The Division II battleground just got a little more crowded.
Kaiser made sure of it on Wednesday night, getting 25 points from Mario Drummer and 15 from Kenji Toyama — two sophomores — in a stunning 62-53 win over No. 5 Farrington at the Cougars’ gym.
Kaiser improved to 5-3 in the Oahu Interscholastic Association East and is second in the D-II standings behind Farrington. The Govs couldn’t quite corral the Cougars.
“We definitely want teams playing man on us. We’re good against zone, too, but Mario’s athleticism, Kenji’s athleticism and our guys can be a handful in the post,” Kaiser coach Kenneth Powell said.
The visiting Governors fell to 7-1 in the East in an erratic performance. Raefe McEnroe had 15 points and eight rebounds, Aaron Bagaoisan had 11 points and Johnson Bautista added 10.
Farrington had dominated much of the discussion about D-II in the OIA, joining former No. 1-ranked Damien as favorites statewide. Kaiser had spent the past two weeks adapting to life without center Cyrus Singelman, who is no longer on the team. Senior Luke Stevens returned from injury in the nick of time. The lanky post finished with nine points, 11 rebounds and five blocks against Farrington. He hustled for eight offensive rebounds in the second half.
“Stevens has been battling injuries,” Powell said. “Up to Kailua, he hadn’t been at full health. You saw the rust, getting back into the swing of things, and since then brother man is putting up a good effort for us.”
Farrington lost for the first time since Dec. 22, knocking off four Top 10 teams along the way.
“It’s back to basics. We came out here flat, and that’s what happens,” Governors coach Steven Leopoldo said. “We’ve still got three more (regular-season) games, and we’ll meet (Kaiser) again in the (D-II) playoffs.”
The lead swung back and forth in the first half and Kaiser led 31-29 at intermission. Farrington rallied to open a 47-38 lead in the third quarter after McEnroe splashed a 3 from the top.
Kaiser countered with a 13-2 run, using transition scoring and Drummer’s ability to score on isolations. Drummer scored 13 points in the final quarter, and buckets by Drummer, Toyama and Stevens broke a 51-all tie. Stevens’ layup made it a six-point lead with 3:14 left.
Farrington had five empty possessions and two turnovers during a key stretch in the fourth quarter. The Govs’ success in the paint earlier came to a halt. They shot 2-for-13 from the field in the final eight minutes and didn’t attempt a free throw in a relatively physical game.
Kaiser will host Kalani on Friday. Farrington will visit Roosevelt on Saturday.
Correction: The last name of Kaiser’s Mario Drummer was misspelled in the headline of an earlier version of this story and in the Thursday print edition.
