The Waiakea/Keaau boys basketball tournament is always intriguing and entertaining because it’s a three-for-one type of deal: season preview, measuring stick and a good preparation for the state tournament.
Somewhat like the Hawaii High School Division I state championships, there are 15 teams, instead of 12, and the preseason tourney runs over four days, featuring the league’s top title contenders in both divisions.
A lot of Big Island Interscholastic Federation teams took a huge graduation hit, and will depend on youthful inexperience. Well, everybody that is except for Kohala, the league’s defending Division II champion, which returns all five starters, including the BIIF player of the year in Kealen Figueroa.
The Cowboys get a tough first-day draw in Kaiser, the Oahu Interscholastic Association D-II defending champion, which lost to Hawaii Preparatory Academy 44-41 at states last season. The Cougars coach is Branden Kawazoe, a 2002 Waiakea graduate.
HPA will be a much different team with the loss of four starters, including its two tall and physically imposing foreign students, David Ovbagbedia and Evaldas Vegertas.
The BIIF runner-up Ka Makani don’t play on Wednesday, but meet the Kohala-Kaiser winner at 6 p.m. Thursday in an anticipated showdown, should Kohala win.
HPA has big shoes to fill and that likely opens the door for the league’s second spot to the Division II state tournament. That will be a delightful musical chairs battle with Pahoa, Honokaa and Ka’u, although the Dragons and Trojans lost a ton of talent. (Last season, HPA beat University High 50-42 in a state play-in game.)
One team to watch is Pahoa, which returns three starters with all-league recognition in Tolby Saito, Keinan Agonias and Torrell Thomas. Saito, a senior point guard, was on the All-BIIF Division II first team while Agonias, a senior guard, and Thomas, a junior forward, were honorable mention.
Saito doesn’t have Figueroa’s athleticism, either jumping ability or foot speed. But the Dagger senior is a unique talent because of his sharp ball-handling (developed through years at camps), and court savvy (a second-nature instinct to counter any defensive tactic).
If a defense zones Pahoa, Saito is a catch-and-shoot gunner. He doesn’t need to swing his lead, left foot in front to start his shooting momentum. It’s a quick trigger attack before the defensive window closes.
If a defense goes man, there’s no one in the BIIF better at tagging opponents with fouls, and at the free-throw line Saito makes his living. It’s a slow death double whammy because he’s putting someone in foul trouble and racking up easy points at the stripe.
Like the Cowboys, the Daggers get a whopper of a first-round draw with Konawaena, the two-time defending BIIF D-I champion, which lost all five starters, including a pair of all-league first-team picks in Brandon Awa and Jonah Bredeson.
However, the Wildcats return senior sharp-shooter Kevin Medeiros, who was the sixth man, and have one of the most promising freshmen in the state in Austin Ewing. He’s HPA senior Gabbie Ewing’s taller brother. Both are first cousins to Awa. His mom Bobbie Awa and Kathy Ewing are sisters.
Although Gabbie has a soccer scholarship to the University of Concordia (Portland, Ore.), she grew up playing the family sport of Stingray club basketball under her uncle Donny Awa and aunty Bobbie, the Wildcats boys and girls coaches, respectively. It was the same thing for Austin, whose favorite sport is hoops, a reason he’s at Konawaena, not HPA.
Waiakea, the BIIF D-I runner-up, lost four starters. But like Kona, the Warriors at least have a solid building block in athletic sophomore guard Calvin Mattos, who received honorable mention last season. He’s a fun blur to watch on the fast-break because he has a nice package of speed, body control and springs in his legs.
Co-host Keaau and Kealakehe didn’t qualify for the BIIF semifinals last season, and it was the same thing for St. Joseph, which will host the Cardinals Classic next week.
Hilo lost its top two offensive weapons in Austin Dante and smooth shooter Jalen Carvalho, the BIIF D-I player of the year, who is at Oregon Institute at Technology, an NAIA school, where he’ll be teammates with 2010 Kohala graduate Brandon Bautista.
But for good news the Viking faithful will enjoy home games at the school’s sparkling new gym. The Hilo High Holiday Prep Classic, slated for Dec. 18-20, will be held there.
The team to watch on the BIIF’s Division I level is Kamehameha, which returns top juniors Bayley Manliguis, Pukana Vincent and Kaeo Batacan, the latter two both honorable mention selections.
Last season, Vincent unveiled his firepower prowess. He scored 30 points in a 68-66 victory over Hilo on Jan. 30 at Hilo Civic. Then at home on Feb. 8, Vincent dropped 32 points in a 74-71 win against Kohala and its tenacious defense.
In the BIIF semifinals last season, Waiakea walloped Kamehameha 62-37. Back in mid-February a packed house at Hilo Civic watched how coach Paul Lee’s Warriors relied on that wealth of experience to answer everything coach Dominic Pacheco’s youngsters threw at them.
The shoe is on the other foot now.
Kamehameha is a BIIF title favorite, and gets a stiff opening challenge with Lahainaluna, which reached states last season. And like most of the tourney games, it’ll be a three-for-one deal — maybe a really good preparation for a state rematch in late February.
Waiakea/Keaau tournament
At Waiakea High
Wednesday
Blue bracket
Game 1: Hilo vs. Mid-Pacific, 4:30 p.m.
G2: Kaiser vs. Kohala, 6 p.m.
G3: Waiakea 1 vs. Kealakehe, 7:30 p.m.
Thursday
G4: Loser G1 and G3, 4:30 p.m.
G5: Waiakea 2 vs. L-G2, 3 p.m.
G6: HPA vs. Winner G2, 6 p.m.
G7: W-G1 vs. W-G3, 7:30 p.m.
Friday
G8 Blue seventh place: L-G4 vs. Waiakea 2, 4:30 p.m.
G8 fifth: TBD
G9 third: L-G7 vs. L-G6, 6 p.m.
G10 first place: W-G7 vs. W-G6, 7:30 p.m.
At Keaau High
Red bracket
Wednesday
G1: Pahoa vs. Konawaena, 4:30 p.m.
G2: Kamehameha vs. Lahainaluna, 6 p.m.
G3: Keaau vs. St. Joseph, 7:30 p.m.
Thursday
G4: L-G3 vs. L-G1, 4:30 p.m.
G5: W-G1 vs. L-G2, 6 p.m.
G6: W-G2 vs. W-G3, 7:30 p.m.
Friday
G7 Red seventh: Keaau 2 vs. L-G4, 3 p.m.
G8 fifth: W-G4 vs. TBD
G9 third: L-G6 vs. L-G5, 6 p.m.
G10 first place: W-G6 vs. W-G5, 7:30 p.m.
Saturday
At Keaau High
G11: TBD, 10:30 a.m.
G12: TBD, 12 p.m.
G13: TBD, 1:30 p.m.
G14 seventh place: Red 4 vs. Blue 4, 3 p.m.
At Waiakea High
G13 fifth: Red 3 vs. Blue 3, 4:30 p.m.
G14 third: Red 2 vs. Blue 2, 6 p.m.
G15 championship: Red 1 vs. Blue 1, 7:30 p.m.
