When Shalyn Guthier puts on her basketball shoes, it’s full speed ahead for the 5-foot-7 Hilo center, who doesn’t take it easy on anyone whether it’s a preseason game or a state tournament one. ADVERTISING When Shalyn Guthier puts on
When Shalyn Guthier puts on her basketball shoes, it’s full speed ahead for the 5-foot-7 Hilo center, who doesn’t take it easy on anyone whether it’s a preseason game or a state tournament one.
“We treat every game like it’s a big-time game,” she said.
Guthier scored 13 points, and played like an MVP to push the Vikings over Lahainaluna 54-49 in the Hilo preseason tournament on Saturday at Kawananakoa Gym.
“We played as a team and worked together, even when we were down,” she said. “We picked each other up. They had height, but we kept our feet moving, and tried to push the ball and run.”
It was far from an ordinary preseason game because of the history between the Big Island Interscholastic Federation runner-up Vikings and Lunas, the defending Maui Interscholastic League champion.
Last season at the Hawaii High School Athletic Association Division I state tournament, Lahainaluna was the No. 1 seed, and knocked off Hilo 57-47 in the semifinals.
It was a glaring contrast in roster size. The Lunas were much bigger across the board at all five positions than the Vikings, who were without the full-time services of top scorer Alexis Pana.
The 5-foot-10 junior small forward caught a cold on Friday night, and looked like she went 15 rounds with the flu bug and lost. She scored two points in less than 10 minutes.
Lahainaluna’s starters were not only really tall and muscular, but everyone could handle the ball, and had fluid footwork, often showing sound jump stops to square up for close-range buckets, and solid post passing.
However, the Lunas couldn’t match the Vikings’ deep bench, and that was a critical difference.
Hilo senior forward Chailey Cabalis added 11 points, including 7 of 9 on free throws, and Sharlei Graham-Bernisto played her usual pitbull defense and chipped in eight points.
Let’s not forget the second unit. Kyra Kaloi, the Viking volleyball player, swished two free throws to provide a 50-49 lead with 1:31 left. She played hoops as a freshman, and came back for her senior year. Cherish Quiocho, a sophomore, had six points off the bench.
“I liked our defensive aggression, but we’re still working on blocking out,” Hilo coach Ben Pana said. “Our defensive movement, left to right, pressuring the ball was big plus for us. We learned that the gap between our first and second unit is closing quickly.
“In the first half, they were killing us on the boards with second-chance shots. In the second half, we decided if they’re going to beat us, let them take the 3-pointer.”
In the second half, the Vikings doubled-teamed the Lunas once the ball was in the paint, and on kickouts someone in a red uniform clanked a long-ball attempt.
Cameron Fernandez led Lahainaluna with 13 points while Folau Hafoka, Fiemea Hafoka and Keleah Akio-Koloi had 10 points each for the Lunas, who looked gassed in the fourth quarter.
That’s when they had five harmful turnovers; Hilo had three turnovers. For the game, the Lunas had more giveaways than the Vikings, 19-14.
One big stat difference was free throws. Lahainaluna attacked the rack, and was 17 of 25 from the line; Hilo went 11 of 17.
Fernandez is a 5-10 junior point guard and the rest of the starters are just as tall and mobile as well. But none of the Lunas are robots and they all eventually got winded.
Lahainaluna led 15-10 after the first quarter, 30-22 after the second, and 41-35 after the third period. Then things really got entertaining for the charged-up fans.
Hilo’s starters came back in with the Valley Isle visitors ahead 47-41 with four minutes to go. Even Pana was on the floor, although she looked like she had just finished a marathon.
Pana’s eyes were still sharp, and she spotted Cabalis streaking to the basket. She fired a pass, Cabalis got the shot to fall, was fouled and converted the three-point play to trim the lead to 47-44 with 3:57 on the clock.
More than a minute later, Hilo played with patience in the half-court, something that’s not always so compatible with a lineup of athletic quick-trigger gunners.
The Vikings moved the ball, the Lunas kept shifting their defense, and then Guthier fired away with a 3-pointer. Down it went, nothing but net and tie game, 47-47, with 2:25 remaining.
“That felt like any other 3,” Guthier.
After Kaloi’s two free throws, Graham-Bernisto followed with a steal and layup, and Hilo later poked away two more turnovers to nail a meaningful preseason win.
Maybe it will help the BIIF when the HHSAA seeding committee decides what team should get the No. 2 seed. (It’s pretty much a given that defending state champion Punahou will be No. 1).
In any case, Guthier has the tournament’s MVP trophy to remember her golden play over three days.
“Shalyn had a really good tourney and she deserved that MVP trophy and played like one,” Pana said. “The main thing is we got all 13 girls minutes in all three games. Our coaching staff was happy with that.”
Joining Guthier on the All-Tournament team were teammates Cabalis and Graham-Bernisto, Lahainaluna’s Akio-Koloi and Fiemea Hafoka, Kamehameha’s Riana Arima and Makamae Gabriel, Mililani’s Shantel Appleby, Keaau’s Vanessa Castro and Hawaii Preparatory Academy’s Anna Juan.
• Mililani 41: Kamehameha 38: The Warriors received a valuable lesson in the importance of stationary shooting mechanics. They went 11 of 34 on free throws.
Arima was 7 of 10 while the rest of her teammates went 4 of 24 or 17 percent, often failing to square up with their feet and elbow at the free-throw line.
When Arima attacked from the wing, the athletic senior Warrior made good things happen, draining a 3-pointer or slashing to the basket and dropping a layup or kicking the ball out.
When she was stationed in the high post and was fed the ball, the Trojans brought a double team, neutralized Kamehameha’s offensive flow and forced low-percentage shots.
Still, Arima showed why she’s a two-time All-BIIF Division II first-team pick. Arima scored 19 points, including a pair of 3-pointers, against Mililani, which had no one on its roster who could defend her on the wing or open court in transition.
Gabriel added nine points for Kamehameha, which cut the Trojan lead to 39-38 after Arima buried a 3-ball with 24 seconds remaining.
Tayshia Canon and Appleby scored eight points each for the Trojans, who missed two free throws after Arima’s trey, but grabbed a rebound when no one blocked out, got fouled and sank two free throws.
• Keaau 50, HPA 32: Macy Mokuhalii scored eight points for the Cougars while Alyssa Padilla and Hunter Muranaka added six points each. Padilla and Muranaka are freshmen starters for Keaau.
Juan scored 15 points and Erina Baudat added six points for Ka Makani.
