KAILUA-KONA – On paper, it was a clear mismatch.
On one side was a young Kealakehe squad starting a pair of sophomores and another pair of freshmen; on the other, a senior-heavy Kohala team led by the 2020-21 Gatorade Hawaii Boys Basketball Player of the Year O’Shen Cazimero.
After a sluggish start that saw the Waveriders up 5-3, the script followed exactly as expected with such a mismatch.
“We usually play a full-court man,” said Kohala’s head coach Kihei Kapeliela. “Part of (Kealakehe’s) JV played tonight, so we tried to play a halfcourt game. Slow start, so we went back to our normal gameplan and got back into a groove.”
A stifling Kohala press completely shut down Kealakehe’s offense and led to an abundance of transition baskets for the Cowboys as Kohala turned the two-point deficit into a 22-point lead in just eight minutes of game time.
“We just know full speed,” said Kapeliela. “To play halfcourt offense, they’re not used to it. In our zone, they looked lost.”
Cazimero and fellow senior La’akea Kauka combined to score 27 first-half points as the Cowboys extended their lead to 47-7 by halftime.
With the game in hand, Kohala (3-0) was able to rest their stars and coast to s 62-15 final.
Cazimero led all scorers with 16 points, while the Geonwoo Lee led the Waveriders (0-2) with four points. Both teams are scheduled to be back in action Saturday night against Waiakea; Kealakehe is scheduled to first host the Warriors at 5 p.m., followed by Kohala vs. Waiakea at 6:30 p.m.
Scoring
Kohala: Cazimero 16 points, La’akea Kauka 11, Hook 9, Landon Kauka 9, Hoshida 5, Agbayani 4, Valenzuela 4, Neves 3, Libron 2
Kealakehe: Lee 4 points, Lorenzo 3, Cho 3, Sales 3, Baker 2
Pahoa 41, Keaau 39: Kalai Midel scored 21 points to lead the visiting Daggers to their first win.
Isaiah Dagupion scored nine points to lead the Division I Cougars (0-4), who trailed 23-21 at halftime.
The Division II Daggers (1-2) and Cougars played to an 18-18 tie in the second half.
Girls
Keaau 53, Ka’u 15: Olivia Yasutake scored 17 points as the host Cougars cruised to victory.
Tyra Wong Yuen scored nine points to lead the Division II Trojans (0-6).
The Division I Cougars (2-3) led 30-9 at halftime.
Cancellations: Christian Liberty’s games Thursday at Honokaa and Saturday at Kamehameha were canceled.
