KEN IGE / KIGE@STARBULLETIN.COM
Maui's Maafu Finau put up a shot against Leilehua yesterday.
Two pit bulls went at it in last night's Hawaiian Airlines Boys State Basketball Championships showcase game, but only one dog -- the Kamehameha Warriors -- grunted away with an overtime victory to advance to tonight's semifinals. Kamehameha ousts
Kalaheo in overtimeThe win by the ILH's third-place team
shuts the OIA out of the state semifinalsBy Nick Abramo
nabramo@starbulletin.comThe Warriors came close to succumbing in regulation, but kept fighting for the 60-55 victory before 2,097 last night at Blaisdell Arena, earning a spot in tonight's 8:30 game against Iolani, a team they lost to twice in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu regular season.
"We got lucky tonight," Kamehameha coach Darryl Gabriel said. "And the seniors on this team said to themselves, 'We are going to win this.' Part of it was that we lost to them in the quarterfinals last year. They didn't like that feeling of getting knocked out and didn't want to let it happen again."
Kamehameha (14-4) trailed most of the game, but made a remarkable fourth-quarter comeback and went up for the first time, 51-50, on Caleb Spencer's baseline drive and Aaron Kahaloa's 3-point bomb with 1:20 left.
>> Waiakea 86, Mililani 80, 2OT State Hoops
Yesterday's results,
at Blaisdell Arena
>> Saint Louis 73, Keaau 36
>> Maui 68, Leileihua 49
>> Iolani 78, Baldwin 50
>> Kamehameha 60, Kalaheo 55, OT
But the Warriors couldn't put it away as Kalaheo's 6-foot-7 center Sam Wilhoite drove the baseline and the ball bounced off the rim and in for a 52-52 tie with 12 seconds to go in regulation.
Kamehameha went ahead by four early in overtime, thanks to turnovers on the Mustangs' first two possessions.
WIth 31 seconds left in the OT, Kalaheo's Zane Cabral cut the Warriors' lead to 56-55 with a free throw, but moments later, Kamehameha's Eric Shaver hit two clutch foul shots to make it 58-55 and put the Mustangs in a deep hole. Radford Hepa hit two of four from the line down the stretch to seal it.
"Coach told us getting to overtime was like a second life," Cabral said. "We gave up the big lead in regulation. Caleb was awesome. Their trap was awesome. We definitely feel like we had a good year, winning the OIA and getting to states."
Spencer was everywhere for the Warriors. He finished with 17 points, four rebounds and four steals.
"We came out fired up," Spencer said. "It was all won by heart. They wanted it more than us in the first half, but we wanted it more in the second. Everyone knew their role.
"It's a great feeling, but we've got another hill to climb and we're going to try our best."
The Mustangs (11-4) grabbed a commanding 19-6 first-half lead as Theodore Fujita-Lukachyk hit for seven points on a trey, an eight-foot runner and a fast-break layup, and teammate Sam Wilhoite added six points.
But Kamehameha remained patient and fought back in the second quarter. William Melemai's power move to the hoop and Eric Shaver's steal and breakaway layup capped a 9-1 run to end the half as the Warriors headed to the lockers down 28-23.
Cabral's seven third-quarter points and another Fujita-Lukachyk 3-pointer helped the Mustangs keep the Warriors at bay. Spencer scored twice with strong, quick moves to the hoop and Aaron Kahaloa added a trey, but Kamehameha trailed 40-33 after three periods.
In the end, Kalaheo coach Pete Smith and his young Mustangs ran out of the magic that got them to the OIA title.
"We didn't hit the front end of a couple one-and-ones early in the fourth quarter," Smith said. "We didn't handle their pressure, we didn't take care of the ball. They took care of the ball in their end."
Kamehameha (13-4) 9 14 10 19 8 -- 60 Kalaheo (11-4) 19 9 12 12 3 -- 55 Kamehameha -- Eric Shaver 6, Galen Santana 3, Caleb Spencer 17, Aaron Kahaloa 14, Radford Hepa 8, Waika Spencer 10, Ioane Spencer 0, Willy Melemai 2.
