Monday funday

Good workout tonight at Kalakaua: Felcris, Javan, Micah T, Triton and Kyle. Mahalo to Uncle Heo for helping out. Got a lot of reps on halfcourt offense plays, inbounds plays, sideline plays. Plays - plural. We worked on a new sideline play (click) and a play for the opening jump ball/tip.

Next practice is tomorrow (Tuesday), 6 pm, Kalakaua. Coach Roy will be there. I'll get there after work. WE LUB THIS GAME.

Video: Thunder vs Owls (CAL)

Part 1 Part 2 Update/note Tuesday, March 5: When the first group/starters (Kyle, Tanielu, Joshua, Jimark, Jerry) were fresh, they were unstoppable. They started the game with a 10-2 run. When they returned, an 8-0 run. To start the second half, 11-0 run. That's 29-2 combined. The riddle: how to keep their legs fresh while getting contributions from the second group? The platoon experiment is pau, that's for sure. It works with the 15U, not so much our 13U. When Chris gets back (after football), things get even better.

Video: 15U vs. Kahuku

Part 1 Part 2

Updated PAA 13U/15U sked

PAA League schedule, weeks 3-5

Please meet at the gym one hour before game time for warmups. 

Wednesday, Mar. 6
7:45 pm Thunder 15U vs. TNT, Kilauea Gym

Saturday, Mar. 9
3:00 pm Thunder 15U vs. Kalakaua, Palolo Gym

Wednesday, Mar. 13
7:00 pm Thunder 13U vs. Hoops 4 Christ, Kilauea Gym

Friday, Mar. 15
6:45 pm Thunder 15U vs. Imua, Koko Head Gym

Saturday, Mar. 16
10:15 am Thunder 13U vs. 808 West, Palolo Gym

Aiea 12U playoff sked

Saturday, Mar. 9
11:30 am H1 Thunder vs. Aiea Blazers 1

Winner plays Imua-Islanderz winner at 2:00 pm, also on Saturday, Mar. 9, for the league championship.

Loser plays Imua-Islanderz loser at 1:10 pm for third place.

CAL: Thunder 46, Owls 41

Good effort and hustle this afternoon by the Thunder against the Owls at the CAL League middle school division. Talk about big guys. They had a serious height advantage on us, but again, our defense was solid overall and our transition game with Kyle finding Tanielu downcourt was key.

Tani did a solid job at the top of our Sonic defense again. Jerry led our guys under the basket on defense. Without him and Chris, it's really tough for us against all these middle-division teams. The Owls played some good man defense and took away a lot of our 3-point looks, but our chemistry together, especially with the first five, allows us to get good shots in clutch situations. Good job, Thunder!

Video: Thunder 12U vs Hoops 4 Christ

I always prefer that we play teams better than us. Nothing sharpens the blade like tough competition. But we're getting better game by game no matter what the situation. This game against Hoops 4 Christ — a very young, inexperienced team with a lot of heart — showed us all our flaws in halfcourt man-to-man defense. We got better at calling screens and switching when necessary as the game went along. We shot well (nine 3-pointers) and passed well. Boxing out? Not so good. We have work to do.

Part 1
Part 2

15U: Thunder 33, Kahuku 23

‎15U: Thunder 33, Kahuku 23. The 15U crew's reserves are in mayhem mode for the first time. That went pretty good today, just 100% energy and aggression on defense. 

Kahuku is extremely talented, all eighth graders (and younger), but mostly tall and big (taller and bigger than us) and athletic. It was their third game of the day and our guys never let up on defensive pressure, both our starters and our subs. Proud of the 15U!

Next up: 15U practice, Sunday, 11:00 am, McCully gym. Also, CAL 13U (middle school division) warmup at McCully.

Then, 1:20 pm, Thunder vs. Owls, Kilauea gym. WE LUB THIS GAME!

12U: Thunder 57, Hoops 4 Christ 33

We hustled, hit a bunch of 3s and executed pretty good offensively. But we have a lot of work to do on boxing out and moving our feet on defense. We'll get there. Jared missed the game (wrist injury) but the rest of the guys stepped up. Playoffs in one week!

This morning's lineup: Walter, Ryan, Little Micah (aka Muggsy Ronford), Big Micah, Kalai, Javan, Felcris and Joshua.

Next up: Thunder 15U vs. Kahuku, today, 3 pm, Palolo gym. Warmups 2 pm. WE LUB THIS GAME.

Video: Thunder 15U vs. Hui Lokahi

Part 1 Part 2

15U: Hui Lokahi 38, Thunder 34

We did a lot of good things. We did some bad things. That's how it goes when a team has been together for just a few weeks. It'll take time for all our new guys and old guys to gel. The things we can control, like on-ball pressure via the presses, smart ball movement, taking care of the ball — that's what I'm focused on. That's what I want us to all focus on.

Hui Lokahi, with the two tall brothers from Waimanalo, is a new team to us. But the brothers also play for the Titans in the CAL League, so some of us had seen them before. It was a good, even battle until the end. Next time, we'll take care of the ball.

As a group, many of us still don't know how to run the most basic plays though we've practiced them many times. It's going to take time. And if you don't know the plays when we're in game time, it throws the whole offense out of whack, so please learn the plays.

The game video is loading up. Then I'll edit it and have it online by tomorrow morning. Watch and learn. It's one of the best ways to get better, especially learning from mistakes.

We're back at it tomorrow already!

Saturday, 9:00 am - 12U vs. Hoops 4 Christ, Aiea gym. Warmups 8:00 am.
Saturday, 3:00 pm - 15U vs. Kahuku, Palolo gym. Warmups 2:00 pm.

Sunday, 1:20 pm - CAL middle school division, Thunder vs. Owls, Kilauea gym. Warmups 12:20 p.m.

Old reversible jerseys needed

Game day! 15U vs. Hui Lokahi, 7:15 pm warmups, 8:15 tip off, Koko Head Gym. WE LUB THIS GAME!

Still seeking more of our old orange/white reversible jerseys. Please call me and I'll pick them up today before the game (551-1054). Mahalos!