Kalaheo basketball coach Alika Smith was a bit concerned about getting the Mustangs revved up for a 9:30 a.m. game the day after Christmas.
Kaleb Gilmore helped allay any such worries.
Gilmore jump-started the Mustangs with their first bucket Friday morning and led Kalaheo to a 65-45 win over Kalani in the opening game of the Punahou Invitational at Hemmeter Fieldhouse.
Gilmore, the Mustangs’ point guard, scored a game-high 16 points, Kekai Smith added 11 and Kupaa Harrison had 10 in his return from an ankle injury as Kalaheo advanced to Saturday’s quarterfinal round. The Mustangs will face Kamehameha at 7 p.m. The Warriors advanced with a 55-44 win over Wilson (Oregon).
Kalaheo entered the 16-team tournament closer to full strength with both of its All-State performers — Gilmore and Harrison — back in action after both missed most of last week’s Pete Smith Classic.
Gilmore, a member of the Star-Advertiser’s Fab 15 at Maryknoll last season, sat out Kalaheo’s first three games last week while he recovered from a concussion. He returned last Saturday in a loss to Farrington in the third-place game and the subsequent practices gave Gilmore a chance to get back into rhythm.
"I just had to get in better shape," Gilmore said. "It felt good to get my shot back to where it should be and get everybody shooting."
Along with his scoring, Gilmore ran an offense in which six players scored at least seven points and sparked the Mustangs with his quickness on both ends of the floor.
"He handles the ball, he puts so much pressure on the defense and alleviates some of the pressure on some of our other guys ball-handling-wise," Smith said. "Somebody who can just take it and go with how quick he is, I haven’t seen somebody that quick in a long, long time."
Harrison sat out all of last week’s tournament and Smith eased the a 6-foot-5 guard back into the rotation off the bench. Harrison hit a 3-pointer from the wing just before the first-quarter buzzer to give Kalaheo a 16-7 lead and made another in the fourth quarter.
"He shoots the ball, he’s a mismatch underneath, but more importantly he has the brains," Smith said, "His IQ for basketball is so high, he makes the right decisions."
Guard Cory Mitchell led Kalani with 13 points.
"We got to see where we stack up against one of the better teams in the state, so it was a good measuring stick for us," Kalani coach Nathan Davis said.
PUNAHOU INVITATIONAL
Friday
Kalaheo 65, Kalani 45
Kamehameha 54, Wilson 44
Hawaii Prep 48, Mt. Pleasant 36
Maryknoll 50, Moanalua 44
Farrington 63, Punahou II-AA 54
Kahuku 69, Iolani II-AA 34
Mid-Pacific 36, KS-Hawaii 34
Punahou 71, Castle 26
Saturday
at Maryknoll
Moanlaua vs. Punahou II-AA, 9:30 a.m.
Maryknoll vs. Farrington, 11 a.m.
at Mid-Pacific
KS-Hawaii vs. Iolani II-AA, 2 p.m.
Mid-Pacific vs. Hawaii Prep, 3:30 p.m.
at Punahou
Kalani vs. Wilson, 4 p.m.
Castle vs. Mt. Pleasant, 5:30
Kalaheo vs. Kamehameha, 7 p.m.
Punahou vs. Hawaii Prep, 8:30 p.m.
ST. FRANCIS HOLIDAY HOOPS CLASSIC
Friday
Chestermere 79, Assets 29
Radford 54, Christian Academy 37
Lahainaluna 57, Le Jardin 14
Kailua 54, Saint Louis II 46
Kamehameha II 59, St. Anthony 56, OT
St. Francis 68, St. Joseph 61, OT
Saturday
Chestermere vs. Kamehameha II, 10 a.m.
Assets vs. St. Anthony, 11:30 a.m.
Le Jardin vs. Saint Louis II, 1 p.m.
Christian Academy vs. St. Joseph, 3 p.m.
Kailua vs. Lahainaluna, 4:30 p.m.
St. Francis vs. Radford, 6 p.m.
