Senior Saber’s Personal Evolution Makes Grand Impact

Wednesday - February 20, 2008
By Jack Danilewicz
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Razi White
Razi White, Chris Storment and Nicholas Daniels go for the rebound at practice. Photo by Byron Lee, .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

If Campbell’s Mike Makinano looks like he’s trying to make up for lost time on the basketball court, he is.

Indeed, when the Sabers take the floor this week in the Division I State Tournament, it will also mark a personal triumph of sorts for Makinano, who didn’t play in last year’s tournament. He was dropped from the team roster after a verbal confrontation with then-head coach Bobby Samson at practice.

“It was a wake-up call, you could say,” said Makinano, now a senior. “I went to all the games - it was hard to watch. When we played Saint Louis,I thought I could have played a big part in the game.”

There can be no mistaking his impact on Campbell this season. He enters this week’s tournament as one of the state’s top scorers, averaging 17.4 points per game to go with 27 three-pointers. Above all, with Makinano in the fold, Campbell finds itself playing perhaps its best basketball of the season when it matters most, having won 10 of its last 12 games following an 0-2 start in OIA Western Conference play. The Sabers shook off those early losses and eventually earned the top seed out of the West for the recently completed OIA Tournament. They were to play Kalaheo over the weekend in the OIA’s third-place game.


Makinano’s steady production is hardly a surprise. He spent long hours this off-season refining his game - but his evolution as a team player could make the difference for a team that has athleticism at every position.The already solid roster got an additional boost at the beginning of spring semester when Eddie Gaines transferred from Washington state.

“(Assistant varsity coach Kenneth) Tangent has helped me a lot both on and off of the court, personality-wise,” said Makinano of his former JV head coach.“He’s worked with me mostly with my attitude and playing with my teammates. I think we could have gone farther (in 2007) if I didn’t try to do so much myself.”

“I’m a talker,” he admitted.“I like to talk on and off of the court.“Asked if this has gotten him in trouble in the past, he replied, “Actually, it has, but my attitude has changed a lot. I’ve changed all-around,“he added, noting the support of his girlfriend of four years,Sherlyn.“My game has changed.”

According to first-year head coach Glenn Flores, who assisted Samson last season,“This year,Mike is just a completely different player. He was thought of in the past as being just a scorer. Now he plays great defense, and he passes the ball, and we have a talented supporting cast around him.”

During the summer, his way of battling through the fallout from his junior season was to work on his game.“It was out of frustration, but it motivated me a lot more,” explained Makinano, who tallied a season-high 31 points in a game against Waianae last month.“I started playing a lot more basketball, going to the park, working on my individual game. Passing was one thing, and my ball-handling. I’ve done a lot better working with my teammates this year.”


The Sabers’ own “wake-up call” came in early January when losses to Leilehua and Kapolei left them in catch-up mode in the West.“I didn’t think we’d lose those games,” Makinano said. “We were playing really well in preseason, and then I don’t know what happened. Everyone began to play selfish, including me. We started practicing even harder after that. We can still play better, but we’re working well as a team now.”

Makinano wouldn’t mind playing basketball in college if the opportunity materializes.“I’ve been sending out some tapes. I’d like to go away, and yet I wouldn’t mind staying around here. I’ve always liked basketball - I just wasn’t the best at it. I thought I had some talent; I just had to get better.”

 

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