Big Island Interscholastic Federation basketball continued over the weekend with girls state playoff action on O‘ahu and the BIIF playoffs beginning on the isle for boys.
See the paper all week for island tournament updates.
Pahoa 59, Ka‘u 43
No. 4 Pahoa boys basketball beat fifth-seeded Ka‘u during Saturday night’s BIIF DII quarterfinal inside the Daggers’ gymnasium. Pahoa improved to 7-8 overall, while the Trojans’ season ended at 6-11 overall and 5-9 in the BIIF. It was the second time this season that the Daggers beat Ka‘u.
The paper could not obtain a box score from this game.
Pahoa averages over 57 points per game in league play while allowing under 50. The Trojans finished the year averaging 54 points per game.
Next up, the Daggers will drive to Waimea to face the No. 1 seed HPA Ka Makani in the DII semifinals at 6 p.m. this evening inside Castle Gymnasium. When the two teams last met on Jan. 18, HPA won 63-44.
See the paper in the coming days to read the results.
Kohala 72, Parker 23
Third-seeded Kohala boys basketball handled business during Saturday’s BIIF DII quarterfinal against No. 6 Parker, winning 72-23 to advance to tonight’s semifinal against the second-seeded Dragons in Honoka‘a town. It was the second time this season that head coach Kihei Kapeliela’s squad beat the Bulls.
It was the fifth time the Cowboys have scored 70-or-more points this season. They average over 64 points per game in the BIIF while allowing under 40.
Kohala (15-7 overall, 13-2 BIIF) had three double-digit scorers in the win — Dillon Oandasan with 13, Isaac Salvador-Libron with 12 and Layden Kauka with 11. Forward Jayden Hook also added seven points.
The black and gold wrecked havoc defensively, logging 20 total steals.
Ethan Schmitt led the Bulls with nine points, followed by Barry Daoust Jr. with seven. Parker (3-14 overall, 3-12 BIIF) had no double-figure scorers. The Bulls’ season has officially ended.
The Cowboys will have a tall task at 6 p.m. this evening against the 12-6 Dragons. In the two teams’ last meeting on Jan. 18, Honoka‘a won a close 49-45 duel. See the paper later this week to read the results.
Iolani 43, Kona 40
Konawaena girls basketball lost a nailbiter to Iolani in the HHSAA DI semifinals late Friday night at Kekuhaupi‘o Gymnasium at Kamehameha Kapalama. The Wildcats fell 43-40 in a game that had several lead changes.
Kona’s Aubrey Pak sank a 3-point shot to give the green and white the 38-36 lead with 1:32 to go in the fourth quarter, followed by the Lady Raiders’ Mia Frye drawing a foul in the next possession to make one of her two attempts. In her second attempt, teammate Chelsea Lee came flying in for the offensive rebound, which made Iolani call timeout. Out of the timeout, Justice Kekauoha missed the game-leading layup, but Kina Sake swooped in to grab another Lady Raiders’ offensive rebound and put the ball back in the net — giving Iolani the 39-38 lead with a minute to go.
The Lady Raiders didn’t give up the lead for the last minute, scoring their final four points at the charity stripe. Pak tried to recreate her previous magic with another 3-point attempt to tie the game with three seconds left, but she missed, and Iolani escaped with the win.
Kekauoha led the winners with a game-high 22 points to go along with seven rebounds, two steals and two blocks. Frye also added 14 points and three steals. The 19-10 Raiders average 55.2 points per game while allowing 48.7. They went on to play KS-Kapalama in the championship game Saturday night, falling 40-34.
The Lady Wildcats were led by Pak with 21 points and five 3-pointers made. Kiilei Leleiwi additionally had nine. Kona also collected 10 steals. It was the green and white’s first loss in eight games. The Lady Wildcats went on to face Campbell in the third-place game Saturday, winning 40-27.
Kona finished the year unbeaten in BIIF competition at 14-0 and 23-4 overall. The Lady Wildcats rostered one of the top offenses in the state, averaging 62.6 points per game while allowing under 28. In BIIF play, Kona scored an average of nearly 77 points per game while allowing 13.1.
