She’s the ‘unreal’ deal

Pound for pound, inch for inch, there may have never been a player like Lia Galdeira in Hawaii’s girls basketball history.

There may never be another, too. The senior guard was voted by coaches and media as the player of the year in the Star-Advertiser All-State selections, her third top award in four years.

Her athleticism has always been unmatched, and the numbers backed that up. Galdeira, a 5-foot-8 multi-position master, led Konawaena with 18 points, eight rebounds and five steals per game. The Wildcats, with Dawnyelle Awa at the point, Galdeira everywhere else and a strong complementary nucleus, won their third state title in four years.

But it wasn’t just about physical superiority. The ‘Cats rarely called an isolation play for Galdeira, who knew precisely when to pick up the scoring slack and when to involve teammates. If anything, she was much more aggressive on the defensive side of the floor.

"She’s a game-changer on both ends of the court," said ‘Iolani coach Eddie Maruyama, who guided his squad to the state final against Konawaena. "Her defense is very outstanding. She’s disruptive and forces the other team out of its comfort zone."

Galdeira’s skill set was matched by her energy level.

"She’s so athletic, very explosive. Her offensive rebounding, tip-ins, putbacks, she’s just very tenacious," Maruyama added. "She does all the little things that make her a complete player, and she plays hard on every possession."

Galdeira rarely scored more than 20 points in a game, even against mismatched opponents in league play. Instead, she stepped up in the clutch, particularly at the state tourney. She scored 18 points in a 62-42 win over Kaiser, then had 16 points and 11 rebounds in a 60-42 win over Kahuku. Galdeira capped it with a 21-point, eight-board, five-steal effort in a 56-45 comeback win over ‘Iolani.

Kaiser coach Simon Bitanga got to see Galdeira up close when she played with one of his offseason traveling teams.

"She’s a winner, man. She doesn’t want to lose and she takes care of business," Bitanga said. "Even when she traveled with us, she said, ‘No worry, chief.’ Her will is strong. She’s just unreal."

Waiakea coach Grant Kauhi saw plenty of Konawaena during their regular-season and playoff tiffs on the Big Island.

"Whatever her team needed from her — scoring, defense, rebounding — she could do everything," Kauhi said. "We were at Kona for a game and Dawnyelle got into early foul trouble. We went to a diamond-and-one (defense), but Lia went to the post and took advantage. We never saw that part of her game before. She had all kinds of moves. Then we put a bigger girl on her, and Lia took her outside and beat her off the dribble."

There are coaches who would’ve been tempted to iso Galdeira and let her score 40 points per game, but she thrived on sharing the ball offensively.

"There’s something about her — if they needed her to score, she’d score," Kauhi said. "If not, then everybody else got involved. In the (state) title game, they went seven deep in the first half. After that, it was just the starters and lights out after that."

Awa, the senior point guard, was second in the voting, followed by ‘Iolani’s Kylie Maeda. Galdeira and Awa are heading to Washington State next season. Maeda will play for BYU.

Lahainaluna was the only team to take a state-title game (2010) during the Galdeira-Awa era.

"Galdeira as player of the year, that’s automatic," Lady Lunas coach Todd Rickard said. "Guard, forward, center, she can shoot and play defense. All-around, there’s nobody better. I’ve been coaching 18 years and she’s at least in the top three. She would give college teams a run for their money. She’s one of a kind."

With Galdeira departing for college soon, opposing teams are a little more optimistic.

"I hated when she played us," Rickard added. "I wish them all the best in college, but I’m glad she and Dawnyelle are gone."

Konawaena coach Bobbie Awa, Dawnyelle’s mother, was voted coach of the year after leading her team to a 26-3 overall record. That included wins over Bishop Gorman (Nev.), Oregon City and Brea Olinda (Calif.) for the ‘Iolani Classic crown. The only losses were at the Nike Tournament of Champions in Arizona.

Maruyama was second in the voting, followed by outgoing Pearl City coach Mike Morton and Scott DeSilva of Kahuku.

Galdeira also led the all-defensive team voting. She was joined by Awa, Maeda, Saphyre Rezentes and Kamehameha-Hawaii’s Chelsea Poe.

Most improved honors went to Konawaena forward Courtney Kaupu. Abrianna Johnson-Edwards of ‘Iolani, Kiki Robertson of Mid-Pacific and Adrienne-Jean Sylva of Pearl City were among the top vote-getters.

In four years with Galdeira and Awa on the court, Konawaena went 110-8, including 49-0 against BIIF competition.