Kalaheo -- Aaron Luis 0, Matthew Nakashima 0, Theodore Fujita-Lukachyk 13, William Elliot 0, Zane Cabral 12, Neil Bowers 0, David Moore 2, Jeremy Neufeldt 7, Sam Wilhoite 21.
3-point goals: Kamehameha 7 (Kahaloa 4, C. Spencer, Santana, Hepa), Kalaheo 2 (Fujita-Lukachyk 2).
IOLANI 78, BALDWIN 50
The defending state champion Raiders turned up the defensive pressure from the start to rout the Bears and advance to the semifinals.
Top-seeded Iolani (15-0) has won 30 consecutive league and postseason games and meets Kamehameha tonight at 8:30.
Iolani beat Kamehameha twice in the Interscholastic League of Honolulu season.
The Raiders, playing for the first time in 15 days, pressured the Bears (11-5) into 17 first-half turnovers. Iolani scored 15 points in the first quarter off turnovers and added 12 more points in the second period off Baldwin miscues.
"During practice we've been running fast-break drills. We feel like we have the advantage on a lot of other teams with our speed," Iolani junior forward Zach Tollefson said.
Baldwin (11-5) 10 11 16 13 -- 50 Iolani (15-0) 22 21 17 18 -- 78 Baldwin -- Matt Heyd 0, Cody Tesoro 10, Nick Heyd 4, Akamu Aki 1, Cody Nakamura 15, Donnie Dadiz 5, Jordan Kamikawa 0, Sherwin Mina 0, Trenson Himalaya 11, Roy Antolin 2, Rodney Kekahuna 2, Scott Lafey 0.
Iolani -- Vincent Nip 0, Jon Yasuda 4, Derrick Low 17, Zach Tollefson 13, Ryan Hirata 11, Kyle Pape 3, Robert Mageo 0, Sean Carney 2, Bobby Nash 16, Matt Choy 1, Chad Miller 3, Robert Eberlin 6, Todd Blankenship 2.
3-point goals: Baldwin 1 (Dadiz), Iolani 6 (Hirata 2, Nash, Low, Tollefson, Pape).
MAUI 68, LEILEHUA 49
It's not easy to tell the Finau brothers apart. Maui's big boys have Afro hairstyles and they both know how to crash the glass.
The 6-foot-4 Maafu Finau handled the brunt of the scoring, piling up 26 points, while 6-5 Tevita Finau made sure the rebounding was taken care of, pulling in nine boards, as the Maui Interscholastic League champion Sabers advanced to today's 7 p.m. semifinal against Saint Louis.
Guard Efren Oasay's ballhandling allowed the Sabers (15-0) to maintain an up-tempo game throughout. He continued to push the pace and delivered seven assists while adding 11 points.
"If we play like we did the whole season, we've got a chance," Maafu Finau said. "We match up size-wise, so if we can push it up and use our quickness and keep running it will be a big help for us."
Leilehua (12-3) 12 15 9 13 -- 49 Maui (15-0) 17 22 16 13 -- 68 Leilehua -- Andrew Talaeai 11, Demetrius Washington 10, Tyrell Couch 2, Angelo Massey 14, Antonio Carter 4, Zacarias Rivera 2, Anthony Hall 4, Angel Fontanez 0, Jonathan Scruggs 2.
Maui -- Robinson Agdinoay 0, Van Komatsu 0, Efren Oasay 11, Dane Patao 0, Kynan Metoyer 4, Maafu Finau 26, Gene Rivera 15, Tevita Finau 12.
3-point goals: Leilehua 2 (Talaeai 2), Maui 1 (Oasay).
SAINT LOUIS 73, KEAAU 36
The Big Island champion Cougars (13-1), making their first tournament appearance, started strong and fizzled fast.
Two 3-pointers by Aukai Wong helped Keaau gain an early 8-8 tie, but Saint Louis went on a 33-12 crusade to close out the first half with a 41-20 lead.
The Crusaders (13-3) never looked back on their way to earning a spot in tonight's semifinals. Jason Rivers scored 15 points and added four assists and nine rebounds, while Jonah Lakatani came through with five assists for Saint Louis, as the Crusaders controlled the inside.
Timo Paepule, who finished with 10 points, was the recipient of some of the nice dishes from Lakatani and Rivers.
