Punahou downs Maryknoll to force rematch

Punahou’s first-half flurry against Maryknoll on Monday ensured the Interscholastic League of Honolulu Division I boys basketball season will be extended one more game.

The Buffanblu moved the ball effectively and knocked down a bunch of open 3-pointers in the first half en route to a 66-51 victory over the host Spartans in the final of the ILH single-elimination tournament.

Punahou (10-2) shot 7-for-8 from 3-point range before halftime, including three makes from Kaulana Makaula, to take a 39-18 lead at the break.

“That’s when we’re at our best, moving the ball and playing at our pace. We hit shots,” said Punahou coach Darren Matsuda. “When we play together that’s what we’re capable of. We were hot, too, so that helps definitely.”

The Buffanblu and Spartans, the ILH regular-season champions, will play Wednesday at Maryknoll for the league’s overall championship and seeded berth at the HHSAA Division I Championships, which start Monday.

“They’re going to come out swinging, so we need to be ready,” Matsuda said. “We have to put this game behind us right away, work on things tomorrow during practice and come back Wednesday and just try to play a good game.”

Punahou and Maryknoll (10-2) had already qualified for the state tournament.

Zayne Chong finished with 17 points and Makaula and Duke Clemens each added 14 for Punahou.

“We came out really well and were hitting a lot of shots,” Chong said. “Last week, we had off, so we just went to the gym and worked on getting better.”

Makaula scored 12 points and Chong added 11 in the first half for the Buffanblu, who were 15-for-26 from the field.

“We didn’t really guard our man and got lost on defense,” said Maryknoll’s Isiah Gelacio, who finished with 14 points. Jordyn Perez also finished with 14 points.

The beneficiary of Punahou’s ball movement was Clemens, who scored most of his points in the paint.

“In practice I like to work on those jump hooks and going up strong,” he said. “One thing the coaches really emphasize is going up strong and finishing hard at the basket and getting fouled.”

The Spartans struggled against the Buffanblu’s man-to-man pressure defense in the first half, going 6-for-21 from the field and committing 10 turnovers.

Maryknoll got as close as 51-40 after a dunk by Marcus Tobin with 3:28 left in the game.

“We made some shots and we started to attack the basket more and started scoring, but we still gave up a lot of shots on defense,” Gelacio said.

Punahou responded with an 8-2 run to regain control. The Buffanblu made nine of 13 free-throw attempts over the final 3:11.