Nakamine Gets 'Em Back at the Charity Stripe

Lakers coach Phil Jackson, a.k.a. The Zen Master, probably would like Kylie Nakamine almost as much as Mira Costa girls basketball coach Craig Takahashi does.

Nakamine, the Mustangs’ senior point guard and leader, is the picture of focus and calm on the court. She consistently makes big plays for her team, which will be the Bay League’s No. 2 entry in the CIF playoffs, but she seldom lets her emotions boil over – good or bad.

It’s no wonder Takahashi has taken her out of only two games this season. It’s no wonder Takahashi affectionately calls the 5-foot-4 Nakamine “my rock.”

If you’re looking for proof that this is not shameless hyperbole, look no further than the free throw line. It is there that Nakamine’s excellent coordination and strength, plus her ability to focus and control her emotions, have produced a legacy she'll leave behind at Mira Costa.

Back on Jan. 28, Nakamine tied a California state record when she went 18-for-18 at the free throw line in a 57-44 victory over West Torrance. That’s incredible all by itself, but it was no one-game fluke in an amazing senior season.

After going 6-for-6 Tuesday night in a win over Peninsula, Nakamine has made 152 of 163 free throws this season. That’s 93.3 percent, believed to be best in the nation.

“She complains to me that they’re hitting her all the time,” Takahashi says. “I tell her, like I tell all the girls, to keep your mouth shut.

“Think of this way, I tell her. They’re punching you once and you’re punching them twice at the free throw line.”

Nakamine makes them pay, that’s for sure.

“She’s got that little Zen quality at the line,” Takahashi said. “She thinks to herself, ‘This is where I have to solidify everything that’s going on on the court.’ She stays calm and she does it.”

As Nakamine points out, she does it not in a cold, sterile environment but a live game under trying circumstances. She’s made 93 percent of her free throws as a senior even though Nakamine almost never takes her out while she contributes 14.9 points, 4.2 rebounds, 3.3 assists and an impressive 4.9 steals per game.

“When you consider that, it’s amazing what she’s done,” her coach says. “She’s always working hard. She never takes a play off on defense.”

Nakamine is surely proud of what she’s done this year, but she doesn’t let on.

“I don’t like talking about it that much,” she said Thursday, hours before a regular-season-ending game against Palos Verdes. “I don’t really know what to say about it.

“I’m just doing the same thing. It’s just this season everything has worked out. One of our main focuses as a team is free throw shooting. That’s helped, I guess.”

Asked about Takahashi’s philosophy of making the other team pay when she’s at the line, Takahashi smiled.

“I do try to make them pay, but not in a serious way,” she said. “I just use it as motivation.”

There is no secret to her Zen-like calmness at the free throw line, she said.

“I just take two bounces of the ball, try to get my rhythm and then shoot,” she said. “So far it’s worked out.”

She has been able to ignore the pressure that’s built up from two separate streaks in which she made 50 and 46 free throws in a row.

“No, I don’t think about that,” she said. “I’m focused on the game and just doing what I’m supposed to do.”

If only Nakamine could bottle that focus and sell it. She’d make a fortune.

DOMINANCE -- Looking for the most dominant team in the Bay League during the winter season? It would be hard not to name Peninsula’s boys basketball team, unbeaten in league and a dazzling 24-1 overall, as No. 1.

However, the Palos Verdes girls’ soccer team deserves some consideration as well. If Peninsula is No. 1, PV’s girls are 1A heading into the CIF playoffs.

The Sea Kings are 20-2-3 and 8-0-1 in the Bay League. Ranked No. 1 in the CIF-2A division, they clinched their second consecutive league title last week when they defeated second-place Peninsula, 1-0, on a goal by Haley Rosen scored 20 seconds into the match.

It’s the first time the PV girls have won back-to-back league titles since the school reopened nine years ago. And that strong league performance came after a 12-3-2 record against a challenging nonleague schedule that Coach Sean Lockhart intentionally made as tough as possible.

“We’ve had a great season, not only in league but out of league,” Lockhart said Thursday. “We really prepared ourselves for league with some tough tournaments in December. We were battle tested, not only for league but with CIF in mind.

“It’s given us that extra boost.”

Rosen has had a great season for the Sea Kings, scoring 20 goals and assisting on 16 others. “She’s been a stalwart for us at midfield, a vital contributor,” Lockhart said.

Haley Nakata has been excellent on the backline, which has been solid all year. Goalie Dana Connors has 13 shutouts.

