Three games in three nights, and sixth-ranked Mililani was ready for it.
The Trojans got 10 points from Creighton Ofsonka, including 6-for-6 at the free-throw line in the final quarter, for a 43-26 win over No. 4 Kailua to capture the Oahu Interscholastic Association Division I boys basketball championship. It is the first basketball title for Mililani since 2008, when Hiram Akina was coach.
Wednesday’s title tilt was a matchup of the top seeds from the OIA West and East. Trojans coach Garrett Gabriel is instilling a basketball culture in a school that has been highly successful in many other sports.
“I’m happy for the boys and the community. That’s what I tried to do from the beginning. One year we were 9-1 in the regular season, then we lost to Kahuku.
Another time, we lost to Moanalua, both teams went on to win the championship,” Gabriel said. “This year, we have the depth.”
It was a slow-paced, physical grind from the start. Kailua felt the fatigue, unable to muster any offensive momentum against a tough Mililani man-to-man defense. Leading scorer Jonny Philbrick scored just seven points on 3-for-11 shooting from the field. Mililani senior Jackson Mayo answered the call, covering Philbrick like a blanket.
“I’m always up for the challenge. He’s shown he can be a great player. I had to deny him the ball and my teammates helped out,” the 6-foot guard said.
The Trojans normally like to fullcourt press and run on every possession, but Gabriel had his team mentally prepared for a slugfest.
“We tried to limit Jonny, make him work really hard,” Gabriel said. “Kailua is well coached. Wally (Marciel) does a great job and it’s an honor to play them.”
Mililani (14-1 overall) finished the league season unbeaten in OIA play and will have an opening-round bye in the Heide &Cook/HHSAA State Championships next week. Kailua (14-2 overall) lost its first game in OIA play and will begin play on Monday with a play-in game.
“No. 3 (Mayo) is outstanding. He plays solid defense. Credit Mililani. Their defense was solid and they were able to take us off our (offensive) sets,” Marciel said.
Kailua was content to run its flex offense, a throwback to the system used by Merv Lopes during the 1970s at the school. At one point, Kailua ran nearly 3 minutes off the clock in the first quarter. Philbrick hit a 10-foot runner off the glass to bring Kailua within 8-6.
Mililani had its biggest lead, 12-6, after a steal by Trey Lieb and layup by Dylan Flanders, and two free throws by Jackson Mayo.
A corner 3 by Brayden Yadao and a follow shot by Creighton Ofsonka helped the Trojans take a 17-14 lead into the locker room at the half.
Kailua chipped away and managed to get within 32-26 with less than 3 minutes to play, but Mililani’s spread and delay game was superior with Jayden Kipapa and J Marxen in control. The Trojans shot 12-for-12 at the charity stripe in the final 2:16 to salt the win away.
Trey Lieb, who poured in 27 points against Kahuku in a semifinal win, finished with just three points, but contributed three steals and two assists.
Kailua won a D-II league
title in 2013 under Marciel. Prior to that, Louis “Koko” Santos guided the Surfriders to OIA championships in ’61 and ’82, and Harry Murai led Kailua to a title in ’75.
