HONOLULU — The Kamehameha boys basketball team played up when it mattered on Tuesday night.
The Warriors struggled to break through for the entire month of January in the crucible that is Interscholastic League of Honolulu play. That put coach Larry Park and his group in the unfavorable position of playing on the first day of the ILH tournament and needing at least three do-or-die victories just to be in the conversation for a state berth.
In a game of true playoff physicality in which no one could gain separation, the Warriors trailed Iolani by three entering the fourth quarter in the Raiders’ gym.
But the Warriors, who beat only Mid-Pacific for a 2-8 record in the ILH regular season, summoned confidence from parts unknown and soundly outplayed the Raiders in the final eight minutes for a 51-42 road victory.
Guards Makai Barr (15 points) Christian Togiai (14) weaved to the rim repeatedly in the period while 6-foot-9 center Kainoa Wade was a defensive force, altering and blocking shots and snaring rebounds on both ends on his way to a double-double.
“I’m just so proud of these boys,” an emotional Park said. “They come to practice” – he paused to gather himself – “and give everything they can. I’m happy for them, so happy for them.”
Kamehameha (3-8) must be a roster of road Warriors the rest of the way if it is to lay claim to the ILH’s second state berth; Punahou owns the first by virtue of winning the regular season. Up next is a date at third-seeded Saint Louis at 6 p.m. Thursday. The Crusaders defeated MPI 67-54 in Tuesday’s other game on Day 1.
The winner of Kamehameha and Saint Louis gets Maryknoll, with the ticket to states to be decided between them. Punahou then awaits to determine the league’s overall champion.
Park noted that his team was within two possessions of two-time defending state champ Saint Louis midway through the fourth quarter before ultimately losing 43-33 on Jan. 18. His team trailed nearly all of the first three quarters Tuesday before its fourth-quarter breakthrough.
“Hopefully we come with that fight and energy,” Park said. “It takes a couple baskets and couple free throws at the end and in ILH that’s the difference.”
Wade blocked Mana Lau Kong at one end and drained an elbow jumper at the other for a 43-39 lead with four minutes to play. It felt enormous in the moment and Iolani could not recover in a game that featured no runs to that point. Including some desperation Raiders fouls at the end, Kamehameha won the fourth quarter 20-8.
Point guard Nahiku Nahale-a stuck a one-legged 3-pointer for the Warriors’ first basket. After that, all of Kamehameha’s production came from the paint and free-throw line.
“We just felt great because we ended the (regular) season and we knew we were a better team (than what we showed),” Barr said. “We realized we’ve got to put the regular season behind us.” As he spoke, Wade, the son of University of Hawaii men’s volleyball coach Charlie Wade who plans to play for his father next year, raced by and gave a “wooo!”
Wade's fourth-quarter highlight reel included a two-handed baseline dunk.
“I honestly think he’s the best big man in the state. He proved that tonight,” Barr said. “He can block anyone in the game and even though he’s like a light player, he’s so tall, he has that reach and can block anyone, and he’s super good on offense.”
Guard Nela Taliauli led the Raiders with 13 points, but missed a 3 that would’ve tied the game at 45 with under 1:30 to play. Aidan Wong and Luke Tobin each scored 12 for Iolani.
Despite the presence of solid big men like Lau Kong, Tobin and Jackson Dempster, the Raiders saw their season end at 3-8 and missed the state tournament for a second straight year.
“They kept putting pressure on us off the dribble and they kept responding every time we scored,” Iolani coach Ryan Hirata said. “In games like this, you’ve got to separate. We didn’t do that. We had our opportunities to; we’ve got to be better in those situations as a team. … Hat's off to Kamehameha. They played a really good fourth quarter tonight.”
It capped a tough year for Iolani that included three game-winning buzzer-beater baskets by ILH opponents.
“The ILH is a grind. I think it’s its own tournament throughout the entire year because every single team you play is really good, every single coach you coach against is really good,” Hirata said. “So, you really put yourself through a state tournament, NCAA Tournament-type setting. At the end of the day we’ve got to be thankful for being in such a great league. We’ve just got to come back better next year.”
Brian McInnis covers the state's sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.