Lyndon Hall scored 25 points as Damien upset two-time defending Division II state champion St. Francis 74-60 on Tuesday night.
Damien advanced to the championship game of the Pete Smith Classic and will battle host Kalaheo tonight. The Damien-St. Francis game was a rematch of last season’s D-II state final, won by the Saints 76-52.
This time, Damien got balanced scoring to go with Hall’s big output. Jake Holtz added 13 points, Bryce Forbes scored 11 and Lindon Sevilleja Jr. had 10 for the Monarchs.
Jett Tanuvasa‘s 15 points led the Saints, who are moving up to Division I in the ILH this season. Kameron Ng added 14 points, Kordel Ng tallied 13 and center Nalu Kanalulu had 13.
In the other semifinal, Kalaheo outlasted Punahou II 56-46 on Ryan Pardini‘s 17 points. Ryan Owens scored 12 and Christopher Curiel chipped in 11. Luke Bowers and Brandon Char scored eight points apiece for the D-II Buffanblu
In consolation play, Kaiser routed Campbell 63-44 on center Cyrus Singelman‘s 20 points. Kenji Toyama scored 12. Robert Hutchinson (12) and Mitchell Williams (10) combined for 22 points to pace the Sabers.
In another consolation matchup, Zach Gagnon led a balanced Leilehua scoring attack as the Mules defeated Le Jardin 57-32. Austin Kaiko Alana paced the Bulldogs with 10 points.
Looks like SFS would’ve have had their hands full back down in D2. It’s possible they don’t even sniff the state tournament this year.
SF has tremendous heart & skill….
Looking forward to the season!
So no matter what happens this season, even if StF wins the D1 state championship, we’ll all recognize Damien as the true “best team in the state”, right? Just like the year Kahuku won states but lost to StF in the preseason?