A thriller in Hemmeter Fieldhouse left Gonzaga Prep (Spokane, Wash.) stunned in the semifinal round of the Punahou Invitational.
Zion White clutched up with a game-tying 17-foot jumper at the buzzer to force overtime, and No. 3-ranked Punahou edged Gonzaga Prep, 63-61, in the semifinal round of the Punahou Invitational.
White has played through a thumb injury he suffered during football season.
“I practice that shot so I pulled it. I wasn’t surprised at all,” said White, a 6-foot-5 sophomore. “Especially with E-man (Ethan Chung), he guards me a lot in practice. He challenges me.”
Four different Buffanblu scored in the extra period after White’s shot tied it at 49 with a second left in regulation. Explosive as a playmaker and finisher, Gonzaga Prep point guard Hudson Floyd had the ball in the final 9.9 seconds, but his shot was contested by Dane Kellner and fell short as time expired.
“I knew Dane would lock him up,” Chung said.
Floyd finished with a team-high 18 points, shooting 5-for-10 from the arc. Swingman Ryan Carney finished with 17 points.
“It’s crazy because they run two of the same offenses as us. They’re a little older than us and more physical, more polished,” Punahou coach Darren Matsuda said. “The one thing our guys do is staying in the moment, staying together. We’ve done that all summer, all season. As soon as we settled down, we were way more together on both ends.”
Tanoa Scanlan finished with 23 points against a swarming defense. The sophomore came through with 10-for-11 free-throw shooting. The other sophomore, White, finished with 13 points, five rebounds and two steals. Ethan Chung, who opened OT with a corner 3, finished with 10 points.
“It’s a good win. There’s definitely a lot of stuff we can pick up on, but I’m proud of our guys. Gonzaga Prep executed well. They played tough and I’m glad we got to play them,” Scanlan said. “We had to fight for every point we got. We can’t be complacent.”
Floyd made his first four 3-point attempts, missed the next four against tough Punahou defense, then hit a key 3 in OT to bring his team within one point in the final seconds.
“He’s a great playmaker and he turns that corner on ball screens unless you switch,” Matsuda noted. “Our guys played the best defense they could. Defense is the key to our success. It felt like a heavyweight championship match.”
Punahou will meet Gig Harbor (Seattle) for the championship at 8 p.m. Monday.
The Buffanblu had a robust start as Scanlan hit three of his first four shots, all from short distance. Punahou’s four-point lead dissipated as they passed up opportunities to feed the 6-6 sophomore on the post.
Meanwhile, Floyd warmed up from the perimeter with seven points, including a buzzer-beating 3 to open the Bullpups’ lead to 17-12 after one quarter.
Gonzaga Prep opened the second quarter with a 6-0 run. After Jack Pierce scored on a reverse layup in transition, the visitors led 23-12 with 5:03 left in the first half. Punahou got within 23-18, but the Bullpups’ tight man-to-man defense limited the Buffanblu to 3-for-10 field-goal shooting in the second quarter.
Gonzaga Prep led 28-19 at intermission.
Punahou inched closer and got within 30-26, but Floyd splashed a 23-footer from straightaway. Moments later, Carney hit his first trey and the Bullpups led, 38-28.
Again, Punahou chipped away. White swished two foul shots to bring Punahou within 38-34 with 2:08 to go in the third quarter. Two free throws by Scanlan cut the margin to two points.
Gonzaga Prep clung to a 38-36 lead going into the fourth quarter.
Turnovers derailed Punahou and Carney made the Buffanblu pay, splashing a corner 3. Punahou answered with buckets by Scanlan and Noah Gaudiano to pull within 41-40 with less than 6 minutes left.
After three free throws by Carney, Punahou trailed 44-40. Punahou was resilient, getting a drive for two by White. After Scanlan made one of two foul shots, the Buffanblu trailed 44-43 with 3:26 remaining.
On their next possession, Scanlan was double-teamed on the block and whistled for an illegal dribble. Floyd then delivered a perfect, John Stockton-level pick-and-roll bounce pass to Jackson Mott for an easy layup and a 46-43 edge. Scanlan was called for an offensive foul with 1:55 to go.
After a Punahou defensive stop, Scanlan hit two foul shots to cut the margin to one point, but Carter Nilson surprised Scanlan on the high post and drove for a lefty layup, opening the lead to 48-45 with 1:12 to go.
