There seemingly were as many big sports stories in Hawaii as there were days in 2011. Some came from the national and international stages, such as boxer Brian Viloria winning the WBO flyweight title; Haleiwa’s John John Florence becoming the youngest Triple Crown of Surfing champion at age 19; Hawaii gaining two more golfers on the LPGA Tour in Stephanie Kono and Ayaka Kaneko; and Brigham Young-Hawaii finishing second in the NCAA Division II men’s basketball tournament.

Others were of more local interest: UH All-American Kolten Wong drafted 22nd overall in the MLB draft, the highest selection for a Rainbow position player; the revival of Waipahu’s Jerome Williams’ pitching career — he is a candidate for the rotation for the Los Angeles Angels, World Series contenders; and state championship runs ending for Punahou boys baseball after seven straight and Kamehameha girls volleyball after six in a row.

Only five stories could make the cut for the top picks of 2011. These are the ones, as selected by the Star-Advertiser sports staff:

1. UH football’s year of turmoil, change

After a 6-7 season and no bowl game for the second time in three years, Greg McMackin retired as the Warriors’ head coach. He departed with a 29-25 overall record, foregoing $500,000 of the $1.1 million left on the final year of his contract. The selection committee moved quickly, with Norm Chow being named UH’s 22nd head coach after a two-week search, making him the first Asian-American head coach at a major college football program. It is the first head coaching job for the Punahou School graduate, who had spent nearly 40 years as an assistant at the college and NFL levels.

2. Surfer Carissa Moore’s rise to top

The 18-year-old dominated the ASP Women’s World Tour, making history by making six finals in six events — three victories and three second-place finishes. She was crowned world champion after the Roxy Pro Biarritz in France in July, becoming the first Hawaii female surfer to win a world title since Margo Oberg in 1981 and the first American woman to take the crown since Lisa Anderson in 1997. The youngest-ever ASP women’s world champion became the first female to be given a wild-card entry into the Men’s Triple Crown of Surfing earlier this month.

3. Kahuku football perseveres

A year after the top-ranked Red Raiders were disqualified from the postseason for alleged use of an ineligible player, they had other hurdles to overcome before defeating Punahou 30-24 in the state championship game. The drama included the 33-day suspension of head coach Reggie Torres for not reporting an illegal substance brought to a preseason football camp by a JV player, and the loss of top back Aofaga Wily, who returned to earn All-State honors. It was the sixth state title for Kahuku (12-1), the first since 2006, and the first for an OIA team since Leilehua in 2007.

4. UH men’s basketball revival

Under first-year head coach Gib Arnold, the Rainbow Warriors finished 19-13, making a postseason tournament appearance for the first time since 2004. The offseason included the goodwill tour of Asia. This season, UH beat then-No. 14 Xavier, its first win over a ranked team since the 2005 season opener against Michigan State.

5. Wahine volleyball’s memorable year

Three-time All-American and Lowe’s Senior CLASS winner Kanani Danielson led Hawaii to a 31-2 record in a season that included a story line in a "Hawaii Five-0" episode and hosting for the subregional for the first time since 2003. A capacity Stan Sheriff Center crowd witnessed a five-set loss to USC in the regional semifinal. The Wahine — whose other loss was to eventual NCAA champion UCLA — were ranked No. 5 in the final AVCA Coaches Top 25.