So far the Bulldogs have played six league games and are having an up and down season. They have won three and lost three.  The Bulldogs have been on a small break and are working hard to get some more wins. “Sorry to disappoint the fans.  We are prepared to win the rest of our games,” said senior Frankie Montalvo.

On Friday, Jan 6 the Bulldogs had a nail biting game against Punahou that had the crowd on their feet. The game went back and forth all 32 minutes before the Bulldogs went on a streak in the last minutes of the fourth quarter. Freshman Alec Macleod hit the biggest layup of his entire life sending the game into overtime. The Bulldogs then outmatched Punahou winning the game 55-52. McWhinnie had 21 points coming up huge for the bulldogs. “I thought that we shouldn’t have gone into overtime but I am glad that we won,” said McWhinnie.

The bulldogs have six games remaining in their season, five of which are at home. Our home support has been lacking with a small crowd of LJA students watching games. Luke Shimmon has been a dedicated fan and attends every home game.  He wants to encourage more support for the team.  “Everyone come out to the games and support the team,” said Shimmon.  Let’s show some school spirit and support our bulldogs!

“I think the team, although young, has a great chemistry, and we are definitely going to work better and better as the season progresses.” Miller said. Team Chemistry in basketball is a huge factor, and with a group of girls as close as this team, it shouldn’t take long for them to find it.

The Lady Bulldogs opened the season with a win at home against University High. This was a huge confidence booster for the young team. Going back to last year, they had lost 16 straight games, so being 1-0 was a great way to start the year.

“I knew going into this game we had to put on a good performance, and we did that and much more. I was really proud of the whole team.” said guard Stephanie Ramos.

After the big win, the Lady bulldogs had an up and down stretch in which they lost four out of five, and then won 3 straight, before losing to Kamehameha. Last night they were the victors over the Iolani Red Raiders, winning 48-34. The team has four more games left in the regular season, before beginning postseason play.

“Winning at least two of these games would leave us with a winning record, which would give us a better seed in the playoffs so that would be huge for us. Also finishing with a winning record after last year’s team would really show how hard we have worked this year,” said sophomore point guard Olivia McCabe.

Le Jardin’s last game of the year is at home against Maryknoll on Jan. 27, at 6 pm. They would greatly appreciate all student/parent fan support.

The lockout was partially caused by teams from small markets that do not have the ability to load their benches with more than one “Franchise Players”. They are frustrated with the other teams like the Miami Heat who can afford to pay for several big name players.  League rules require that there be salary caps to try to balance out the inequalities of geography or fan base population of NBA cities. Top market teams in the NBA have lots of fans and as a result lots of money and can afford the best talent.

The richer teams feel that they should be able to pay for whatever talent they can afford and that by winning they will gather more fans and the ability to make even more money. The players, of course, want more money, a chance to win a championship and safety from injury. The fact that the big money towns are bigger and more popular cities to live in is another reason players tend to settle there. Not to mention that they have more fans there to impress. Teams such as the Miami Heat that have LeBron James, Dwayne Wade, and Chris Bosh, who are paid tens of millions of dollars each share the bench with other players. These other players are making just as much money as the top players from the smaller marketed teams. No one wants anyone to be able to “buy a championship” but the richer teams always seem to be able to come close.

Many fans are against the NBA lockout and want 2011-2012 season to start. “I’m speechless because I feel that this is LeBron’s year to win a ring and get the MVP baby!” said senior Frankie Montalvo, a longtime LeBron James fan. Fans of the Womens National Basketball Association (WNBA) are excited to watch more women’s basketball. “I enjoy watching women’s basketball and now that the NBA is on lockout I can watch it more!” said senior Sean Mcwhinnie.

Some players in the NBA such as Delonte West have turned to working off the court. West is working at Home Depot because his checks from the Boston Celtics are not coming in.  Other players have chosen to go and play in the European League. This means there is a possibility of not returning to the NBA next year even if the strike ends. If a player signs a contract to play in Europe they may not be available to play in the NBA and American fans will miss a chance to see them. This includes season ticket holders.

Unfortunately, the NBA season is expected continue again in the 2012-2013 season.  Hopefully David Stern and the NBA can figure out a way to balance the demands of both the franchises owners and players of the National Basketball Association.  The ball is in his court.

Through the season these bulldog athletes put their best foot forward and played with intensity and heart that was unrivaled on the court. These girls were intense to the point where Senior player Kelsey Tanouye was injured in a November game while going head to head with a rival Kamehameha; several other teammates sustained injuries throughout the season.  Overall the girls got off to a slow start, at previous games there was sad turnout, in fact, during regular season games there were on average more people supporting the visiting teams in our own Charles B. Wang gymnasium.

As for the team itself, this year’s team had a diverse mix of students ranging from all grades and skill levels.  With one senior, three junior, seven sophomores, and two freshmen, the team comprised mostly of first time players but still played with great chemistry and became fast friends through the season. When Kelsey Tanouye was asked about this year’s team she said “In past years there have been a majority upper classmen but recently there has been a lot of freshman and sophomores that have come out for the team. Two years ago we were not able to play because we did not have enough people to fill out a team, but this year we definitely have a full team”.

