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- Jul 26, 2011
- No. 1 Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis helps USA escape
- Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis of Anaheim, Calif., had a team-high 19 points and hit five of eight 3-pointers to help 4-0 USA Basketball narrowly escape with an 80-77 victory over 1-3 China in the second round of the 2011 FIBA U19 World Championship Monday in Puerto Montt, Chile.
Coming off the bench, Mosqueda-Lewis, the No. 1 prospect in 2011, also grabbed six rebounds, dished out four assists and had a pair of streals. Her future Connecticut teammate, Bria Hartley of North Babylon, N.Y., finished with 18 points, including four threes.
"Obviously it was nice to have Kaleena show up today and knock down some shots for us," said Jennifer Rizzotti , USA U19 World Championship Team and University of Hartford head coach. "It's just probably a little more disappointing that our post players were so bad around the basket. I feel like it never would have been a close game if we hit those 10 or 12 layups we missed in the first half. They have to understand the urgency of every possession and playing every possession like it's the most important and that missing a layup is just not going to be good enough. We can't continue to do that if we want to advance in this tournament."
Ahead 58-46 to start the final stanza, the USA's defense allowed a pair of quick Chinese threes that started a 12-2 run and with 6:14 to play, the U.S. lead was down to 60-58. From there the game remained a tight contest at 1:26 China evened it up for the fifth time in the fourth quarter, 72-72. Six seconds later, Mosqueda-Lewis, who was 5-of-8 from afar, launched her final 3-pointer of the night, putting the U.S. back up, 75-72.
- Mar 27, 2011
- Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis helps Mater Dei cinch No. 1 ranking
- Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis had the seventh-highest point total in California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) state championship history as Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) claimed its second straight state title and clinched the No. 1 spot in the Powerade Fab 50.
Mosqueda-Lewis had four 3-pointers to tie a CIF state championship record en route to 33 points during the Monarchs' 59-47 victory over Berkeley (Berkeley, Calif.) in Sacramento on Saturday.
Mater Dei (34-1) finished last season ranked No. 1 nationally, entered this season with the top ranking, lost it after a loss to Long Beach Poly (Long Beach, Calif.) at the Nike Tournament of Champions on Dec. 21, then re-claimed it by defeating then-No. 1 Brea Olinda (Brea, Calif.) in the CIF-Southern Section 1AA championship game on March 4.
Berkeley (31-2) led 16-4 in the first quarter, but the Connecticut-bound Mosqueda-Lewis heated up.
Elisa Davis of Berkeley also made four 3-pointers to tie the CIF mark.
- Mar 17, 2011
- Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis named Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year
- Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, the top ranked prospect in the senior class according to ESPN HoopGurlz, was named the Gatorade National Girls Basketball Player of the Year. The award is in its 26th year of honoring the country's best high-school athletes and this year is in collaboration with ESPN RISE.
For more on Mosqueda-Lewis and the award, click here.
Mosqueda-Lewis is a 5-foot-11 wing for Mater Dei High School (Santa Ana, Calif.), currently the No. 1 team FAB 50. She has signed a National Letter of Intent with Connecticut. As a junior she was the ESPN HoopGurlz National Player of the Year and led her team to the No. 1 ranking.
- Mar 5, 2011
- Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis' 16 helps No. 2 Mater Dei topple No. 1 Brea Olinda
- In a showdown for the No. 1 ranking in the country, the No. 1 senior delivered.
Connecticut-bound Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis had 16 points, six rebounds and three steals as No. 2 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) beat No. 1 Brea Olinda 63-54 to claim the CIF Southern Section Division 1AA championship.
Senior point guard Alexis Perry led all scorers with 22 hard-earned points -- just the way Mater Dei wanted it. The Monarchs uncharacteristically played it straight in an attempt to limit Brea's advantage inside the paint. And, for one game, the tactic succeeded.
Mater Dei led by as many as 15 points during the third quarter, but Brea hung around and got as close as 59-54 with 1:24 to play.
"They are just very hard," Mater Dei coach Kevin Kiernan said of Brea Olinda. "Nothing comes easy with them."
Brea was not about to allow Mosqueda-Lewis to have a huge game. She did manage two 3-pointers, but it was an offensive rebound she pulled down in a crowd late in the third quarter that was her most impressive feat. Mosqueda-Lewis powered the ball back up, drew a foul and finished a three-point play that put the Monarchs up by 14 and created a huge climb for Brea Olinda.
