Punahou and Farrington traded lopsided wins in their first two preseason meetings. So, naturally, the third was a tight battle decided in overtime.

For its second straight game in the Pete Smith Classic, Farrington forced overtime with a bucket in the final seconds of regulation. But top-ranked Punahou managed to pull away in the extra period and advance to the tournament final with a 51-41 win Friday night at Kalaheo.

After Farrington forward Bryce Tatupu-Leopoldo banked in the tying jumper in the lane with two seconds left in regulation, Punahou’s Kala’i Santos hit a 3-pointer to open the scoring in overtime and the Buffanblu held the second-ranked Governors without a field goal the rest of the way.

"They’re a really good team and I expected it to be a fight," Santos said.

Dayson Watanabe scored six of his team-high 13 points in the overtime period and Santos finished with 12 as Punahou was able to grind through the halfcourt battle.

"It was more of a slow down game which is not something we’re necessarily used to," Punahou coach Darren Matsuda said. "That was good for us. … We have to learn how to win these games and take care of the ball at the end of the game."

Farrington forward Tua Unutoa powered the Governors in the post and scored 12 of his 19 points in the fourth quarter and overtime. But Farrington, which pulled out an overtime win over Damien in the quarterfinals on Thursday, struggled to find much offense otherwise.

"Any time we can get into a game with a competitor like Punahou it’s great for us," Farrington coach Allan Silva said.

"We’re still growing as a team, we have to find ourselves. It was a great game. But we have to get better offensively."

Punahou’s Justin Kam and Farrington’s Jake Smith combined for 50 points and eight 3-pointers in the Buffanblu’s 68-50 win in the OIA-ILH Challenge at Moanalua on Dec. 13. They scored just eight between them in Friday’s semifinal rematch and the teams went into halftime with Punahou leading 15-11.

"They box-and-oned (Kam) and we filled in and tried to help him get open and take shots when we’re open too," Santos said.

Farrington’s Ranan Mamiya shadowed Kam, who scored 26 points in the previous meeting, and the Governors held him scoreless until Kam hit two free throws with 38.6 seconds left in overtime.

Likewise, Smith found few open looks in a six-point performance for Farrington. But Unutoa kept the Governors close with putbacks and power moves in the post.

But after Santos hit his second 3-pointer of the game early in overtime, Watanabe followed with a driving shot to stretch the margin to five and Punahou protected the lead the rest of the way.

MCKINLEY 56, KALAHEO 38

Dan Villejo scored 10 of his game-high 22 points in the fourth quarter and the Tigers pulled away from the Mustangs to join Punahou in the Pete Smith Classic championship game.

After Jonah Howard hit a tying 3-pointer with 1:35 left in the third quarter, Villejo’s layup gave McKinley a 34-32 lead going into the fourth. The Tigers held Kalaheo without a field goal in the final period while outscoring the Mustangs 22-6.

OTHER KALAHEO SCORES

Fleetwood Park 72, Anuenue 18
Castle 60, Kamehameha II 48
Trinity Fox 61, Konawaena 49
Leilehua 47, Damien 35