Patience was required growing up in the Imai household, being the youngest of Kirk and Kelli’s four children.
But Kelsie Imai had good role models with her three older siblings, Kirsty, Kamie and Kirk Jr., all standout basketball players.
When Imai signed with the Rainbow Wahine, she had to wait her turn. But when she got an opportunity, she made the most of it and was rewarded on Monday.
Imai was named to the All-Big West Freshmen team, after last year’s All-Freshman team pick and point guard Nae Nae Calhoun suffered a season-ending injury. Freshman forward Daejah Phillips was named Best Sixth Player of the Year.
The 2020 Waiakea graduate averages 5.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 4.0 assists per game, and recorded her first double-double, 10 points, and 12 rebounds, against UC Davis last Friday.
“I’m super stoked to have gotten this recognition with my good friend and teammate Daejah Phillips,” Imai said. “I’m just super grateful to play basketball during this crazy time.”
Imai and the Rainbow Wahine (8-7) play CSU Bakersfield (9-8) in the first round of the Big West Tournament at noon Wednesday in Las Vegas.
Asked to describe the Wahine, it sounded like a self-description of herself.
“I’m still the competitive player that I was back at Waiakea, but I’ve grown to be a little more aggressive,” she said. “Our team is a group of girls who have a lot of fight in them. We’ve been in quarantine, got our games canceled but it never stopped us from playing hard and giving the best that we can.
“The most fun part of the season was just being able to travel with my teammates every other week. It allowed us to grow closer and of course create so many memories.”
Imai is in Las Vegas but Hilo and her hometown are always in her heart. It’s mandatory for Hilo’s own local girl to give a shout-out to everyone.
“I would like to thank all my friends and family who continue to support me and motivate me to be the best version of myself on and off the court,” she said. “My goal going into college was to represent my home well, and I hope that’s what I’m doing so far.”
Also on Monday, UH-Hilo junior point guard Darren Williams was named the PacWest Player of the Week for the first time.
He scored a combined 42 points in two games against Chaminade, but the honor is bittersweet because the Vulcans lost the second game and a chance at the postseason.
“It’s always nice to get some recognition, but it’s pretty hard to celebrate the award after the way the season unfolded the last couple of days,” he said. “I’m really just grateful that we got to play basketball this year when the majority of my peers weren’t able to with the pandemic.
“As a team, we proved to ourselves and others that we have what it takes to compete at a high level every night. Coach Kaniela Aiona, coach Jamison Montgomery and coach Steve Kinder deserve a lot of praise for being able to make this happen in year one.”
Williams averaged 14.4 points per game on 43% shooting from the field and had 37 assists and 33 turnovers.
There’s room for improvement and the work doesn’t stop for Williams, who’s 5 feet 8 and 125 pounds but much stronger than he looks.
“The offseason is the best time of the year to work on your body,” he said. “I like to spend a lot of time in the weight room even if I don’t look like it. I’m getting stronger and able to lift heavier weight than I could before then I consider that a win.
“Of course, I’ll be ironing out my game on the court as well, there’s always room to grow no matter how good you are. I consider myself a film junkie, so I’ll be watching a lot of our games figuring out the specifics of what I need to improve on.”
He’s been the conference MVP at Chaffey College in California and won a league title, so he knows what success feels like.
Williams feels that the Vulcans will be better next year, especially if the key seniors Sasa Vuksanovic, Jordan Graves, Steven Hubbell, and Greg Walter return for another year under the NCAA’s COVID-19 scenario.
“We have a lot of room to grow. Although we went 10-2, we all felt that we were better than we were performing,” he said. “The more we play together the more we gain chemistry with each other. The sky is the limit.
“We want to be a team other teams hate playing. We want to be a team that is expected to make the playoffs every year and compete for national championships. I feel we took a step toward that.”
As a noted Minnesota Timberwolves fan (it’s a lonely club with him and UHH athletic director Pat Guillen), Williams is overly optimistic by nature.
His Timberwolves sit in last place in the Northwest Division, a whopping 20 games back of the Utah Jazz.
He even gets the jokes: What’s the difference between the Timberwolves and a turtle? The turtle runs faster and can hide in its shell when every other NBA team is hungry.
They are the only NBA team with single-digit wins. They are historically terrible. Yet Williams cheers them on.
“This year was a tough one,” he said. “We need the No. 1 pick again.”
