Mid Pac Wins 3rd Place in the Final Seconds

David Kawada – Content Editor
dkawada@digitalsports.com

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Two ILH foes battled it out for 3rd Place in the Na Menehune Reebok Holiday Classic on Saturday.  In the final seconds, Marcus Holyfield penetrated down the middle then dished off to Kellar Ellsworth who put in the winning layup with 6.1 seconds left to lift the Owls over Maryknoll, 48-47.

The Spartans lead the entire first half.  The Owls could not get into any rhythm and subsequently their offense fluttered with inconsistency. 

“We started off slow,” said point guard Sampson Won.  “We were just rushing things.  But we had to make them play our game.”

That change occurred in the 3rd quarter.  Head Coach Kevin O’Connell made the adjustments and a different Owl team took the floor.  Mid Pac outscored the Spartans 14-4 in the 3rd period to take a 34-33 lead going into the 4th period.

“Our defense needs to play like that,” remarked Holyfield, who would finish the night with 8 points and the crucial assist at the end.

Devon Takenaka, who sat most of the 1st half in foul trouble, hit his only 3-point field goal in the 4th period to keep things rolling for the Owls.  Maryknoll’s Tyler Terai connected on 2 free throws to give the Spartans a 47-41 lead with 1:19 remaining.  That would be the last scoring for Maryknoll.

Won nailed a 3-pointer with 1:00 to cut the lead to 3 points.  Then Ellsworth proved his worth by grabbing an offensive rebound then getting fouled on the put back attempt.  He made both free throws to narrow the lead to only 1 point at 47-46 with :39.9 remaining.  The Spartans could not convert on their possession which then set up the final play.

“I actually did not call any play,” said O’Connell.  “I had 1 timeout to use but this team seems to play well if I don’t use it.  They can penetrate well, and Marcus did just that and saw the open man.”