KAILUA-KONA – Shaky ball-handling and poor passing led to a game filled with turnovers Friday night, but Kealakehe managed to ride the 3-point shot to a 69-49 BIIF home victory over Kohala.
KAILUA-KONA – Shaky ball-handling and poor passing led to a game filled with turnovers Friday night, but Kealakehe managed to ride the 3-point shot to a 69-49 BIIF home victory over Kohala.
The Waveriders had four players in double-digits by the end of the night, despite the team not scoring for the first four minutes of the game. Jonah Kaulia and Blaine Broberg led the way with 15 points each. Richard Kaiawe-Lakuau and Michael Jacinto added 10 apiece. The team knocked down six shots from beyond the arc.
The Cowboys fought to the end but struggled from the free throw line. Maui Hook led Kohala with 14 points and Kainalu Emeliano-Solomon followed with 13.
Neither team could find its shot early in the first quarter. The first point was scored three minutes into the game when Kohala’s Emeliano-Solomon went 1-for-2 from the free throw line. Kealakehe finally broke through at the four minute mark when Kaiawe-Kalua’u knocked down a shot from behind the arc. The 3-pointer was the start of a 7-0 run by the Waveriders as Broberg hit a short jumper and followed with a layup on the ensuing possession.
Kaiawe-Lakuau carried Kealakehe in the back half of the opening quarter, knocking down a 3-pointer and rolling in a layup. Chance Pang tried to keep the Cowboys close with a trey and a layup, but a return layup from Kealakehe big man Abraham Kalavi and a steal and roll in by Jacinto gave the Waveriders a 17-9 lead at the end of the first.
The second quarter opened with both teams trying to force the ball quickly down court which resulted in several ill-advised passes that were picked off. Kohala cut the deficit to four with baskets by Emeliano-Solomon and Isaiah Salvador, but Kealakehe answered with a 10-point run to go up 27-14. Dante Bohany and Broberg knocked down a pair of 3-pointers on the backend of the scoring streak.
Kaulia got hot late in the quarter, dropping two points on a layup and nailing a wide open 3. The Cowboys had plenty of opportunities to keep the game close as they headed to the free throw line on several occasions. However the team struggled shooting, and the Waveriders 37-20 at the half.
Kaulia continued his roll after the break with back-to-back putbacks to put his team up by 20. Defenses started to break down late in the third, allowing both teams to share quick baskets. A layup by Jacinto gave the Waveriders a 53-30 lead with a quarter to play.
Kohala’s Hook opened the fourth with a quick trey, but Kealakehe’s Kobe Antolin answered back with a 3-point play after getting fouled on a layup. After the scores, the game reverted back to early first quarter play as both teams struggled to put the ball in the net. Kohala finally broke the scoreless streak when Emeliano-Solomon knocked down a jumper. Kealakehe answered with shots from Bohany and Broberg.
The Waveriders stretched their lead to 25 with three minutes to play when Sanjay Thompson rolled in a layup for a 64-39 advantage.
Trying to spark a late comeback, Kohala’s Hook hit his second 3-pointer of the half. Kealakehe’s Jacinto followed with a 3-point play after picking up a foul on a layup with a minute to go.