Ellana Klemp poured in 33 points and grabbed 15 rebounds as top-seeded Hanalani roared past Hawaii Baptist 62-33 to capture the Division II title at the Pacific Century Fund Team Aloha/HHSAA Girls Basketball State Championships.
“I feel great,” Klemp said. “It was a great team win. All the things we’ve worked hard on all season, we did them well tonight.”
The D-II crown is Hanalani’s second, both under coach Charles Hiers. The previous title was in 2020. The Royals had runner-up finishes the past two years against Kapaa (2023) and Maryknoll (2024). The Royals unveiled a new version of their three-quarter press, which moved like a dark cloud and stymied the normally prescient Eagles, slowing their pace.
“I feel blessed,” Hiers said. “Ellana was controlling tempo. She was controlling pace. That was good for us.”
A near-full house on a humid Saturday night at McKinley Student Council Gymnasium saw the ILH champions absorb a flurry of early knockout swings from ILH runner-up HBA, only to go on a massive run. Klemp had three points in the first quarter against a pesky HBA man-to-man defense, but the Royals’ offensive execution was precise. Hanalani (27-4), ranked No. 5 in the Star-Advertiser Top 10, stormed to a 29-15 halftime lead and never relented against a determined Eagles squad.
Piha‘eu Akiona hustled for 13 points on 5-for-7 shooting from the field, adding six rebounds, two assists and two blocks. Junior Tamlyn Celestino was a crucial factor as a versatile, valuable forward handling the ball as the point guard against a swarming HBA defense. She finished with four points, six rebounds, three steals, two assists and one block.
“Even though I’m not out there (statistically), I’m doing something to help my team and a ball-handler and rebounder,” she said.
Free throws made a major difference. Hanalani shot 17-for-26 at the foul line (65%). HBA was 11-for-20 and shot 2-for-16 from 3-point range.
Sienna Lamblack and Lauren Okuda led HBA (26-10) with 11 points each. Sierra Ramos, who had a hand injury during the season, struggled with 1-for-15 shooting from the field and finished with three points.
“We fouled them and they kept shooting free throws, and you can’t defend free throws. Like the other two games, we played hard and ran out of gas. Give the credit to Hanalani. They made the free throws,” HBA coach Robin Yamaguchi said. “Our scrappiness, we never gave up.”
Klemp was dominant from all three levels. The 5-foot-9 senior was 9-for-16 from the field, including 2-for-5 from the arc, and 13-for-17 at the charity stripe. She had nine steals in two earlier tournament games, but had just one swipe on Saturday. Teammate Ezra Komine-Bolosan was active defensively with four of Hanalani’s 10 steals.
Hanalani’s patience offensively had championship overtones. The Royals shot 46% from the field (21-for-46), while HBA shot 26% (10-for-39). Hanalani ruled the boards with a 40-19 edge. HBA had just four offensive caroms.
In their previous matchups, Hanalani won 53-28 (Dec. 21) and 53-40 (Jan. 21).
Hanalani advanced to the final after a 68-19 win over Kamehameha-Hawaii in the quarterfinals and a 68-28 rout of Kohala in the semifinals.
HBA had the longer journey with four games in four nights. The Eagles opened with a 55-38 win over Molokai in the opening round, a 49-44 quarterfinal win over OIA champion Kapolei and a 42-30 victory over KIF champion and second seed Waimea.
Saturday’s championship games and consolation matchups were scheduled for Blaisdell Arena. However, the slippery floor issue forced officials to stop the 9 a.m. consolation game between Kahuku and Moanalua with 2:29 left in the second quarter. That stirred up the anger of many fans as they left the facility. Remaining games were relocated to Moanalua and McKinley.
It was the first girls basketball state final at McKinley since 1994.
The director of operations at Blaisdell Center, Dita Holifield, did not return a call from the Star-Advertiser.
—
Wednesday
First Round
Kamehameha-Hawaii 53, Castle 37
No. 5 Lanai 45, Kaiser 41
Hawaii Baptist 55, Molokai 38
Damien 34, Pahoa 28
Thursday
Consolation Semifinals
Castle 34, Kaiser 30
Pahoa 49, Molokai 35
Quarterfinals
No. 4 Kohala 53, Lanai 34
No. 1 Hanalani 63, Kamehameha-Hawaii 19
Hawaii Baptist 49, No. 3 Kapolei 44
No. 2 Waimea 52, Damien 42
Friday
Consolation
At Kaimuki
Pahoa 51, Castle 37
Fifth-Place Semifinals
At Kaimuki
Kamehameha-Hawaii 36, Lanai 24
Kapolei 55, Damien 51
Semifinals
At Kalani
Hawaii Baptist 42, Waimea 30
Hanalani 68, Kohala 28
Saturday
Fifth Place
At McKinley
Kapolei 42, Kamehameha-Hawaii 36
Third Place
At Moanalua
Waimea 79, Kohala 45
Championship
At McKinley
Hanalani 62, Hawaii Baptist 33
