The Punahou boys basketball team was short-handed Friday night, with two of the state’s tallest and most talented players unavailable.

Nick Velasquez, a 6-foot-1 Buffanblu junior, was there to play big against Farrington.

Velasquez scored 21 points, including the go-ahead 3-pointer with 23 seconds remaining, as Punahou beat Farrington 57-55 in the semifinals of the AOP Classic at Farrington.

On the 3-pointer, Velasquez got behind a double screen at the top of the key and calmly drained the shot for the go-ahead points.

"It was a staggered screen for Nick and we actually had another option on it, but it was open so we took it," said Punahou coach Darren Matsuda.

Velasquez said: "It just happened. I happened to be open and it went in."

On Farrington’s final possession, it missed a putback but gained control after the ball was knocked out of bounds. The Governors then missed a long 3-pointer as time expired.

Punahou’s DeForest Bucker, a 6-foot-7 senior, was unavailable because he’s on a football recruiting trip in the state of Oregon. Malik Johnson, a 6-6 senior, was sick and didn’t attend the game.

"This team has great character. We believe in each other," Matsuda said. "They knew any time we play hard and give 100 percent we always have a chance to win. No matter who we have, whether we have all smalls or all bigs, we’re going to compete."

Punahou, ranked No. 2 in the Star-Advertiser’s Top 10 poll, will play No. 5 Academy of the Pacific in the final today at 6 p.m.

Punahou (2-0) went on a 24-6 run over a 6-minute span of the third period for a 45-38 lead. Velasquez scored eight points during the run, including five in 7 seconds. He hit a 3-pointer from the left baseline and made a layup after a steal on the inbounds pass to get Punahou within 34-32 with 4:52 remaining in the third.

"It was a big momentum boost for us," Velasquez said of the five-point spurt.

Farrington, ranked No. 4, rallied to take a 47-45 lead with 6:33 left, and Punahou scored nine in a row to take a seven-point lead with 3:12 remaining. The Governors went on a 8-0 run, with Viane Vaina’s free throw putting Farrington up 55-54 with 1:06 remaining.

"Great game. For early in the season we played very well," Farrington coach Allan Silva said.

Kupono Fey added 13 points for Punahou, which forced nine turnovers in the third period. The Buffanblu made 14 of 27 field-goal attempts in the second half after going just 7-for-31 in the first.

"We were a little cold in the first half, but we warmed up in the second half," Matsuda said.

Vaina and Mikey Kleman each scored 13 points for Farrington (3-2).

No. 5 AOP 62, No. 8 Moanalua 56

Wilson MacLeod scored 12 points and the Dolphins used a big third period to beat Na Menehune in the late semifinal.

Academy of the Pacific (4-0) outscored Moanalua 16-6 in the third and Mattia Raebal hit a 3-pointer on the first possession of the fourth for a 44-31 Dolphins advantage.

Na Menehune got within four twice, the last coming at 60-56 after a 3-pointer by Daib Stark with 13.5 seconds remaining. AOP hit six free throws over the final 1:10.

Stark scored 10 points for Moanalua (3-2).