Makinano, Delizo and Ward Lead Sabers To Final Four
By Jack Danilewicz
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Del.icio.usFor Bobby Samson and the Campbell basketball team, there was no direct line to an appearance in the Hawaiian Airlines State Basketball Tournament this season.
When the Sabers assembled for their first official practice last November, they looked very different than they had the previous March, having lost five players due to either graduation or because they had transferred out.A schedule that featured six consecutive road games out of the gate hardly helped the cause, leaving the Sabers among the ranks of teams thought to be in the rebuilding phase.
But the Sabers regrouped big-time behind key holdovers in Mike Makinano and Jayden Delizo and went on to an 11-7 overall record, including a second-place finish in the Red West behind Mililani. For their efforts, the pair were recognized by the OIA coaches recently when the league announced its All-Star lists. Makinano and Delizo were named to the First and Second Team, respectively, while teammate Patrick Ward was named to the Honorable Mention team. The trio were instrumental in helping Campbell qualify for the Final Four of the OIA Tournament for the third straight year.The Sabers also joined 16-time OIA Champion Kalaheo as the only other league member to make a third straight state tournament appearance.
“No one expected anything out of us,” Samson said, “but the kids bought into our philosophy.”
Makinano, a junior guard, was one of the OIA’s top scorers and came up big when it counted most in the league’s post-season tournament, tallying 27 points to go with eight rebounds and six assists in a win over Moanalua. He also had a 23-point night (including four 3-pointers) in a regular-season win over Leilehua. Makinano was dismissed from the team prior to the beginning of the state tournament due to a disciplinary matter. His future status with the program is unknown.
Delizo is currently a senior and has completed his eligibility with the Sabers. He finished his career on a high note last month when he turned in a strong performance at the state tournament.
“Jayden was our team leader,” Samson said of Delizo.“He’s a very unselfish player who was asked to play a position (point guard) this year that he normally doesn’t play.”
D’Shaun Dubois and Mason Koa of Kapolei and Pearl City’s Troy Antogue and Kellen Oshiro were named to the Red West’s Honorable Mention Team.
In Division II, Aiea led the way in the OIA West, with a pair of First Team selections in senior guard Lofa Li’ili’i and junior forward Obie Woods. Junior Josh Chung also earned Second Team honors for Na Ali’i, which won both the West and the DII OIA title. James Buchanan, Eric James and Ryan Mora were named to the Honorable Mention Team from Na Ali’i.
Waipahu senior guard Robert Donley was named the West’s DII Player of the Year, after a stellar season that saw him reach double figures in scoring in 10 of the Marauders’ 11 games. Three times he topped the 20-point mark, including a season-high of 27 recorded in a game against Waialua.
Randy Agustin and Dexter Cabradilla were both named to the Second Team for the Marauders, while Christian Dadulla, Jasper Leano, Tyler Martin and Castro Masaniai all received Honorable Mention from the league.
Waipahu’s Abe Villanueva was named DII Coach of the Year by his peers.
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