If Saturday night’s Kamehameha-Konawaena game is any indication, the BIIF Division I basketball playoffs will be hotly contested. Right down to the last whistle.
The Warriors escaped with a 47-46 victory in Kealakekua when a foul that could have sent the Wildcats to the free-throw line in the final second either was waived off by the referees or deemed to have occurred after time expired.
With 0.6 seconds remaining and protecting their one-point lead, the Warriors (6-1) inbounded the ball from their end and attempted a lob pass to midcourt to salt the game away.
“It was tipped, their player caught it and the referee called a foul,” on us Kamehameha coach Mea Wong said.
Wong said he pleaded with the referees, arguing 0.6 seconds wasn’t enough time to catch and shoot.
After a discussion, the referees said the game was over.
“I think (the referee) got talked out of the foul,” Konawaena coach Donny Awa said.
Awa thought a nonshooting foul was called, which wouldn’t have been as time sensitive as a shooting foul and would have resulted in a one-and-one for his team. Awa said he didn’t receive a satisfactory explanation as to why no foul was assessed, but he added, “That call at the end wasn’t why we lost the game.”
Shot selection, he said, was the primary problem for the Wildcats (4-2).
“If we correct that, we win the game,” Awa said.
Upon watching a replay of the sequence, Wong said the referees made the right call.
“I have a lot of respect for Donny Awa and (Konawaena girls coach) and Bobbie Awa,” he said. “I told them afterward that this was a typical Kamehameha-Konawaena basketball game.”
A rematch likely won’t come unless both teams advance to the BIIF championship.
Braedy Yamada hit several crucial shots, Wong said, for the Warriors, who can wrap up an undefeated D-I season – the metric used for seeding this season – with a win Saturday at home against Waiakea in their regular-season finale. The public-school Warriors, who lost to the Wildcats earlier this season, also play Hilo on Friday. The Viks, who beat the Wildcats but lost to Kamehameha for their lone D-I loss, would be the second seed with a win Friday.
In the semifinals, Konawaena will draw the East’s No. 2 seed. Keaau is the East’s No. 4 seed and will play No. 3 in the first round. Kealakehe opted not to participate in the postseason.