Two more free throws by Scanlan tumbled in, cutting Gonzaga Prep’s lead to 48-47 with 59.7 seconds left.
On Gonzaga Prep’s ensuing possession, a Punahou foul helped the Bullpups reset the shot clock.
Gonzaga Prep reserve guard Michah George went to the charity stripe with 14.7 seconds left. He missed the first and made the second for a 49-47 edge. Punahou’s final possession of regulation was rattled when Scanlan collided with a defender and fell in the key, but Scanlan came through with a pull-up jumper from 17 feet out to tie the game with 1 second to go.
Seconds into overtime, Ethan Chung’s corner 3 on a long feed from Scanlan gave Punahou its first lead since the opening quarter. After exchanging foul shots, Gonzaga Prep tied it at 54 on a corner 3 by Carney, but Punahou edged ahead with free throws.
Scanlan’s free throws opened it to 59-56 with 1:22 to go. After Carney made one of two at the line, Dash Watanabe hit one free throw for a 60-57 lead.
Two FTs by Gaudiano opened the lead to 62-57 with 27.3 seconds left. It wasn’t safe enough. Gonzaga Prep was within 62-58 when Floyd pulled up and splashed a 23-footer, cutting the lead to 62-61 with 15 seconds left.
Gig Harbor (Wash.) 55, Casa Roble Orangevale, Calif.) 44
Coming into the semifinals, the big question on Saturday at the Punahou Invitational was, what happens if Casa Roble (Orangevale, Calif.) wins its semifinal game against Gig Harbor?
A win would have sent Casa Roble into the title game on Monday night. Their flight home, however, is scheduled for mid-day Monday. Tournament officials made it clear a championship game would not be moved up to 9:30 a.m.
The question was resolved on Saturday night when Gig Harbor (7-4) eliminated Casa Roble from title contention, 55-44.
“I’m glad we could accommodate the tournament,” Gig Harbor coach Billy Landram said.
Ty Buchanan led the Tides with 16 points while 6-foot-8 junior Michael Masini added 13 and Cole Browne tallied 11. Gig Harbor withstood a late rally by the gritty Rams, overcoming their own misfires at the free-throw line. The Tides shot 17-for-34 from the free-throw line.
“We’re kind of a work in progress right now. We’ve got some good players, but we’re learning to play together and kind of doing the little things on rebounding and taking care of the ball, and making free throws,” Landram said. “This type of tournament is good for us. That was a great game for us because of the type of teams we play back home.”
Benny Ambriz led Casa Roble (12-2) with 20 points while Ace Villegas chipped in eight.
A Day of Rest
Gonzaga Prep entered the tournament ranked 27th in Washington state by MaxPreps. The Bullpups won the 4A state title 2018-19.
With a day off on Sunday, Gig Harbor could stay in and do the usual video-game marathon. Could.
“We’re definitely making them go see a little bit of this beautiful place,” Landram said. “We’ve got reservations for Pearl Harbor, the USS Arizona, and we’ll hike up, what is it? Diamond Head.”
Weekend scores
Punahou Invitational
Thursday’s scores
OIA
Kaiser 40, @ Moanalua 26
Damian Lillard Classic (Oakland, Calif.)
Fremont (Oakland, Calif.) 64, No. 2 Maryknoll 58
Hilo Hanakahi Grind Session (Civic)
No. 10 ‘Iolani 57, Kohala 44
Seabury Hall 77, @ Hilo 43
SH: Bromo Dorn 35 (4 stl, 3 blk).
The Holiday Classic (San Diego)
Laguna Creek (Calif.) 57, No. 1 Saint Louis 51
> Senator’s Division, Rancho Buena Vista HS
Mid-Pacific 55, Oakwood (Morgan Hill, Calif.) 50
> Governor’s Division, Carlsbad HS
Punahou Invitational
Ayala (Chino Hills, Calif.) 56, Hanalani 51
Ayala: Joshua Townsell 17, Zach Canellopoulos 13 (3), Milo Tun 12. Han: Trevor Klemp 17, Mycah Lucas 12, Xavier Canoy 11 (3).
Hawaii Prep 51, Damien 49
HPA: Vander Eberhard 22, Kingdon Simmons 15 (3). DMS: Levi Damo-Agcaoili 17, Kainoa Santos 17 (3).
