HPA 16 20 17 20 — 73
By KEVIN JAKAHI
Tribune-Herald sports writer
Tyler Van Kirk’s good fortune kept flowing and so did his nice shooting touch.
The 6-foot-3 senior forward relied on his size and quickness to post, turn and bank in 25 points, and clean the glass with 13 rebounds in Hawaii Preparatory Academy’s historic Big Island Interscholastic Federation basketball game.
The Ka Makani withstood every momentum swing and hard-charging run to defeat Kohala 73-64 on Saturday night at Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium for the school’s first BIIF Division II championship, an uptempo battle in which neither team gave an inch.
Van Kirk had lots of help from Dakota Berman, who drilled four 3-pointers and added 19 points, and a defense of moving parts that protected the rim and got out on long-distance shooters, relegating Kohala to 45 percent shooting, including 6 of 16 from 3-point territory.
“We played really good as a team,” Van Kirk said. “We kept our heads up when we made mistakes and didn’t let it get to us. We played strong defense, playing together and talking and communicating.
“We ran good screens and I was lucky enough to get open and make shots. My shot felt good tonight. I was lucky that it went it.”
Modesty aside, Van Kirk established deep position in the paint, received good entry passes and usually made something happen, scoring 12 first-half points to help HPA to a 36-26 halftime advantage.
That neutralized Kala’i Kapeliela’s 10-point, first-quarter outburst, highlighted by a pair of 3-pointers. The hot-shooting Cowboy finished with 18 points, including four treys. Makani Kualii also had 18 points, and freshman guard Kealan Figueroa had 10 points.
HPA burned the nets at 54 percent (25 of 46) shooting, including 5 of 13 from long distance. Every shot was necessary because Kohala just wouldn’t go away.
Figueroa cranked up the dial on his offensive game at the start of the third quarter, scoring seven points to whittle the lead to 40-35 with under five minutes. Then a little later, Kapeliela was tagged with his fourth foul, putting him on the bench for the final four minutes of the period.
“I told Kealan I liked his passion. His heart is his biggest strength,” Kohala coach Don Fernandez said. “Every time we made a run they would come back and get the crowd and the emotion going on their side. But congratulations to Hawaii Prep. We hope to learn from this.”
After Kapeliela went out, HPA manufactured an 11-4 run, centered on a pair of nice two-foot bank shots by Van Kirk, until Kohala’s Justin Agbayani swished a 35-foot heave at the buzzer, cutting the lead to 53-42.
In the fourth quarter, Kapeliela buried his first two 3-pointer attempts, the second shot turning things interesting at 56-52 with 5:47 left. But Kama DeSilva immediately answered with a putback, and Kalan Camero, who had 10 points, made it back-to-back baskets on a layup in transition, getting a pretty feed from Jovan Crnic, who had seven assists.
It was 60-52 with less than five minutes left. The Cowboys never scored consecutive baskets in the final eight minutes. The Ka Makani never flinched when the temperature in the kitchen got hot. They had one turnover in the fourth quarter, 16 for the game; Kohala went four and 14 in giveaways, respectively.
And with under 22 seconds, Berman calmly converted four straight free throws, bumping the lead to 73-64 and setting the stage for the Ka Makani to run on the court and celebrate their first BIIF championship.
“It’s a stepping stone for us,” HPA coach Dave Huntington said. “It’s our first Division II title and first trip to states. Hopefully, there are many more to come.”
Champion Ka Makani
Members of the Ka Makani include seniors Tyler Van Kirk, Kai Chen, Aaron Harper, Keanu Yamamoto, Dakota Berman, Zach Greenbaum, juniors Juan Yarawamai, Kama DeSilva, Jovan Crnic, Eigoro Akai, Sefa Rocha-Tufaga, and sophomores Kalan Camero and Zane Gray.
Runner-up Cowboys
Members of the Cowboys include seniors Paul Antonio, Christopher Roxburgh, Weston Cazimero, Andrew Trump, Makani Kualii, juniors Jeremiah Kanehailua-Torres, Kala’i Kapeliela, sophomores Haruto Fuertes, Pono Giron-Arellano, and freshmen Kealen Figueroa, Justin Agbayani, and Hana Caravalho.
Kohala 14 12 16 22 — 64
HPA 16 20 17 20 — 73