Christy Poropat is second on the team in goals with 14, up from six a year ago. Elizabeth Caaparis has 12 goals and 11 assists.

Nothing that has happened in league has changed Lockhart’s belief that the team has what it takes to go far in the playoffs that begin next week.

“That was the goal when I set up the December schedule,” he said. “The girls have done a great job of responding to the challenge. We clinched league the earliest we have in awhile.

“I think that says a lot about their focus.”

CONSTANT TRANSITION – It’s been a trying season for Redondo boys basketball coach Tom Maier, who has had to build a team while dealing with injuries and transfers, but his Sea Hawks are finishing on a good note. The Sea Hawks clinched at least third place in league and a berth in the CIF playoffs, by winning at Palos Verdes, 53-51, on Tuesday. 

“After everything that’s happened, we made the playoffs,” Maier said. “It’s been a struggle with adversity all year, but we’re playing pretty good basketball now.”

What might have been, before injuries, has been replaced by what must be, thanks to the healing process and the arrival of transfers Martyre DeMarco from Arizona and Jacquise Bates from New York. They helped make up for the loss of starters Brandon Boyd, who returned in January from knee surgery but is still not 100 percent, and Austin Moore, who suffered season-ending back problems soon after his return a month ago.

“If we’d had those two guys healthy with the transfers we got, we would have been a pretty special team,” Maier said. “DeMarco and Bates just came out of the blue. Contrary to what some may think, I don’t go to New York (or Arizona) looking for players.”

As an example of the transfers’ value, DeMarco led the way against Palos Verdes with 23 points and six rebounds. Bates had 16 points.

DeMarco is a team leader with his ball handling and scoring ability. Quietly, the 6-foot-2 senior has had a fine season, averaging 14 points and three assists a game.

“He’s a little unorthodox,” Maier said. “I’m pleased he dropped into our laps. He’s strictly a point guard, loves to handle the ball. He’s a competitor. He’s not flashy, but he can shoot the ball outside or go inside at times.”

 All in all, it’s been a memorable season, one that still could include a CIF-2AA playoff run for the Sea Hawks, who have survived a very competitive Bay League season.

“It’s been a roller coaster year – challenging in trying to get the team to improve under the circumstances,” Maier said. “But it’s been a very good year in terms of off-court problems. There haven't been any.

“There is still a chance for us in the playoffs to do something. It depends on the draw, but I think we’ll be competitive. It’s been such a competitive year in the Bay League, we’ll be prepared for the pressure.”

ALL THE MARBLES – Mira Costa boys soccer coach Gary Smith got his wish.

Two weeks ago, he said he was hoping the Mustangs’ season finale with first-place Palos Verdes would be for the Bay League boys’ soccer championship. After a series of ups and downs in the highly competitive Bay League, that’s exactly what it will be.

With a twist, that is.

The talented Sea Kings (18-3-4, 6-1-2) will face the Mustangs (12-3-4, 5-2-2) tonight at 6 at Mira Costa. If PV wins, it is the league champion outright. If Mira Costa wins and the two teams tie, then West Torrance (12-6-5, 6-3) enters the picture. Mira Costa would be league champion and No. 1 playoff seed by virtue of a tiebreaker edge on PV if West loses, but West would be league champion by virtue of a better record (7-3 is better than 6-2-2) if it beats Peninsula.

PV showed its focus on Tuesday by pounding Redondo, 4-1. So did Mira Costa in a 4-0 win over Peninsula. West beat Leuzinger, 3-1.

WRESTLERS GET DOWN – Bay League champion West Torrance and Peninsula will be at the CIF dual meet championships Saturday at Western High in Anaheim. Bay League wrestlers who qualified at the league meet, including those from West and Peninsula, will compete for individual honors next weekend.

West dominated the Bay League individual championships, as expected. The Warriors, who have a chance to do something exciting on Saturday, qualified 13 wrestlers. Ten of those won their individual weight classes.

Justin Tam (152) and Justin Lau (160) won individual championships for Peninsula. Joe Beck took the 135-pound crown for Mira Costa. Redondo’s Matt Ulizio may have pulled off the upset of the meet when he moved up in weight and took the heavyweight title by pinning West’s Mo Faqhi in the first period.

Before the championships, Redondo coach Arond Schonberg listed Ulizio as someone who could surprise. “He’s a very talented young guy who is just learning,” Schonberg said.