The game is meant to be played.

When James Naismith invented “;Basket Ball”; in 1891, his intent was to bring an aerobic, indoor activity to his Springfield College physical education students during cold winter months. There would be no stopping for a minute at a time. He wanted motion. Naismith's department head wanted something that would keep track athletes in shape.

The game changed over the decades, turning into a multitude of chess matches, slowdown schemes and stall tactics. The NBA answered with a 24-second shot clock. The NCAA followed suit with a 35-second limit.

High school ball? Even without a shot clock, the game often had a freewheeling tempo for years. However, more than 20 years have passed since Kalaheo outscored Farrington 102-94 in a boys contest.

Still, in Kalani Valley, a second-year coach has revved up his program and turned his own philosophy upside down. After seven games, the Kalani Falcons lead the state in scoring at 68 points per game. (Kahuku averages 67 per game.) Every open shot is taken, including a bombs-away approach from the 3-point arc. All coach George Weeks wants, besides wins and good sportsmanship, is one simple goal: 80 shot attempts per game.

The product of his all-out, full-court pressing, 2.5-shots-per-minute strategy is blowing away fans near and far. After abstaining from competition for several weeks, Kalani hit the floor for a scrimmage with Hawaii Baptist and took 103 shots—more than an NBA team's total. Last year's team surpassed the 60-point mark just once. This year's team scored at least 70 in its first five games.

They were no longer driving at the speed limit; the Falcons were prepping for the Indy 500.

Naismith would be proud.

  SOMEWHERE IN THE MIDST of last summer, Weeks came to grips with reality. Minus all of its low-post threats from an OIA Red championship team—Kalani went 23-5 and reached the state tournament—the Falcons floundered with the same sets and philosophy during summer-league play.

Weeks was without Star-Bulletin All-State guard Iwalani Rodrigues, to graduation.

Promising 6-foot scorer Violet Alama, who has one of the smoothest pull-up, mid-range jumpers in the state, was down with a knee injury. Weeks had to make a change, so he went back in time, dusting off the shelf to pull out a package he had stored away 11 years ago when he was the boys coach at Menlo High School (Calif.).

“;I thought it would be good for the group of boys I had then, but I never had the courage to try it,”; Weeks said. “;I've tinkered with it (since). This was the time and group of kids it would work with, not from a win-loss standpoint, but it allows the kids some ownership in what they're doing, play and have fun with the game.”;

All the dust and cobwebs weren't easily removed. Introducing a new system to a team that thrived on a station-to-station halfcourt tempo was more than interesting. It was unlearning the past and relearning simplicity.

At 1-2 in league play, the Falcons are still in position to qualify for the playoffs. More importantly, Weeks said, every player is having fun like never before.

“;Ashlyn Onaga played 16 minutes and scored 28 points against Maryknoll. I don't think she would've ever scored 28 points if we'd played traditional,”; Weeks said. “;It's allowed these kids to grow and blossom. This is why they've played since they were 5 years old, anyway.”;

Onaga, the point guard, sets the tempo with her penetration and winds up scoring in transition. Onaga (14 points per game), Jamie Higa (13.7) and Cristine Sasano (11) are the leading scorers in OIA play. Relearning everything they knew has been, well, crazy fun.

“;I'm having a blast running this system,”; said Onaga, a senior. One of the biggest differences this year is before practice: 100 3-point shots for almost all players.

“;It's a lot of work and we run like hell at practice. Last year, we didn't scrimmage much, mostly walkthroughs and plays,”; Onaga said. “;Now we don't have plays. We scrimmage a lot.”;

That's right. No set plays.

“;It's fun. You just let go, but you have to be smart about it. You can't just go out there and run around,”; Onaga said.

Weeks has done the most letting go. He calls the new system “;organized chaos”; for a reason.

“;It's different the way that we are coaching. It allows us to be a lot more positive because we're not grinding it out for 30, 40 or 50 seconds of every possession and getting upset if we don't get a good shot,”; he said. “;We're (subbing) every minute. We don't harp on mistakes and yank 'em. We know they're coming out in a minute anyway and we get to talk to them at that point.”;

The one constant from last season is execution, regardless of the system. But maybe the most important difference is how someone like Tiffany Lyau can make an impact.

“;She probably didn't play more than a minute or two before. The (new) system forces everybody to take risks and contribute,”; Weeks said. “;She hit the first 3 of her life in a real game. The smile on her face after the game was priceless.”;

Weeks cautions his team that it's easy to win by 40 or lose by 40—the Falcons were cold one night and lost 82-44 at McKinley—but Onaga would have it no other way, even as she plays 20 minutes instead of 30 each game.

“;I would miss this system that we're running,”; she said. “;It gives everyone the opportunity to play.”;