DeForest Buckner’s putback as time expired in overtime gave No. 5 Punahou a stunning 53-52 win in overtime over No. 3 Farrington last night in the opening round of the St. Francis/Merv Lopes Classic at Manoa Recreation Center.

Buckner finished with 21 points and 11 rebounds. Seven of those caroms were on the offensive glass, including the grab that led to the game-winning bucket.

"I told myself, ‘I gotta get that rebound,’ " Buckner said of his quick follow shot. "I’m thinking about the clock. I did panic."

It was a payback win of sorts. Farrington routed Punahou a month ago, 60-43, at Hemmeter Fieldhouse. Buckner was unavailable at the time due to a knee injury. His return made a big difference; Punahou outrebounded the physical Govs 27-19, corralling 15 offensive rebounds.

"We executed pretty well down the stretch," Punahou coach Darren Matsuda said. "Farrington beat us good the first time. Farrington’s an awesome team. They’re well-coached and they play with a lot of heart."

Meanwhile, somewhere in American Samoa, Lancelot "K.K." Williams will likely be frustrated by news of the final score. Farrington’s key low-post scorer, a college prospect as a linebacker, is playing in the Samoa Bowl this week.

"K.K. would’ve scored three or four points for us," Govs coach Allan Silva modestly said of his leading scorer and rebounder.

Jeffrey Madarang led the Govs with 19 points, including three treys. J.P. Saycon and 6-foot-6 Viane Vaina added 12 points each.

"It’s a great experience for us tonight. We’re going back to the house and just continue to get better," Silva said. "A lot of things we could’ve done first, second, third, fourth quarter. Punahou’s a much improved team than when they played us before."

For Punahou, staying alive in the winners’ bracket is nice.

"I’m relieved. It’s a good experience for our kids. We’re exactly halfway through the season, so this was a litmus test for us," Matsuda said. "You can’t hope for anything more being an inexperienced team."

Williams and the Govs won’t get another shot at the Buffanblu because Farrington is mandated by the Oahu Interscholastic Association to play in Division II. This was the last chance to face a D-I program ranked as high as Punahou.

Punahou used a mix of 2-3 and 1-2-2 matchup zones to slow the pace, but halfcourt traps proved most effective. Farrington committed 25 turnovers, nullifying a good shooting performance (50 percent, 20-for-40) from the field.

The game was tight from the opening tip, which is why Saycon’s spinning halfcourt shot from the sideline — all net — was a factor as the third quarter closed with Farrington down 36-33.

In the late going, Farrington had a 46-44 lead after free throws by Madarang with 32 seconds remaining in regulation.

Malik Johnson (six points) swished a 15-foot baseline jumper to tie it, and Nick Velasquez came up with a steal on the inbounds pass. The sophomore hit two foul shots for a 48-46 Punahou lead with 13.2 seconds to go in regulation.

Saycon drew a foul on a drive through the middle and sank two free throws to tie it at 48 with 2.2 seconds left. Velasquez missed a 3-pointer from the right wing at the buzzer.

From there, Punahou showed more heads-up play than the Govs. A technical foul on Ryan Reyes allowed Velasquez to give Punahou a 50-48 lead with two foul shots.

Matsuda pulled another card from his sleeve, lining up his defense in a 1-3-1 zone to start overtime. A free throw by Reyes tied it at 50-all with less than 30 seconds left, but Paul Solomon inexplicably fouled Punahou’s Patrick O’Neill on the ensuing inbounds pass.

O’Neill hit one of two free throws with 26.5 seconds to play, and Punahou retained possession on a hustle play by Johnson. However, he missed a 1-and-1 opportunity after Saycon committed his fifth personal foul.

Farrington took a 52-51 lead on Vaina’s follow shot with 9 seconds left. From there, the Buffanblu drew up a baseline jumper for Johnson, who missed from the arc. Buckner was ready, however, battling Vaina under the glass for the winning outback.

After falling behind early, the Buffanblu got a boost from its second unit, sparked by Steven Lakalaka and Velasquez.

"On a scale of 1 to 10 with 10 being the best, we’re at about a 6," Buckner said.