HONOLULU — In a stunning second-half performance, Punahou rallied to take down three-time defending champion Saint Louis and attain its first state boys basketball triumph in six seasons on Friday night.
The Buffanblu trailed the previously unbeaten Crusaders by six at halftime but surged ahead in the third quarter and survived a last-second 3-point look from Shancin Revuelto for the 43-40 win in front of 2,272 (2,436 tickets issued) at the Stan Sheriff Center.
Punahou (13-5) raised its first koa trophy in the sport since 2018, and its 12th all time, breaking a tie with Iolani for the most in state history.
[Note: See below for more photos of the HHSAA boys basketball championships.]
Guard Dane Kellner scored 11 of his 13 points in the second half and shot 6-for-7 from the field for the game. Forward Zion White supplied nine points and 14 rebounds while matched up with Crusaders senior Pupu Sepulona, who was vying for a fourth state hoops title (to go with titles in state Open Division football and boys volleyball) to cap his stellar prep career.
Punahou lost its best all-around scorer, sophomore forward Tanoa Scanlan, to a broken finger in the ILH playoffs, casting doubt on its postseason prospects.
But Darren Matsuda’s team showed remarkable resilience after dropping the ILH championship game to Saint Louis. Punahou won four times in five days, dropping Moanalua, Kamehameha-Hawaii, University Lab and finally Saint Louis (15-1). Matsuda, a former assistant of Saint Louis coach Dan Hale while Hale was at Punahou, also led the Buffanblu to the 2018 title.
Kellner's layup with four minutes left gave the Buffanblu an unthinkable eight-point lead. Saint Louis showed the pride of a champion with one last run, tying the game up at 39 with a little over a minute left. But White got a tough bucket in the paint to drop to reclaim the advantage for the Buffanblu.
In a sequence that mirrored the finish of Punahou’s semifinal win over University Lab on Thursday, guard Houston Hosoda hit two clutch free throws to extend his team’s lead to three points with 7.9 seconds left. After a timeout, Punahou dropped back to defend a harried 3-point shot that was off the mark.
Earlier in Division II, Seabury Hall defeated Hawaii Prep Academy, 49-33, behind 20 points and seven rebounds from Bromo Dorn for the Maui private school’s first boys hoops title at any classification.
Guard Caelan Fernando scored 10 of his 11 points in the first half to lead Hale’s Crusaders. Sepulona supplied nine points and seven rebounds in his final high school hoops game. Forward Stone Kanoa, one of the Crusaders' best rebounders and defenders, saw limited action with his left arm heavily wrapped after suffering an apparent injury in a win over Kahuku in Thursday's semifinals.
Former Iolani guard Vinnie Nip remained the only person in Hawaii high school history to win four state boys basketball championships (2003-06).
Note: This story will be updated.
Brian McInnis covers the state’s sports scene for Spectrum News Hawaii. He can be reached at brian.mcinnis@charter.com.
