Here’s what it looks like after tonight’s D-I and D-II battles.
Thursday, Feb. 20
Division I
Quarterfinal: ‘Iolani 54, Lahainaluna 32, McKinley gym
Quarterfinal: Campbell 58, Konawaena 53, McKinley gym
Quarterfinal: Maryknoll 66, Baldwin 61, Radford gym
Quarterfinal: Farrington 46, Mililani 44, Radford gym
Consolation: Waiakea 52, Moanalua 49, Radford gym
Consolation: Kalaheo 41, Leilehua 38, McKinley gym
Division II
Quarterfinal: Seabury Hall 58, Damien 55, Kaimuki gym
Quarterfinal: Hawaii Prep 44, Kaiser 41, Kaimuki gym
Quarterfinal: Kohala 71, Kauai 56, Kalani gym
Quarterfinal: @ Kalani 54, St. Francis 41, Kalani gym
Friday, Feb. 21
Division I
Semifinal: ‘Iolani vs. Campbell, 5 p.m., NBC
Semifinal: Farrington vs. Maryknoll, 7 p.m., NBC
Division II
Semifinal: Kalani vs. Kohala, 5 p.m., Kalani gym
Semifinal: Hawaii Prep vs. Seabury Hall, 7 p.m., Kalani gym
Saturday, Feb. 22
Division I
Third place, 3 p.m., NBC
Final, 7 p.m., NBC
Division II
Third place, 11 a.m., NBC
Final, 5 p.m., NBC
Just looking at the HHSAA boxscores, it appears that 1) Matthew Nuumanaia did not play for STF tonight. Huge loss. (The boxscore is missing now, so maybe Nuumanaia did play. We’ll see later.)
[UPDATE 2/21: Nuumanaia was a DNP for sure. Doesn’t take away from a huge victory by Kalani, but he is certainly a key factor for St. Francis. Unfortunate that his prep career ends on this note. He’s got so much upside at the next level as a 6-foot-5 guard.]
2) HPA PG Kalen Camero (concussion) didn’t play, but they got by anyway. Having this week to get another PG ready had to help. So, in D-II, the #1 (STF) and #2 (KAIS) are out, as well as ILH runner-up DMS.
In Division I, two seeded teams (IOL, FAR) won tonight, while two others (BAL, KON) lost. BAL and KON lost to Oahu teams (CAM, MS), which means there is no Neighbor Island team still alive in the D-I tourney. First time since 2011 that a BIIF or MIL team is not in the D-I semifinal round.
‘Iolani is two wins away from its first state title since 2010, when Dean Shimamoto’s squad edged Kamehameha 46-43 in the final. That turned out to be the last in a string of six state crowns for the Raiders, the first five under Mark Mugiishi.
Some quick Pupule thoughts…
• ‘Iolani’s lopsided win over the Lunas was a bit stunning. The teams met at the start of preseason on Maui, with the Raiders pulling out a 73-63 win. Lahainaluna played strong in Wednesday’s opening-round win over Kalaheo, but the depleted Mustangs (Kupaa Harrison played through an ankle injury) were no barometer. The Raiders controlled the glass well enough (26-22) tonight and Lahainaluna shot 26 percent from the field. Zach Buscher was a rock, scoring a team-high 15 points and limiting the Lunas’ perimeter weapon, Calvin Chapital, to 1-for-10 shooting.
I wouldn’t just write the Lunas off yet. They’re a young team, mostly juniors.
• Konawaena was stumped by Campbell’s 1-2-2 zone for much of the night, partly because the Wildcats don’t have a true low-post presence. The closest they have is Jonah Bredeson (7 points, 11 boards), their 6-2 slasher, but every time he caught the ball near the post, it was a quick turnaround shot without squaring up well. Clearly out of the comfort zone of Bredeson, who is strong and fast, a guy who loves to attack man defense.
It was the right call by Campbell coach Wyatt Tau, who loves to let his players run the floor against most teams. He’s been quite content this season to let his Sabers operate patiently on offense, and when the time is right, line up in that zone to slow down fast teams like Konawaena.
This is certainly not the Mike Makinano-era Sabers, not with these scores in the 40s and 50s. But they keep winning with the methodical, deliberate tempo, just like a lot of teams playing late into the postseason. Gilbert Dayanan (14 points) was strong again, hitting back-to-back treys before halftime to give the Sabers momentum. Lamart Dudley was his usual, consistent self on the block with 10 points and 10 boards. He isn’t a flashy player. He just gets the job done inside, takes a hammering and keeps coming back for more work. One my favorite players to watch in this tourney.
Brandon Awa with 25 points and 12 rebounds in defeat for the Wildcats. He never quit, and his determination almost brought the team back from a 17-point deficit.
• On the ropes, but moving on. Maryknoll had a big lead on Baldwin, then nearly lost it before hanging on for a 66-61 win.
Our Jerry Campany was there: Gilmore was unstoppable in the first half. Then Ryan Garces got hot (4-for-5 from 3-point range). So did Phillip Thomas (3-for-4 from deep). Then Gilmore suffered what appeared to be a concussion after a collision. He sat until the Bears cut the lead down close — it was a three-point margin late in the contest. Then Gilmore returned to the game to help Maryknoll seal the win.
When Eldredge left, he had scored 13 points and grabbed nine boards in 20 minutes. He never returned and was walking on crutches after the game.
“I thought the difference was Teva Eldredge,” Spartans coach Kelly Grant told our Jerry.
The difference was also Gilmore (26 points, four steals) and Josh Burnett (20 points, eight boards). The Spartans shot 62 percent from the field and still almost lost, which says a lot about the Bears’ resilience.
• Jerry also saw the Mililani-Farrington game, which came down to a missed 3 by the Trojans that would’ve won the game at the buzzer.
“(Jacob) McEnroe was all over him and he was off-balance. His shot grazed the backboard,” Jerry said.
Farrington had three team fouls with 20 seconds left, he added, so the Govs fouled Mililani twice.
“It was pretty much chaos in the end. That No. 11 (Noel Bueno) had a lot of steals and points. He was playing good,” Jerry said of Bueno, who had 17 points, seven steals and just two turnovers.
Elijah Butler has gotten a lot of attention. In Mililani’s opening-round win, he went 16 and 16. Tonight, he had a 12-10 performance.
“They’re done, but they played good. They pushed Farrington,” Jerry said.
• Kealan Figueroa continued his hot shooting for Kohala, which ousted KIF champion Kauai. Between the run-and-gun Cowboys and host team Kalani, it could be an incredible pace tomorrow night in that D-II semifinal.
• Another missing name from the boxscore: Kapi‘ina King of Damien, which lost to MIL D-II champ Seabury Hall. Kobe Ikari is listed as the team’s high scorer (23 points), followed by Jaylen Layco (14) and James Roy (13). Roy is the football player, a standout offensive lineman, who is on his way to Briar Cliff (Iowa) to play college ball next season (if I remember right).
Cameron King – 26 points for the Spartans in victory.
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