HILO – This is how the crosstown rivalry between Hilo and Waiakea is supposed to end: High drama, down to the wire, and joy for one team and heartache for another.
Waiakea toppled Hilo 54-50 in overtime in the BIIF Division I girls basketball semifinals Tuesday night at Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium.
“We knew it was going to be a battle,” Waiakea coach Alika Smith said. “Both teams played up to their potential. That’s a good group (Hilo) over there.”
In the other semifinal, Konawaena eliminated Keaau 62-20.
During the regular season, Waiakea defeated Hilo 55-52.
Waiakea (10-1) will play Konawaena (11-0) for the BIIF championship at 7 p.m. Wednesday at the Civic.
“We knew the road goes through Kona,” Smith said. “We’ll be ready.”
Then the former UH-Manoa standout showed his self-deprecation sense of humor.
“They’ve got young legs, unlike me,” he joked.
The season is over for the Vikings (8-3) and the Cougars (7-4).
It’s another year that two of Hilo’s best players, sophomores Keirstyn Agonias and Veda Galima, won’t get the chance to play at the state tournament.
Seniors Mindy Kawaha, Tatiana Rideout, and Jamila Collins-Ebanez went in 2017 as freshmen when Hilo last qualified.
Agonias scored 18 points on 6 of 10 shooting, and Rideout had eight points to lead the Vikings, who shot 50 percent from the field, including 3 of 9 from 3-point range.
Imai scored 21 points and made her living at the free throw line, sinking 8 of 12, and Destynee Williams added 12 points, making 5 of 6 free throws, for the Warriors, who 47 percent from the floor, including 3 of 12 from beyond the arc.
Waiakea excelled at the free throw line and hit 17 of 23. Hilo had a rough go and made just 13 of 21 free throws.
In the four-minute overtime, Hilo decided to play for the last shot, but Williams drew a foul with 1:09 remaining. The Warriors were in the double bonus, so there was less pressure on Williams, who sank both free throws for a 51-49 lead.
“She did a great job,” Smith said. “She also hit a 3-pointer for us. She’s just a junior but she’s tough.”
Williams was fouled again with 50.4 remaining. She stepped to the line and knocked down both free throws for a 53-49 lead.
Agonias drew a foul and made 1 of 2 free throws to cut Waiakea’s lead to 53-50 with 32.6 seconds left.
Imai nailed 1 of 2 free throws to bump Waiakea ahead 54-50 with 13.1 second left.
Agonias dribbled down the court and fired a 3-point attempt. It missed and time ran out.
In the fourth quarter, it was all about clutch plays from both sides.
Imai went 4 of 4 free throws, all on one-and-ones, the last to slice Hilo’s lead to 42-41 with 2:17 left.
Then Keeli-Jade Smith, not known as a long-distance shooter, knocked down a 3-pointer to push Waiakea ahead 46-45 with 1:09 to go. Smith finished with seven points.
Galima swished home 4 of 4 free throws, the last to tie it 49-49 with 25.8 seconds left.
Smith missed a jump hook at the buzzer to force overtime.
To kick off the third quarter, Imai anticipated Kawaha’s dribble and picked her pocket. Imai raced to the rim, scored and drew a foul. She missed the free throw but Jazelle Dorser grabbed the rebound and was fouled.
She made both free throws, and Waiakea took a 26-23 lead.
Imai later drained a 3-pointer for a 29-27 lead with 1:38 left in the third quarter.
Kawaha, Hilo’s best ball-handler, was pulled because of foul trouble and Hilo’s ball security issues popped up. Hilo had 13 turnovers; Waiakea had 15.
Imai drew a foul and sank two free throws. Then Tayvia Cabatbat drew a foul off a turnover possession and buried both free throws.
That was a 4-0 run when Kawaha was on the bench, and Waiakea took a 33-29 lead into the final eight minutes.
In the first quarter, both teams made interesting matchup choices. Kawaha, at 5 feet 1, and Imai, at 5-8, guarded each other. Smith guarded Agonias.
It was run-and-gun in the first eight minutes. Imai scored six points, and Williams had five points. Agonias had five points.
In the second quarter, Agonias guarded Imai, who is good at drawing fouls. She made 1 of 2 free throws to trim Hilo’s lead to 21-18 with 3:55 left until halftime.
Keani Midel and Teijah Rosas-Suenishi each swished a 3-pointer for Hilo in the first half. Waiakea didn’t make any long-distance shots, relying on its track speed to score.
Then Waiakea’s transition game went into high gear. Off a missed 3-pointer, the Warriors rebounded, ran and passed to Dorser, who easily banked in a shot under the basket, cutting into Hilo’s lead at halftime, 23-22.
Konawaena 62, Keaau 20: Kaliana Salazar-Harrell scored 23 points on 10 of 14 shooting, and Caiyle Kaupu provided the inside punch with 18 points on 8 of 17 shooting for the Wildcats (11-0), who shot 50 percent from the field, including 3 of 10 from 3-point range.
Anela Gonzalez-Tremaine finished with 13 points on 5 of 11 shooting to lead the Cougars (7-4), who have been Division I’s fourth team, stuck behind Konawaena, Waiakea, and Hilo for too long of a time.
The Wildcats led 32-8 at halftime.
In the third quarter, Salazar-Harrell, a sophomore guard, displayed her scoring ability. She cut to the basket and scored, drained two 3-pointers, and beat the defense down the court for a transition layup.
Gonzalez-Tremaine scored on a layup early in the third quarter and hit a jump shot in the fourth period. The All-BIIF first team pick from a year ago had four games with 30 points, all wins for the Cougars.
She’s strong enough to get her shot in the paint and quick enough to slice past defenders. Her coach Shawn Fuiava believes she’s one of the BIIF’s best players.
“She has the ability to get what she wants inside or outside when she puts the effort into it,” he said. “She’s in the running for player of the year. Keaau went 7-3 (during the regulars season). That’s a big improvement for us.”
Is Gonzalez-Tremaine destined to be one of the league’s top players never to play at the state level?
Fuiava believes strongly in his young team, which starts two sophomores in Kuuipo Adolpho and Kiare Kepono and three juniors in Gonzalez-Tremaine, Shayla Kaheaku, and Jaime Fernandez.
“We’re a young team, a lot of sophomores,” he said. “It’s the first full year of basketball for a lot of them. We’ll be a force to reckon with. We’re on an upward trend. It’s coming.”
