KALAHEO — There was a forfeit, but a win in the ensuing exhibition game, Thursday night during the county’s youth basketball league, Division 2 boys, or students in the fifth and sixth grade, at the Kalaheo Neighborhood Center. The nightcap
KALAHEO — There was a forfeit, but a win in the ensuing exhibition game, Thursday night during the county’s youth basketball league, Division 2 boys, or students in the fifth and sixth grade, at the Kalaheo Neighborhood Center.
The nightcap was another nail-biter, the Hanapepe Bomb Squad holding off a concerted effort by the Eastside Heat to take a 31-28 victory off the floor.
Hanakila could only field four players at game time and Dave Simon, the coach for the team made up of boys primarily from the Hanalei and Kilauea area, forfeited his game to Papalina, 2-0.
But due to the fact the team traveled from the North Shore, Papalina “lent” them Trey Taba for an exhibition match.
Taba fired off a game-high 29 points, including four bombs from outside the three-point line to lead Hanakila to a 41-40 exhibition-only victory.
Papalina was fueled by balanced scoring led by Isahn Ulanday who added a three-ball for the 22-20 halftime lead.
Following a 10-1 Papalina frame in the fourth period, Hanakila went on a 17-8 run to take the lead when Hero Raza, scoring seven points in the game, dropped a bucket with just 28 ticks remaining on the game clock to give Hanakila its first lead of the night, and the edge.
Eli Unotoa hit a bucket in traffic at the buzzer, but the effort came up short for the Eastside Heat who gave up a heartbreaking 31-28 loss to the Hanapepe Bomb Squad.
Hanapepe, working with the speed and quickness of Tai Ofisa who finished with 14 points, took the lead throughout, holding a 13-8 lead at the half behind an 8-point contribution by Ofisa in the third frame and a trey from Makoa Vanaman in the second period.
But the Eastside never gave up, chipping away at the deficit until it outgunned Hanapepe, 9-4 in the fifth period when Kaulu Rittmeister, ending the night with a game-high 16 points, dropped seven of the Eastside’s nine points to pull to within two points, 23-21.
With both teams fielding full benches, the final frame went back-and-forth, Hanapepe holding on in the final seconds after Tai Ofisa, fueled the frame with five of his game-total 14 points and Lacin Montemayor dropping three of his seven game-total marks, all coming in the second half.
Micah Pascua and Vanaman each added three points in the win with Kyle Robinson contributing a pair.
Rittmeister, one of the Triple Towers along with Unotoa and Mikey Cruz for the Eastside, led the Eastside effort with 16 points followed by Unotoa adding six points. La‘a Gonsalves, Tiger Fugett and Aiden Offley each finished with pairs.
Following a six-game Saturday schedule at the Kalaheo Neighborhood Center, the Division 2 boys return to the floor Monday with two games starting with the Eastside taking on Papalina in the 6 p.m. tipoff followed by Hanapepe going up against Team Central in the 7 p.m. nightcap.
• Dennis Fujimoto, photographer and staff writer, can be reached at 245-3681 (ext. 253) or dfujimoto@ thegardenisland.com.
