For three quarters, one of the youngest teams in the state had top-seeded Saint Louis on the ropes.
Then, as a three-time defending state champions do, the Crusaders willed their way to victory. Despite injuries to starters Shancin Revuelto and Stone Kanoa, Saint Louis rallied for a 38-31 win over Kahuku on Thursday night, advancing to the final of the HHSAA Boys Basketball State Championships.
Pupu Sepulona scored six of his game-high 16 points in the fourth quarter to lead the Saint Louis surge.
Sepulona shot 4-for-9 from the field and 8-for-10 from the foul line, adding five rebounds.
“Coach Dan (Hale) told us at the beginning that they’re a team that’s capable of beating us. They showed up. We overlooked them. I’ll admit that. It’s a lesson for us to not overlook other teams. This is going to teach us to overcome adversity even when we’re down. That’s what we did and all glory to God at the end,” Sepulona said. “This was a team win.”
Caelan Fernando added eight points and a key block during Saint Louis’ 13-2 fourth-quarter run. Keanu Meacham had five points and a team-high seven boards. Revuelto returned from a hand injury suffered in the second quarter and, despite being unable to use that right hand to pass the ball, managed to swish a 3-pointer from the right wing to give Saint Louis the lead for good, 27-26, with 6:32 remaining.
“It’s a 10 (out of 10),” Revuelto said, grading the level of pain. “Our (athletic) trainers did a good job. During halftime, coach said there’s no tomorrow. We had to put it on the line and that’s what we did.”
Reveulto’s ring finger was purple after the game and he was unable to make a fist with his hand. Kanoa suffered a serious left arm injury during a pile-up with 3:45 to play and did not return.
ILH champion Saint Louis (32-1 overall) will meet ILH runner-up Punahou for the championship at 7 p.m. today in SimpliFi Arena at the Stan Sheriff Center.
“At the end of the year, the gutty performances we’ve had, that’s a real testament to Kahuku. We knew they were real good. They played well. In the end, we were able to rise up and make more plays. We were able to get the ball to Pupu inside, and our defense kind of wore them down,” Hale said. “It’s not the prettiest thing, but it is for guys that like defense.”
Kashus Daley and Ronin Naihe had seven points each for Kahuku (21-9), while Tiki Akina-Watson added six points, three assists and two steals. Kahuku shot 2-for-9 from the field in the final quarter but gave Saint Louis fits for the first three.
“I knew our length would kind of bother them. Our guys played it perfectly well. They kind of got frustrated and took some bad shots, but, you know, good teams always figure it out. They came alive and hit some big shots,” Kahuku coach Brandyn Akana said. “We had missed assignments, turned the ball over and didn’t hit shots at the end.”
Kahuku attacked Saint Louis’ man-to-man defense relentlessly from the opening tip. Tiki Akina-Watson was effective on drive-and-dish plays.
Saint Louis tied it at 8-all on a corner 3 by Keanu Meacham, but Kahuku opened a 17-11 lead after buckets by Benson Goo and Daley. Revuelto injured his shooting hand with 3:12 to go in the first half.
He returned for the final possession, a corner miss by Corey Bailey, and Kahuku led 17-13 at the break.
By the third quarter, Revuelto clearly was not able to control the ball with his right hand, but he remained in the game.
Kahuku had its biggest lead, 22-14, after a 23-footer by Daley with 5:16 to go in the third quarter. Sepulona, who had seven points in the first quarter and none in the second, had three points and three turnovers in the third stanza against a collapsing Kahuku defense.
The OIA’s fifth-place team had a 24-20 lead entering the final quarter.
The Crusaders went on am 11-2 run to begin the fourth stanza, locking down Kahuku defensively. Fernando partially blocked a 3 by Justus and raced down court for the long pass and layup, tying the game at 24.
Moments later, Revuelto miraculously splashed a 3-pointer from the right wing to give Saint Louis a 27-26 lead. It was his first shot attempt since the injury.
“It felt good when it left my hand. I knew it was going in,” he said.
After Sepulona hit two foul shots and then fed Jordan Nunuha for a layup, Saint Louis led 31-26 with 4:44 left.
After Sepulona hustled for an offensive board and was fouled, he sank two more foul shots for a 33-26 Crusaders lead.
Akina-Watson’s tough drive to the basket for two points with 1:30 to go ended a scoring drought of 5 minutes and 19 seconds for Kahuku.
It was a disappointing end for Kahuku, but its youth has the Red Raiders optimistic.
“I’m so proud of them and how far we’re come because we’re so young,” Akana said. “We’ll be right back here next year. We’re very excited about the future of Kahuku basketball.”
Division II
Seabury Hall 59, Kohala 49
Bromo Dorn scored 27 points and Sebastian Peterson added 20 as the Spartans beat the Cowboys at Kaimuki.
Dorn and Keahi Sjostrand each had eight rebounds for Seabury Hall, which played only six players.
The Spartans will face Hawaii Preo in today’s final at 5 p.m. at SimpliFi Arena at Stan Sheriff Center.
Kohala’s Isaac Salvador-Libronaac finished with 21 points and Layden Kauka added 20.
Hawaii Prep 61, Aiea 51
Micah Yamasaki scored 16 points, and Vander Eberhard and Cam Root each added 12 as Ka Makani rallied past Na Alii at Kaimuki.
Kingdon Simmons contributed 10 points for Hawaii Prep, which outscored Aiea 42-21 in the second half, including 24-11 in the fourth quarter.
Noah Park finished with 25 points and Shealand Kazama added 14 for Na Alii.