Kamehameha-Hawaii 59, Kauai 38
KSH: Kiai Yasso 12, Clay Ching 11, Kolten Tabuyo-Kahele 10. Kauai: Kamren Holt-Ho 10.
No. 3 Punahou 83, Molokai 20
Pun: Tanoa Scanlan 22, Nahua Lloyd 10, Tate Takamiya 10. Mol: Tyshonn Harper 7.
Kamehameha-Maui 53, Hawaii Baptist 38
KSM: Cody Gardanier 18, Imai Kramer 16. HBA: Matthew Shigetani 19 (5).
Gig Harbor (Wash.) 65, Punahou I-AA 38
Gig: Michael Masini 22, Cole Browne 12, Jack Brown 11. Pun2: Drew Ogata 7, Tyler Oshiki 7.
Casa Roble (Orangevale, Calif.) 81, Menlo (Calif.) 73, OT
CR: Benny Ambriz 22, Mason Pearcy 22, Moses Oginni 15. Menlo: Ethan Zhao 18, Kai Mawakana 14, Tate Cohen 13.
Gonzaga Prep (Spokane, Wash.) 76, Woodside Priory (Portola Valley, Calif.) 50
GP: Borgan Howell 21, Hudson Floyd 11. WP: Jojo Tejuco 16, Teddy Xanthopoulos 10.
Friday’s scores
BIIF
@ Honokaa 85, Ka‘u 77
Hon: Kukia Tagabi 21, David Aiona 16, Raven Labrador 14, Reighn Barrios 13, Josiah Galdeira 11. Kau: Daeten Castillo 31, Kaulana Akiona 13.
OIA
@ No. 4 Mililani 77, Radford 31
Mil: Roman Gabriel 18, LeCedric Brown 10. Rad: Nate Hartline 8.
No. 8 Kailua 77, @ Kaimuki 39
Kail: Joseph Bienek 16, Dylan Kunz, Nainoa Hirasuma-Kenny 11, Noah Lee 10. Kaim: Hilton Edwards 9, ManDuy Pham 9.
@ Kalaheo 56, Roosevelt 43
@ Kalani 62, McKinley 32
Kal: Garrick Imamura 16, Wade DeCambra 12, Dylan Kobayashi 12. McK: Brayden Kaneko 9.
Castle 68, @ Farrington 43
Cas: Josiah Shinbara 19 (9 reb, 5 ast), Davis Mitchell 16 (7 reb), Kobe Compoc-Bruhn 10 (15 reb). Far: Everest Rodriguez 28 (8).
@ Aiea 51, Pearl City 30
Aiea: Shealand Kazama 20, Santi Sarbeland 14. PC: Anthony Bautista 14.
@ Nanakuli 74, Waianae 47
Nan: Vainuupo Fanuaea 15, Nehemiah Thompson 15, Ezekiel Donnell 13 (3), Zhyrisen Kahalekai 13, Colten Wright 10. Wai: Herman Ellis 13 (3), Preston Daquip 10.
Campbell 57, @ Waialua 33
Cam: Richard Windsor 10. Wai: John Zara 19 (4).
@ Kapolei 62, Waipahu 46
Kap: Ryehn Paulsen 16, Caleb Mesa 12. Wai: Kaleb Baxa 10.
Hilo Hanakahi Grind Session (Civic)
No. 10 Kamehameha 77, Hilo 39
KS: Shyne Salvador 14, Jaeden Miyahama 12.
No. 10 ‘Iolani 55, Seabury Hall 44
SH: Bromo Dorn 22 (3 3-pt, 7 reb), Sebastian Peterson 14 (6 reb).
Konawaena vs. Salesian Prep (Calif.), 4 p.m.
> Konawaena replaces Kohala (injuries/illness).
Utah Prep 105, Elite Prep (Wash.) 63
UP: JJ Mandaquit 17 (8 reb, 11 ast), AJ Dybantsa 15 (13 reb, 5 ast, 3 blk). WP: Kolt Yarbrough 17, Heaven Chea 16.
Albuquerque Prep (N.M.) 79, Prolific Prep Green (Calif.) 76
AP: Mazi Mosley 25 (10 reb, 10 ast), Breydan Worth 13. PPG: Christian Gilliland 33, Kylon Jones 14.
The Holiday Classic (San Diego)
No. 1 Saint Louis 67, Linfield Christian (Temecula, Calif.) 47
> Senator’s Division, Rancho Buena Vista HS
Vista 80, No. 9 Mid-Pacific 59 (Governor’s division, Carlsbad HS)
> Governor’s Division, Carlsbad HS
MPI: Logan Mason 31 (9 reb), Riley Miura 12.
