KEALAKEKUA – With a spot in the BIIF D-I championship on the line, Hilo had to dig deep to get one final stop.
Trailing by two points, the host Wildcats had called their last timeout with 1.5 seconds remaining on the clock; Konawaena set up their inbounds play from beneath their own hoop, 84 feet away from a potential game-tying or game-winning basket.
“When Konawaena called their last timeout, we decided to put our tallest, most energetic player on the ball, just to make it hard for them to inbound it,” Hilo coach Ben Pana.
The Vikings’ strategy worked; they stole the ball on the inbounds pass, and the final buzzer rang out to give Hilo a 41-39 victory, lifting them to the title game.
The Vikings advance to face Kamehameha on Saturday for the BIIF D-I championship; tip time at Hilo Civic is scheduled for 7 p.m.
What began as a defensive battle turned into a back-and-forth fight as the game progressed. The teams combined to score as many points in the fourth quarter – 29 – as they did in the entire first half of play.
In the fourth quarter alone, there were five lead changes and two ties, the latest of which came on Taven Hiraishi’s basket with 53 seconds remaining, pulling Konawaena even with Hilo at 39. Hilo’s Peyton Pana answered, sinking what turned out to be the game-winner on the next possession.
“We just were able to sustain punches; it was a back and forth game,” said Ben Pana. “I give Kona credit; they always have a tough program. We just have to dig a little bit extra down deep to beat those guys.”
Kamehameha 58, Waiakea 32: Braedy Yamada and Kia’i Yasso each scored nine points, and Kaleb Guerrero and Nixis Yamauchi added eight apiece at Koaia Gym as the Warriors eased into the final.
AJ Doll led all scorers with 15 points for Waiakea.
In D-II, La’a Kauka scored 16 points as Kohala beat Pahoa 56-25, and Hawaii Prep downed Ka’u 49-42 to advance to Saturday’s 5 p.m. final at Hilo Civic.