Liko Soares scored 16 points and Sage Tolentino had 10 points, 16 rebounds and three blocks as Maryknoll defeated Kamehameha 46-33 to capture its second boys basketball state championship in a row.
Noah Furtado and Justin Yap added seven points each as Maryknoll (29-4) emerged out of the opening round as an unseeded entry from the Interscholastic League of Honolulu to win four games in a row.
A crowd of 2,917 at Stan Sheriff Center saw Maryknoll become the first team since ‘Iolani in 2006 to repeat as Division I state champion.
>> PHOTOS: Maryknoll vs. Kamehameha
Soares was efficient, smart and gritty. The 6-1 senior played through a meniscus injury, gauging the pain level at “12” on a scale of 0 to 10.
“It hurts a lot, but my mom put some Hawaiian leaf on it,” Soares said.
Maryknoll’s back-to-back titles after a drought of 35 years was celebrated at full volume by many in the audience. It began with work in the early mornings of the offseason.
“I’m going to miss the way this team worked hard year-round, getting in the weight room,” senior Niko Robben said.
Kamehameha (28-6) owned the No. 1 spot in the Star-Advertiser Top 10 for most of the season. However, the glue to the Warriors’ offense, Christmas Togiai, suffered a knee injury in the closing minutes of a semifinal win over Kahuku on Thursday night.
“I couldn’t sleep last night. I had to make two game plans, one for Christmas if he plays, and one without,” Maryknoll coach Kelly Grant said. “This morning, I heard that he injured his ACL.”
The road wasn’t exactly smooth for Maryknoll, which began the season at No. 1, validated with a 57-53 win over Kamehameha in the final of the Kaimuki Invitational. In league play, Kamehameha turned the tables with three wins, including a 37-29 victory for the ILH title
Kamehameha came out firing and battling, but by the second quarter, Maryknoll asserted its will. The Spartans’ patient, meticulous offensive sets resulted in open looks and buckets in the paint. Tolentino was voracious on the glass against Kamehameha’s talented bigs. His offensive carom and dish to Furtado for a wing 3 opened the lead to 17-9 with 3:21 left.
After reserve Reggie Eiland tipped in a missed shot at the horn, Maryknoll led 19-10 at halftime.
From there, it was certain, slow boa-constrictor strangulation by the Spartans. A 3-point bank shot by the freshman Yap opened the lead to 26-14 with 2:35 to go in the third stanza.
In the fourth quarter, Furtado fed Soares for a 15-foot jumper from the foul line, and the lead was 30-16. Moments later, Tolentino’s bucket stretched the lead to 16.
Kamehameha got the lead back down to 10 in the final minutes, but it wasn’t enough.
Kordel Ng led the Warriors with 14 points and five rebounds. EJ Kapihe added eight points. In all, Kamehameha shot 23 percent from the field (11-for-47), including 4-for-27 from the 3-point arc.
Maryknoll dominated the boards 40-21. The void left by Togiai, who sat on the bench and gave his teammates great support, was too large to fill.
