Waiakea suffered a tough-to-swallow loss on Senior night against Konawaena, but it was an entertaining nail-biter that both teams can count as a victory.
The Wildcats played with championship composure and defeated Waiakea 51-46 in a BIIF Division I showdown on Saturday night at the Warriors Gym, sharpening themselves for the four-team playoffs.
The BIIF semifinals start Thursday at Kealakehe High’s gym, where No. 1 Konawaena takes on No. 4 Honokaa, and No. 2 Hilo meets No. 3 Waiakea.
It was the final home game for Waiakea seniors: Kryssie Okinaka, Danielle Oda, Sydney Layaoen, Skylar Thomas, Kaley Fujii, and Makana Keala.
Mikayla Tablit and Celena Molina each scored 13 points, and Cherilyn Molina had 12 points for the Wildcats (10-0), who shot 41 percent (17 of 41) from the field and made 13 of 17 free throws.
Okinaka scored 14 points, Danielle Oda nine and Kelsie Imai added seven points for the Warriors (8-2), who buried 42 percent (16 of 38) from the floor and sank 12 of 17 free throws.
Tablit and Cherilyn Molina each had a pair of 3-pointers while Oda drained two long balls and Imai had one trey, cutting Konawaena’s lead to 47-42 with under two minutes left.
However, the Wildcats raced down the court, and Celena Molina fed her sister Cherilyn on the break for a 49-42 lead with 1:50 to go.
Waiakea sophomore Claire Kaneshiro banked a high shot off the glass to cut the deficit to 51-46 with 24.6 seconds remaining. From there, the Wildcats were able to handle the ball and drain the clock.
“It was great game. Waiakea did a nice job,” Konawaena coach Bobbie Awa said. “We tried to put the ball in the right people’s hands (at the end). We’ve got two great ball-handlers in Mikayla and Cherilyn, and Celena can handle the ball, too. The other girls are young. But it was a good experience for them.”
It doesn’t happen often when an opponent forces more turnovers against Konawaena, the eight-time BIIF defending champion. But Waiakea forced 21 turnovers, including seven in the third quarter, and held a 7-2 scoring edge off free gifts. The Warriors had 20 turnovers.
Still, when Waiakea desperately needed a turnover in the fourth quarter, the Wildcats played keep-away with their unbreakable poise and only had two giveaways. The Warriors couldn’t score off both.
At times, the host team defended with a 1-2-2 press and trapped at half-court, but the ‘Cats slipped out of that pressure. The problem was they usually punish teams with quick ball-movement and quicker layups; the visitors didn’t square up and missed too many close-range shot attempts.
Even when the Wildcats’ pressure defensive has a bad day, the West Hawaii powerhouse finds other ways to score, but the Warriors neutralized those other avenues with their non-stop energy, which received a boost from a nearly full house, where Waiakea’s gym seats 1,500 fans.
In something of a rarity, Waiakea had more points off layups than Kona, 10-4. The visitors had more points off putbacks, 4-2, but none in the second half. The Wildcats were missing senior Mahie Kaawa, a rebounding enforcer, who was on Oahu for a volleyball showcase.
Waiakea jumped on an 11-0 run in the third quarter to whittle the lead to 35-31, capped by Oda’s 3-pointer, with under two minutes remaining.
But Caiyle Kaupu scored on the other end, and Tablit knocked down a 3-pointer for a 40-32 lead with 37 seconds heading into the final eight minutes.
Cherilyn Molina knocked down a pair of 3-pointers, and the Wildcats’ shooting at the free throw line (7 of 10) helped the visitors take a 29-15 lead into halftime.
The game really turned into a nail-biter in the second half. Despite getting a good scare, Awa lobbied for more battles between Division I teams, instead of a round-robin against Division II foes, which usually turn into blowouts.
“I wish we could play games like this all the time. I loved it,” Awa said. “Games like this prepare us and not only help us but Hilo, Honokaa, and Waiakea, too.”
In the JV, it was Waiakea 37, Hawaii Prep 6.
Konawaena 11 18 11 11 — 51
Waiakea 4 11 17 14 — 46