KEAAU – One of the qualities of a championship team is the ability to close tough games when things don’t fall into place.
That was the case for Waiakea, which outlasted Kamehameha 53-45 in a BIIF Division I showdown on Wednesday night at Koaia gym.
Peter Suiaunoa got the offense going early with nine points in the first quarter and finished with 11 points for Waiakea (2-0), which shot 40 percent from the field and didn’t have an easy flow on offense.
Kiai Apele led the way with 17 points, hitting three 3-pointers, and dishing assists when Waiakea started to milk the clock in the fourth quarter.
Kaupena Yasso scored 16 points, Izayah Chartrand-Penera had 11 and Bobby Castillo added eight points for Kamehameha (1-2), which converted at 37 percent from the floor.
Late in the fourth quarter, Waiakea had a tough time playing defense without fouling. Kamehameha made 15 of 21 free throws, including 9 of 12 in the last period.
But the closest Kamehameha got was 34-31 early in the fourth quarter. From there, Waiakea went on an 8-2 run and hit enough free throws: 7 of 12 in the final eight minutes to seal the win. The visitors made 9 of 16 for the game.
Suiaunoa scored on a putback to push Waiakea ahead 42-33, and later Rekky Prudencio sank a pair of free throw to increase the advantage to 44-34 with 4:08 left.
Waiakea spread the court, and when Kamehameha came out to pressure, Apele dished the ball to his rim attackers.
The host Warriors raced to the basket, got fouled, hit their free throws but just ran out of time. But they couldn’t cover all the kickouts to Waiakea’s perimeter shooters or guard the paint against transition attacks.
In the first half, both teams struggled to find a rhythm. Each time one team had a scoring run it was quickly answered. The halftime score stood 21-20 with Waiakea ahead.
In the first half, Suiaunoa had nine points, relying on his athleticism. He ran down the court, found his spot on the right block and fired in bank shots. When he wasn’t scoring from the post, he tagged fouls on defenders and made 3 of 4 free throws.
Chartrand-Penera knocked down a pair of three and led Kamehameha with seven points while Castillo came off the bench and added six points.
To start the second quarter, Waiakea got its transition attack going scoring three straight layups.
Kamehameha countered with a seven-point run when Chartrand-Penera’s two triples sandwiched a free two by Koby Tabuyo-Kahele.
To start the third quarter, it was bombs away for Waiakea. Apele nailed two 3-pointers, and Prudencio hit one, and the visitors led 34-29 heading into the fourth quarter.
In the junior varsity game, it was Kamehameha 57, Waiakea 22.
Parker 55, Konawaena 47: Behind a virtuoso performance from Conner Brown, the Bulls matched their win total from last season, pulling off a shocking victory in Waimea.
Brown scored 33 points as Parker (1-1) upset the Wildcats (3-1), who have reached the state Division I tournament each of the past six seasons. The Bulls, meanwhile, went 1-12 last season as the program fielded a varsity team for the first time since 2010. This season, Parker returned Brown, a senior 6-foot-3 senior guard who made all-BIIF Division II last season.
Riley Higgins added eight points for Parker, while Aldrin Gadot led Konawaena with 14.
Hilo 55, Keaau 33: Rayson Padilla led three Vikings in double figures with 14 points as host Hilo evened its record at 1-1.
RJ Solmerin added for the Viks and Kaukahi Alameda had 11.
Ace Bernal led the Cougars (1-2) with 13 points and Isaiah Akana had 12.
Kohala 63, St. Joseph 22: The Cowboys ran their record to 2-0 with the road win, dropping the Cardinals to 0-2.