Ending their season 0-13, was perhaps not the best ending however this does not reflect the overall skill of the team.  Over the three month season, the Lady Bulldogs improved leaps and strides, and though they may not have been able to compete on the level of more experienced players from larger schools, next season we will be looking forward to domination from this team of younger players.

Kelsey’s dad has been a major mentor in her basketball career.  Not only has he been there for support and encouragement, but he was also her basketball coach since the third grade.  He has seen Kelsey develop into the star player she is on the court and even in the pool.

The summer of her sixth grade she met Mr. Olaso, currently the boys basketball coach.  Kelsey was messing around on the old court down by the pool just shooting some three pointers.  Mr. Olaso walked up and asked, “Who are you?” In a very curious tone, wondering how this sixth grader was such a natural on the court.  Kelsey thought that was a funny way to meet Mr. O.   Ever since then, Coach O has also been a major part of her middle school and high school career.

Her favorite moment in her basketball career was her senior night!  Kelsey said, “We didn’t win but we all knew that we played a really good game and that the experience was great.”  Kelsey said that senior night was a great experience and being the only senior on the basketball team made it a special moment for her.  Kelsey’s most memorable but not so favorite moment in basketball was when her knee completely gave out at the Kamehameha game.  Kelsey said, “I felt like it wasn’t even happening.”

Being a member of the girls basketball  team all through middle school and all through her four years of high school shows what great commitment she has to this school and team.  Maybe we might see her shooting up some three’s in college!

It all started on December 1^st when the season first got under way. The team went to Kauai to participate in the Kapa’a tournament and when they got back to Oahu they were ready for ILH division play. They started the season off with the Navigators of Island Pacific Academy and won with a final score of 54-50.

After 5 games, the bulldogs were first in the division with a record of 4-1 and accomplished a win against Iolani. After that however, the bulldogs lost three consecutive games all by a combined 12 total points. After the three game losing streak, the team was eager to win, and Maryknoll provided them with that win. The bulldogs kept their momentum rolling bringing the undefeated Punahou Buff n’ Blue to overtime, yet lost in the final moments of the game.

“It was a good effort by the boys. They worked hard and gave it their all” said Headmaster Adrian Allen.

At the end of the season, the Le Jardin community celebrated the seniors by attending senior night which was held after the last game of the season against Lutheran. The bulldogs won the game and afterwards the seniors were celebrated by receiving countless leis and hugs from family and friends.

“It was very memorable night; the crowd made the night for us!” said senior John Whitty who was one of four seniors honored for their basketball careers at Le Jardin. The others celebrated at senior night were seniors Tevin Togami, Kalani Soeda, and Taylor Gray.

After the unforgettable senior night, the bulldogs kept rolling throughout the season and into the ILH Division II playoffs. Their first round match up was against Le Jardin’s rival Christian Academy. The gym was packed for the first round of the playoffs and the game came down to the final minutes. The game certainly didn’t fail to please all of the cheering basketball enthusiasts. Le Jardin came away with the win beating the Patriots 67-58, only after coming back from a 10 point deficit by outscoring Christian Academy by 20 points in the fourth quarter. Christian Academy was knocked out of the single elimination tournament.

For the second round, the Bulldogs faced off against the AOP Dolphins; whom they lost to by four points in the regular season. The game was close at the end of the first quarter, but then the bulldogs fell behind by 26 at half time. After the terrible first half, the bulldog closed a 30 point lead in the second half and was as close as 14 at the beginning of the 4^th quarter, but AOP proved to be too much for the bulldogs and they lost, ending their season and the senior’s basketball careers at Le Jardin Academy.

Even though it was a tough loss especially for the seniors; the season generated many happy memories that will live with the bulldogs forever.

The team has recently suffered two disappointing losses to Christian Academy and Hawaii Baptist Academy.  However; in an underdog victory, the team has defeated the heavily favored Iolani team.  During a team huddle, Headmaster Adrian Allen told the team that “[The Christian Academy game] was one of the most exciting LJA games he has ever seen.”  It was unfortunate that LJA lost to a buzzer beating 3-pointer at the end of the double overtime period.

Please come support our varsity bulldog basketball team and encourage them on their hopes for the state tournament.  Schedules of games can be found in front of the gym or on the Sports Center section of our website.

“Winning or losing doesn’t mean everything, but having fun is the important thing,” says Senior Kara Singson who is one of the returning players from last year’s roster. The Bulldogs started the season playing hard competition such as Iolani, Kamehameha, Punahou and Sacred Hearts, all of which are still undefeated teams. The 0-8 record doesn’t reflect the overwhelming talent found on the Bulldog’s roster. Some of the talent is found in Le Jardin’s leading scorer Kelsey Tanouye, Le Jardin’s leading rebounder Hannah Sherrill and Le Jardin’s point guard Brittany Daniels.

The latest game was against Punahou where the overwhelming BuffnBlue defeated the Bulldogs 58-20. Kelsey Tanouye led all scorers with 13 points. The Bulldogs are working hard and need your support! Their next home game is against Christian Academy on January 19 at our home gym so come and show your Bulldog Spirit.