By KEVIN JAKAHI
Hawaii Tribune-Herald
Hilo’s two best players — senior Lawrence Padasdao and junior Isaac Liu — are back and so is an old Viking legend.
Bruce Ferreira, a 1987 Hilo graduate and among the hardwood greats in school history, takes over a program on the rebound.
Last season, Hilo almost upset Waiakea in the BIIF semifinals before losing 68-66, receiving a one-two scoring punch from Liu’s 24 points and Padasdao’s 21 points.
That was in stark contrast to the Great Fall in 2003 when the Viks went 4-7, the first losing record in the school’s long, storied history.
Of course, Hilo (6-7 last season) would like to make a return to glory, such as duplicating a BIIF title run from 1990 to ’97.
Like any coach, Ferreira wants to win but has other more important things on his mind.
“It’s a dream job for me to be the Hilo High coach,” he said. “We want to build character, teach the kids life lessons: respect, commitment, and teamwork. We want both good people and good basketball players.”
Hilo’s last BIIF championship was in 2010, a decade after the late Larry Manliguis coached his final HHSAA state championship squad.
The Viks finished as the BIIF runner-up and qualified for states in 2011 and ’12. Then they watched other programs hurdle past them.
For the proud Viking diehard fans (there’s no better way to describe them), they’re wondering if Ferreira can clone Bobbie Awa’s Konawaena Hoops Dynasty.
No worries, Ferreira already knows the blueprint to building a BIIF champion, not just for one year but something that extends for decades.
“What it will take is commitment, not just from any coaching staff but all the way down to P&R, those coaching 5 and 6 year olds,” Ferreira said. “We have to get those feeder programs behind us, and we have to show interest in them. In the offseason, I want to meet with all those coaches and find out how Hilo High can help them. We want to get the Hilo community behind us. “
Want a good argument?
Get a pair of Viking and St. Joseph old-timers together at McDonald’s over coffee and ask, “Who’s the greatest fan base on the Big Island?”
In another return to glory, Ferreira eventually wants to implement Coach Larry’s full-court press and uptempo run-and-gun offense.
Back in the day, Afook-Chinen Civic Auditorium used to be packed to the gills when Ferreira and that last Viking dynasty played in BIIF championships.
The Vikings haven’t had the personnel to play that old style in recent years. But they’ve got gunners in Liu and Padasdao who would fit in any era of Hilo greatness.
In another nod to the past and Ferreira’s own timeline, the point guard will be a freshman, Kekaukahi Alameda, the younger brother to volleyball liberos Kekaulike and Angel Alameda.
“What I like most is his leadership. As a freshman, it’s a tough thing to tell juniors and seniors what to do,” Ferreira said. “They’re receptive, instead of, ‘You’re just a freshman.’ He has the ability to attack the basket and find the open man.”
Junior forward Liko Medeiros and senior forward Crescen Nobriga round out the lineup, and Ferreira displayed his old-school NBA insight, describing one of the two.
“Liko has a lot of grit and a lot of basketball IQ. He’s like our Kurt Rambis, at the right place at the right time but with a better shot,” Ferreira said. “Crescen is very, very athletic. He runs the court well and is a hard-nosed defender. He’s an unbelievable rebounder and team player. He has a great, great attitude.”
One-two punch
Time will tell if the Viks can full-court press, force turnovers and dazzle their diehard fans with entertaining layups; or, if the other team runs an efficient press-break offense and toasts Hilo for easy buckets.
But there’s one thing that should be duck soup for the Vikings: spot-up shooting. They’ve got two really good shooters in Liu and Padasdao.
“Lawrence is our most well-rounded. He plays hard-nosed and has a lot of offensive skills,” Ferreira said. “He’s more of a silent leader. He leads by example.
“Isaac is our best offensive weapon. He can shoot lights out when he’s hot. He’s an unbelievable player to coach. He’s becoming more of a leader than anything.”
Liu didn’t pick up basketball until the eighth grade. His brother Christian Kaui, a 2012 St. Joseph graduate, taught him how to play.
Kaui is part of the Cardinal squad that won a BIIF Division II championship in 2010 and advanced to states again the following year.
Liu wasn’t born when Ferreira was doing his ball-handling magic for the Vikings. YouTube wasn’t around either. Trivia answer: YouTube was founded Feb. 14, 2005.
“The only time I used to watch the Viking was when Jalen Carvalho (a 2014 graduate) was playing,” Liu said.
Legend of Bruce
If any of the young Viks ask Coach Bruce if he was any good, Ferreira will do his best Bill Belichick impersonation and change the subject.
But his Vikings won a pair of the BIIF championships (1985 and ’86) and went to states all four years. Ferreira is tied for seventh with the most points in a game in HHSAA tournament history.
He scored 35 points in a 91-87 win over No. 1 seed Moanalua in the quarterfinals, hitting 11 shots and sinking 13 of 16 free throws, on March 12, 1987. Hilo finished fourth that year.
“I would tell the players that back in the day the biggest thing was we played with heart,” Ferreira said. “We respected the coaches and did anything the coaches asked.
“This team is figuring it out and buying in.”