- Dec 20, 2010
- Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis questionable for TOC semi
- CHANDLER, Ariz. -- Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, ranked as the country's best player at No. 1 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) sprained an ankle during a quarterfinal game Monday, and may not be back to help her team defend its title at the Nike Tournament of Champions.
A 6-foot senior guard committed to Connecticut, Mosqueda-Lewis rolled on her right ankle during the third quarter of her team's game against Monarch (Louisville, Colo.) and did not return. She sat icing her ankle on the bench and cheered her teammates on to a 64-46 win, saying afterward that she hoped to be ready for the semifinal Tuesday.
"Sometimes it's two weeks, sometimes two days,'' said her coach, Kevin Kiernan. "We'll see what happens overnight. We'll err on the side of caution."
- Sep 9, 2010
- Top ranked player in 2011 class makes her official visit
- Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, the No. 1 ranked player in the ESPNU HoopGurlz 100, is in Storrs, Conn., today making her official visit to Connecticut, according to her father Khairi Ali.
The 6-foot wing from Anaheim, Calif., heads into her senior season with a high school national championship to defend for Mater Dei which has a total of four players ranked in the top 30 in the country. Joining Mosqueda-Lewis again is fellow senior Alexyz Vaioletama, a 6-1 forward ranked 14th in the class, and 6-1 junior point guard Jordan Adams who is ranked fifth in her class. The new face is senior transfer Karina Alofaituli. The Arizona State commit is ranked 26th in the 2011 class.
Mosqueda-Lewis will be the fourth No. 1 ranked recruit signing with Connecticut in the last six years, joining Tina Charles (2006), Maya Moore (2007), and Elena Delle Donne (2008-transferred to Delaware).
- Mar 27, 2010
- Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis scores 21 in Mater Dei's championship victory
- Despite missing significant minutes in both the third and fourth quarters with foul trouble, Mater Dei's star junior wing Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis scored 21 points in leading her team over Carondelet 58-43 for the California CIF Division II state championship. After sitting much of the third quarter with four fouls she scored five quick points in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter to reestablish the Monarchs lead which slipped to as little as six points in the third.
Mosqueda-Lewis's foul trouble allowed several teammates to step up, including sophomores Jessica Duarte (21 points) and Jordan Adams (12 points).
Mater Dei was outscored by Carondelet 14-5 in the third period, most of which was done without the Cougars primary scorer, Erica Payne, who fouled out early in the third period after a bizarre 48 second stretch in which she was whistled for three fouls.
- Oct 18, 2009
- Big commitment to Connecticut is confirmed
- Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, the No. 2 prospect in the ESPN HoopGurlz Super Sixty, has committed to Connecticut, her stepfather, Khairi Ali, confirmed on Sunday.
Earlier on Sunday, players who accompanied Mosqueda-Lewis on a trip to Connecticut told ESPN HoopGurlz of the Anaheim, Calif., guard's pledge.
Ali said the family was not interested in offering any further comments or interviews.
Mosqueda-Lewis was at Connecticut for the Super Show on Friday with 2010 commits Stefanie Dolson, Lauren Engeln, Michala Johnson and Samarie Walker, as well as 2010 recruits Bria Hartley and Chiney Ogwumike. She is known to have favored the Huskies, particularly after making an unofficial visit to UConn after she played with Mater Dei High School in Springfield, Mass., last winter.
Led by No. 10 Walker, all four 2010 Connecticut recruits are ranked by ESPN HoopGurlz. Hartley, No. 14, is considered a done deal by many for coach Geno Auriemma.
- Jan 17, 2009
- Mater Dei gets 33 and 11 from Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis in Boston
- Mater Dei, ranked as the No. 3 team in the ESPN RISE FAB 50, travelled thousands of miles cross-country to Springfield, Mass., to take on Massachusetts' defending Division I state champions on Friday. The game, which was part of the Hall of Fame Classic ended with a 75-46 victory for Mater Dei over Northampton behind the 33 points, 11 rebounds and 4 assists of Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis.
Mosqueda-Lewis and her Monarchs teammates are on a tear this year with a full court pressing style of play and youthful exuberance throughout head coach Kevin Kiernan's roster. The team won the Mike Desper Division of the renowned Nike Tournament of Champions in December.
Northampton was led by Fairleigh Dickinson-bound Alannah Driscoll-Sbar who scored 18 points.