Punahou Invitational
Woodside Priory (Portola Valley, Calif.) 71, Hawaii Baptist 65
WP: Michael Hildebrandt 19, Teddy Xanthopoulos 16, Jai Georedette 10. HBA: Colton Wong 14, Devin Corpuz 12, Connor Wong 10, Matthew Shigetani 10.
Menlo (Calif.) 75, Kauai 60
Menlo: Aidan Stull 14, Ethan Zhao 13, Tate Cohen 10, Evan Arcilla 10. Kauai: Camren Holt-Ho 16, Reese Jenkins 10.
Hanalani 57, Molokai 35
Han: Xavier Canoy 15 (3), Trevor Klemp 14, Mycah Lucas 14, Kai Stephens 10. Mol: Makena Kahale 8, Jarius Torres-Umi 8, Kaizen Torres-Umi Napoleon 8.
Damien 61, @ Punahou I-AA 51
DMS: Levi Damo-Agcaoili 19 (4), Kainoa Santos 14, Wyatt Ho-Williams 12. Pun2: Troy Sarsuelo 13.
Casa Roble (Orangevale, Calif.) 57, Kamehameha-Hawaii 50
CR: Moses Oginni 19, Mason Pearcy 17, Benny Ambriz 12. KSH: Kawohi Huihui 15, Kiai Yasso 12.
Gonzaga Prep (Spokane, Ore.) 62, Kamehameha-Maui 22
GP: Borgan Howell 17, Hudson Floyd 15. KSM: Zach Pratt 7.
Gig Harbor (Wash.) 51, Hawaii Prep 41
Gig: Michael Masini 32. HPA: Vander Eberhard 19.
No. 3. Punahou 75, Ayala (Chino Hills, Calif.) 34
Pun: Zion White 13, Tanoa Scanlan 13, Ethan Chung 11. Ayala: Isaiah Doloso 9, Milo Tun 9.
Saturday’s scores
Hawaii Baptist 66, Molokai 46
HBA: Matthew Shigetani 13 (3), Connor Wong 12. Mol: Jarius Torres-Umi 15, Braylen Colon 11, Tyshonn Harper 10.
Kauai 41, Punahou I-AA 36
Kauai: Barkley Gilman 9. Pun2: Hunter Bond 10.
Ayala (Chino Hills, Calif.) 66, Kamehameha-Maui 56
Ayala: Joshua Townsell 16, Jeremy Serrano 14, Jacky Zhao 12. KSM: Cody Gardanier 29, Imai Kramer 15.
Kamehameha-Hawaii 74, Hawaii Prep 70, 2 OT
KSH: Kawohi Huihui 38 (3), Kiai Yasso 17. HPA: Vander Eberhard 26, Kingdon Simmons 13, Max Aiona IV 12 (4).
Woodside Priory (Portola Valley, Calif.) 62, Hanalani 49
WP: Michael Hildebrandt 12, Jai Georedette 11 (3), Teddy Xanthopoulos 10. Han: Trevor Klemp 19, Mycah Lucas 17, Yoshua Vernes 11.
Menlo (Calif.) 69, Damien 48
Menlo: Ethan Zhao 17, Evan Arcilla 14 (3), Kai Mawakana 11. DMS: Kainoa Santos 14, Levi Damo-Agcaoili 10 (3).
Semifinals
Gig Harbor (Wash.) 55, vs. Casa Roble (Orangevale, Calif.) 44
Gig: Ty Buchanan 16, Michael Masini 13, Cole Browne 11. CR: Benny Ambriz 20.
No. 3 Punahou 63, Gonzaga Prep (Spokane, Wash.) 61, OT
Pun: Tanoa Scanlan 23, Zion White 13. Ethan Chung 10. GP: Hudson Floyd 18 (5-10 3-pt), Ryan Carney 17
Monday, Dec. 30
The Holiday Classic (San Diego)
No. 1 Saint Louis vs. TBD
> Senator’s Division, Rancho Buena Vista HS
No. 9 Mid-Pacific vs. TBD
> Governor’s Division, Carlsbad HS
Punahou Invitational
Schedule TBD.
See video highlights @HawaiiPrepWorld on IG.
COMMENTS