The fourth time was simply not the charm for a red-hot ‘Iolani squad.
Punahou made certain of it, closing out a tight game with a 10-5 run for a 48-42 win over the rival Raiders in the Division I semifinals of the Snapple/HHSAA Boys Basketball State Championships at Stan Sheriff Center.
Defending state champion Punahou (29-5) will meet Maryknoll in the final tonight.
It took all the grit the Buffanblu had to withstand the Raiders, who rallied from an 11-point third-quarter deficit to take a 35-34 lead late in the same period.
“No one’s gone back-to-back in a long time. Our senior class has been in the final every year they’ve been in high school,” said Buffanblu coach Darren Matsuda, who guided the program to a state crown in 2012 in addition to ’18.
In a defensive struggle, what kept the Buffanblu moving forward was defense. They forced ‘Iolani into 11 second-quarter turnovers. The Raiders finished with an unusually high 22 giveaways and still had a shot to reach the final for the first time since ’16, when they last won the title.
Punahou senior Jakob Kimura had 15 points on 5-for-7 shooting from the field and added five steals. Center Duke Clemens also clutched up with 15 points, hitting three of his four free-throw attempts in the final minutes.
“We needed to slow down the pace of the game,” said Kimura, a 6-foot-3 jumping jack. “We needed to let the game come to us. Stay in the moment, don’t worry about any calls.”
It was the fourth meeting of the season between the schools. ILH runner-up Punahou (29-5 overall) won the first three by scores of 57-56, 50-44 and 50-47.
The Raiders sometimes used a 3-2 matchup zone with 6-3 Carter Kamana at the top to test the Buffanblu.
“That 3-2 was tough with him there,” Matsuda said.
Punahou got eight points, five rebounds, two blocks and two steals from versatile Kaulana Makaula. The Buffanblu shot just 61 percent at the foul line (20-for-33), but committed a relatively low 14 turnovers against ‘Iolani’s pressure.
Frank Felix scored 14 points with six rebounds for ‘Iolani (22-12). Kawika Lee had 12 points before fouling out with 34.1 seconds remaining. Sam Wheeler added 10 points.
The Buffanblu were strangely quiet offensively, scoreless in the first three minutes while ‘Iolani took a 4-0 lead.
Both teams were aggressive to the bucket early. Kimura scored inside for a three-point play and Clemens’ layup on a drive-and-dish by Peyton Macapulay gave Punahou the lead, 5-4.
The Raiders went on a 10-2 run, opening the lead to 14-7 after Wesley Yamada made a wing 3.
“Both teams were really nervous,” Matsuda noted. “We had 10 turnovers in the first half, and five or six of them were unforced.”
With points hard to come by, Macapulay sank two free throws, then deflected a pass by Noah Bumanglag and scored in the paint. That sparked a 12-0 run by Punahou, which increased the intensity of its full-court press.
‘Iolani went scoreless in the final six-plus minutes of the first half and committed an unheard-of 11 turnovers in the second quarter alone. The good news for the Raiders was that they were down just 19-15 at intermission.
The Buffanblu defense remained relentless, turning steals into instant points. After five points by Kimura, the lead was 26-15 for Punahou early in the third quarter.
‘Iolani seemed on the verge of getting left behind, but the press was no longer an issue. The Raiders solved it and splashed four treys in transition, including two by Felix. A corner 3 by Wheeler on a feed from Bumanglag gave ‘Iolani a 35-34 lead, capping a stunning 20-8 run.
Punahou responded with two buckets to close the third quarter for a 38-35 edge.
The lead got down to 38-37 before Punahou stretched the margin. Clemens scored easily on the block, and later sank two foul shots for a 45-39 lead with 51 seconds left.
Yamada’s 3 from the top cut the lead in half with 37.2 seconds left, but Lee fouled out seconds later.
Kimura and Clemens added free throws to open the lead to 47-42. Makaula then blocked a layup try by Wheeler, and after Felix’s corner 3 missed, it was all but over with eight seconds to play. Makaula added a foul shot for the final point.