"The guards really stepped it up, setting up the offense," Paepule said. "They made it exciting for the fans, and me, too."
Saint Louis (13-3) 20 21 19 13 -- 73 Keaau (13-1) 11 9 7 9 -- 36 Saint Louis -- B.J. Batts 3, Keao Monteilh 2, Douglas Adachi 7, Ryan Brilhante 0, Tavita Thompson 9, Jonah Lakatani 6, Desmond Hanohano 8, Jason Rivers 15, Timo Paepule 10, Brandon Va'a 0, Wilson Afoa 13.
Keaau -- Jordan Dean 2, Rolan Benevides 3, Kai Calip 0, Sunny Amisone 2, Matt Cadaoas 0, Anthony Alonzo 0, Ikaika Leslie 0, Jordan Cabreros 4, Paul Rapoza 0, Josh Cabreros 10, Wade Ishibashi Jr. 0, Ken Harris 4, Austin Meyers 0, Eric Ulep 0, Aukai Wong 11.
3-point goals: Saint Louis 1 (Adachi), Keaau 4 (Wong, Benevides).
WAIAKEA 86, MILILANI 80, 2OT
Senior Levi Bartholomew had what tournament officials believe to be the first 40-20 in state tournament history, scoring 42 points and grabbing 20 rebounds as the Warriors pulled away in the second overtime of the consolation game. He was 14 of 22 from the field and 13 of 17 from the line.
"Luck," Bartholomew said. "We've been to the states four times and had lost all seven previous games, so I tried my hardest, started to hit my shots and kept doing it. I think the confidence rubbed off on my teammates."
Waiakea (10-5) 19 14 14 13 12 14 -- 86 Mililani (9-7) 16 15 18 11 12 8 -- 80 Waiakea -- Kyle Correira 1, Michael Belmes 2, Tyler Nishimura 8, Sean Soriano 4, Cody Aragaki 0, Levi Bartholomew 42, Cheynne Hirota 3, David Doll 4, Ronnie Loeffler 9, Justin Pascual 0, Abraham McGrew 11, Kyle Santos 2.
Mililani -- Zac Anduha 3, Aaron Kanno 14, Puna Neumann 10, Brandyn Fidel 12, Scott Neumann 2, Jordan Woolsey 6, Clarence Gray 1, Scott Duvauchelle 0, Andrew Tokumi 13, Tony Gabriel 9, Mikhail Mabry 10.
3-point goals: Waiakea 2 (Bartholomew, Nishimura), Mililani 7 (Woolsey 2, Kanno 2, Tokumi, Anduha, Fidel).
The Star-Bulletin's Tim Crouse contributed to this report.
All games at Blaisdell Arena Boys State Basketball
SEEDED TEAMS:
1. Iolani (15-0)
2. Maui (15-0)
3. Keaau (13-1)
4. Kalaheo (11-4)WEDNESDAY
Game 1: Leilehua 52, Waimea 45
Game 2: Kamehameha 64, Waiakea 52
Game 3: Baldwin 59, Mililani 43
Game 4: Saint Louis 47, Kaimuki 45YESTERDAY
Game 5: Waiakea 86, Mililani 80, 2OT (consolation)
Game 6: Saint Louis 73, Keaau 36
Game 7: Maui 68, Leilehua 49
Game 8: Iolani 78, Baldwin 50
Game 9: Kamehameha 60, Kalaheo 55, OTTODAY
Game 10: Waimea vs. Kaimuki, 1:45 p.m.
Game 11: Baldwin vs. Kalaheo, 3:30 p.m.
Game 12: Keaau vs. Leilehua, 5:15 p.m.
Game 13: Saint Louis vs. Maui, 7 p.m.
Game 14: Iolani vs. Kamehameha, 8:30 p.m.TOMORROW
Consolation championship
Game 15: Winners of games 5 and 10, 3 p.m.
Fifth-place game
Game 16: Winners of games 11 and 12, 4:30 p.m.
Third-place game
Game 17: Losers of games 13 and 14, 6 p.m.
Championship game
Game 18: Winners of games 13 and 14, 8 p.m.
Hawaii School Web Sites
