the girls, 53-28, and the boys, 52-33.
“It feels great,” boys coach Tim Pujol said after Andrews scored 14 points and the Panthers used a 19-2 run to close the first half and were never headed.
“We’re especially pleased because we talked about how this could be a momentum builder for us, since we’re still in the hunt for the Kanto Plain championship and, of course, we want to make the best showing that we can at Far East.”
Yokota is 5-2 in the Kanto Plain, 1½ games behind 7-1 Christian Academy Japan. Each has two regularly-scheduled games left and Yokota has one makeup game to play.
While Andrews gave the Red Devils fits inside, Warren Manegan torched the nets from deep for four three-point goals and 22 points. The tournament’s 30-point mercy rule was invoked with 3 minutes, 35 seconds left in the third quarter when Manegan’s layup made it 50-20.
Yokota girls coach Paul Ettl called his team’s performance “effective but not quite fine-tuned.” Losing his junior point guard and daughter Erika Ettl to a left ankle sprain didn’t help.
“It’s kind of like that with Kinnick all year,” the elder Ettl said. “They’re (Red Devils) athletic and a lot taller, so they make you play a little sloppy, I think. We’re happy for the win and we’ll move onto next week.”
Ettl finished with 12 points and six assists, while freshman shooter Trinity Davis added a game-high 18 and Marrin 12.
Ayanna Thomas sparked an early 10-2 run with a jumper from the left side with 3:18 left in the first quarter that broke the last of two early ties, and the Panthers steadily built the lead until the end.
