Konawaena cruises to semis

BY KIM BAXTER | SPECIAL TO WEST HAWAII TODAY

HONOLULU — The Konawaena girls basketball team sauntered onto the court after the announcement of the starting lineups for its state quarterfinal game against Kaiser at McKinley High School on Wednesday.

The five starters stepped onto the court with swagger, having the definitive No. 1 state ranking and the memory of last year’s drubbing of this same Kaiser team in this same gym.

And then they stood there.

And waited.

And waited.

And then came word from the referees that the game couldn’t start yet because they were waiting on the OK from OC 16, the television station airing the contest. So they walked over to the bench to receive some last-minute words from coach Bobbie Awa. They giggled awkwardly and waited some more.

Finally, after a five-minute delay, the game started.

But when it did, that pregame hiccup set the tone for what proved to be an uneven 62-42 quarterfinal victory in the Hawaii High School Athletic Association Division I state tournament.

It’s not like the Wildcats were going to lose to Kaiser. They were simply much too athletic and much too talented to fall to the Oahu Interscholastic Association’s fourth seed. But in winning and advancing, Awa could only speak of her “disappointment” afterward.

“I was very disappointed,” Awa said with a wry smile. “The game just got really sloppy, and that’s not a reflection of Konawaena basketball. So yeah, we’re not very happy.”

The win sends top-seeded Konawaena (25-3) to the semifinals, where it will play Kahuku at the Neal Blaisdell Center today. Tipoff is 7 p.m.

There were positives in the win. After ending the first quarter with a buzzer-beating layup and starting the second quarter on a 12-4 run, the game was never in jeopardy. The defense forced 12 first-half turnovers.

Reigning state Player of the Year Lia Galdeira cruised to a game-high 18 points and looked like she could score at will. Sophomore Makani Wall hit three 3-pointers off the bench.

Junior Courtney Kaupu, who finished with 13 points, found her shooting stroke and gave the team some much-needed scoring balance.

“Courtney did an outstanding job,” Awa said. “She’s kind of been in a slump, but she really stepped it up tonight, and I’m really proud of the way she played.”

But the bulk of Awa’s postgame talk focused on her team’s struggles, primarily the shaky play from the bench, the team’s lack of defensive rotation that allowed Kaiser to repeatedly drive the lane and score layups, and the “tired” play from her daughter, Dawnyelle Awa, who mustered just four points.

Instead of celebrating being one step closer to a second straight state title and the school’s third in four years, Bobbie Awa questioned her team’s uncharacteristic stumbles on Wednesday’s big stage. Was it jitters?

Was it a lack of focus?

Was it a bad sign for the team’s final two games in the state tournament?

Konawaena will find some answers quickly tonight.

Kaiser coach Simon Bitanga, who has had a front-row seat for the Wildcats’ dominance in two straight quarterfinal wins over his Cougars (12-4), knows exactly what he thinks about Konawaena after Wednesday’s game.

“That’s the best team in the state,” he said without hesitation.

Konawaena 15 20 16 11 62
Kaiser 7 8 16 11 42

c Lahainaluna 46, Waiakea 28: Ana Lauese scored 16 points and Glelynn Casil added 12 points to power the Lunas, who held the Warriors to just five points in the second half.

Waiakea trailed just 25-23 at halftime, but was outscored 21-5 in the second half. The BIIF runner-up made just seven field goals. The Lunas (15-0), the Maui Interscholastic League champion, had 18 baskets.

Sefulu Faavae scored nine points, and Alyssa Ferreira had seven to lead the Warriors (12-2), who play Mililani (12-4) at 3 p.m. today in a consolation game.

Waiakea 9 14 2 3 – 28
Lahainaluna 15 10 11 10 – 46

Division II

c Kamehameha-Hawaii 57, Hawaii Baptist 42: Casey Poe had a brilliant all-around performance to fuel the Warriors in the quarterfinals. The 5-foot-10 sophomore forward scored 22 points, grabbed nine rebounds, recorded six steals and got four blocks for the BIIF champion at Kalani High’s gym.

Namele Naipo-Arsiga added nine points, Chelsea Poe and Bobbi Montibon had eight each, and Shaylyn Kahawai chipped in seven points, setting up another game against an Interscholastic League of Honolulu opponent.

No. 2 seed Kamehameha (11-2) plays No. 3 seed Maryknoll (14-0), the ILH champion, at 7 p.m. today in the semifinals at Radford High’s gym.

Lauren Sumida and Jennifer Uehara scored nine points each to lead the Eagles (12-3).

Hawaii Baptist 14 11 10 7 — 42

KS-Hawaii 16 16 12 13 — 57

c Hawaii Prep 48, Radford 45: Leahi Lindsey scored 18 points, Chancis Fernandez added 12 and Eliyah Fernandez had 10 to shoulder the offensive scoring load and help Ka Makani upset the defending HHSAA Division II state champion in the quarterfinals at Radford High’s gym.

Imani Wimbush, a 6-0 junior forward, scored 23 points, and Korie Johnson, a 5-9 junior center, had 11 for the Rams (9-5), the OIA champion.

HPA (10-5) plays No. 4 seed Kauai (12-2) at 5 p.m. today in the semifinals at Radford.

HPA 9 20 8 11 — 48

Radford 8 14 10 13 — 45

c Kauai 43, Honokaa 23: Kristie Henry was tough to handle at Radford High’s gym, scoring 24 points, one point more than the Dragons’ total.

Bristy Agu added nine points, and no other Red Raider had more than four points for the Kauai Interscholastic Federation champion (12-2), which buried 18 field goals, compared to Honokaa’s nine shots.

Precious Chong scored 10 points and Hunter Liftee added six to lead the BIIF runner-up Dragons (8-6), who face Radford (9-5) at 5 p.m. today at Kalani High’s gym in a consolation game.

Honokaa 7 4 7 5 — 23

Kauai 9 14 6 14 — 43