Hanalani 68,
Kohala 28
Fourth-seeded Kohala girls basketball fell 68-28 to No. 1 Hanalani in Saturday’s HHSAA DII semifinal Friday night at Kalani High School.
The Lady Royals made their presence known from the opening tip, out-scoring the Cowgirls 28-2 in the first quarter. Kohala’s defense settled in afterward, but the lead was too insurmountable for a comeback against an elite Hanalani team.
Ellana Klemp and Pihaeu Akiona led the winners with 17 and 16 points, respectively. The Lady Warriors were relentless defensively, logging 19 steals and four blocks.
Hanalani went on to play Hawaii Baptist in the championship game, clinching the state title with a 62-33 win. The Lady Warriors finished the year 19-1 overall — averaging 56.9 points per game while allowing 27.5.
Kalia Marquez was the Cowgirls’ only double-digit scorer with 11. Mahea Pang added five. Kohala tallied 12 steals. The Cowgirls fell after winning five straight games.
Kohala moved on to the third-place game, falling to Waimea 79-45. The Cowgirls officially finished fourth in the state, logging an 18-5 overall record and BIIF DII title (10-2). They averaged nearly 50 points per game while allowing 32.3.
Kapolei 42, KSH 36
KS-Hawai‘i girls basketball fell 42-36 to Kapolei in Saturday’s HHSAA DII fifth-place game at McKinley High School, finishing sixth overall in the state.
On Friday, the Lady Warriors beat Lanai 36-24 to advance in the consolation bracket.
The Lady Hurricanes played impressive defense on KSH, allowing under 10 points in three of the four quarters. Kapolei’s Lilyanah-Tiare Tavale finished with a team-high 17 points, followed by teammate Leila Paraoan with 10. The Lady Hurricanes finished the season averaging 57.5 points per game while allowing 49.4.
Lady Warrior Melony Urbina scored a game-high 19 points with three 3-pointers made, followed by teammate Kacie Febo-Santiago with 10.
KSH concluded 2024-25 with a 16-8 overall record and 10-2 in the BIIF. Overall, the Warriors averaged 45.3 points per game while allowing 34.1.
Pahoa 51, Castle 37
Pahoa girls basketball was awarded ninth place overall in the state after beating Castle in the consolation bracket Friday night at Kaimuki High School, beating the Lady Knights 51-37.
The paper was unable to locate a box score for this game.
The Lady Daggers had an extremely successful season. Per ScoringLive, this was Pahoa’s first trip to the HHSAA tournament since the site began tracking records in 2009. The Lady Daggers finished 13-4 overall and 10-2 in league play, finishing second to Kohala in BIIF DII.
Pahoa averaged 44.6 points per game overall while allowing 33.1. The Lady Daggers’ best streak came in December through mid Janaury, where they won six straight. Sophia Moniz was the group’s top scorer at 16 points per game. Teammates Jill Shipp, Remedy Gonzalez and Azariyah Brown all averaged over seven points per game in BIIF competition.
Castle officially finished 10th place in HHSAA DII, going 7-11 overall. Dorian Pokipala finished the year as the Lady Knights’ top scorer, averaging 12.3 points per game.
HHSAA
All-Tournament Teams
The 2025 Pacific Century Fund Team Aloha Girls Basketball State Championships All-Tournament Teams are as follows:
Division I
• Justice Kekauoha, Iolani
• Mia Frye, Iolani
• Kapomaikai Nakakura, KSK
• Aubrey Pak, Konawaena
• Jaynalyn Sotelo, Campbell
• Most Outstanding Player: Nihoa Dunn, KSK
Division II
• Piha’eu Akiona, Hananlani
• Sienna Lamblack, Hawaii Baptist
• Cyani Bagaoisan-Rita, Waimea
• Liliyanah-Tiare Tavale, Kapolei
• Kalia Marquez, Kohala
• Most Outstanding Player: Ellana Klemp, Hanalani
