Mid-Pacific's Daniel Florenco puts up a shot in the paint against Maryknoll. Florenco had a team-high 12 points in the Owls' win over the Spartans. Greg Yamamoto | SL

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Fri, Jan 29, 2016 @ Mid-Pacific

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Maryknoll

33

Mid-Pacific

35

Final	1	2	3	4
Maryknoll (3-8, 20-10)	8	8	3	14	33
Mid-Pacific (3-8, 10-14)	3	3	15	14	35

D. Florenco 12 pts  6/7 FTs

H. Kamata 13 pts  3 3pm  0/0 FTs

MANOA – No. 9 Mid-Pacific Institute overcame a 10-point halftime deficit and celebrated homecoming in dramatic fashion with a 35-33 victory against No. 7 Maryknoll Friday night.

A 3-pointer by Major Davis with 22 seconds left was the difference. Then the near capacity crowd of about 800 at MPI's gym went delirious when it saw Isaiah Gelacio's 3-point try bounce off the rim and into an Owl's hands as the buzzer sounded to preserve a miraculous comeback and snap a five-game losing streak.

With less than two minutes left, the Spartans used a 7-0 run to rally from a six-point deficit to take a 33-32 lead with 39 seconds on Jordyn-Thomas Perez's 3-pointer from the top of the key before Davis' game-winner.

"All I can say is they played with heart in the second half," MPI second-year coach Ryan Hirata said. "We went into the locker room and I challenged them and said: ‘Hey, we just lost five in a row, we didn't have a field goal in the first half. How do we respond?' …We gathered together and we made it happen. I'm so proud of them."

The Spartans had a last chance to rally when they had the ball with 6.6 seconds left but Gelacio's shot missed.

Ironically, the Owls' previous win was at Maryknoll and made them 2-0 before losing five in a row.

The stunning victory pulled the Owls (3-5) into a tie for fifth with the Spartans (3-5) and a half-game behind Punahou and Iolani (both 3-4) in Interscholastic League of Honolulu Division I.

It was a tale of two halves. The first half was a nightmare for the Owls, who trailed 16-6 at the break with all their scoring coming on free throws.

The second half was the fairy tale ending. Daniel Florenco's three-point play 14 seconds into the third quarter ignited an 11-0 run that put Owls ahead, 17-16, with 1:50 left. The Spartans regained the lead on a three-point play from Perez with 1:38 left in the third, but the Owls seized back the lead thanks to some nice defensive and offensive plays. Baskets by Jacen Kimura and Zion Shepherd – the latter's coming on a putback of Kimura's missed 3-pointer – gave the Owls a 21-19 lead entering the fourth. The Owls managed to open their lead to 32-26 before the Spartans' 7-0 run put Maryknoll ahead, 33-32.

It was a frenetic finish starting with Perez's 3-pointer that put Maryknoll ahead, 33-32 with 39 seconds left. On the Owls' ensuing possession, Kimura tried to drive to the hoop but was fouled. He missed both free throws and the ball was rebounded by both teams' players for a simultaneous possession call with the arrow pointing MPI's way with 27 seconds left. The Owls were trying to set up a shot with Florenco, who had nine of his team-high 12 points in the second half. But from the right side, Shepherd found Davis open by the left wing, where his 3-pointer put the Owls up 35-33 and sent the MPI crowd into a roar.

"Our first option was to get it to Danny, but Zion made a spectacular read. It was so fitting because we worked on that all practice, about making a basketball play. Major struggled throughout the year, but what big shot for that kid. I'm so happy for him. He came through for us and it was a great team win."

Added Shepherd: "I saw him in the corner and I saw the look on his face and it was super confident, so it was a perfect opportunity to pass to him I knew he was going to make it."

Even though he dropped in the game-deciding shot, Davis was gracious toward his opponents.

"First of all, you have to give credit to the other team," Davis said. "They did a good job contesting all of our shots. I had a hard time shooting for most of the game."

The Spartans, in fact, rarely gave the Owls a good look at the basket in the first half.  Maryknoll forward, 6-foot-6 Brian Washington was one of the reasons. He blocked five shots and had four defensive rebounds.

Even though Maryknoll dominated the first half, it was still a defensive battle. The Owls might not have made a field goal, but the Spartans managed only 16 points, 11 from Hayato Kamata, who had three 3-pointers.

But Florenco set MPI's new tone for the second half when he drove through the middle of the key for a layup and was fouled in the process. His three-point play ignited the 11-0 run that jump-started the Owls. From then, it seemed all the Owls were making some contribution, whether it was Justin Daise and Logan Hutchinson making steals and rebounds or Kimura, Shepherd and Florenco making crucial shots.

"Overall, it was just a good team win," Florenco said.

The win was much needed for the Owls.

"Mentally, we weren't all there," Florenco said. "We were all down. It was just good to lift up our spirits this win, especially since it was our homecoming."

Shepherd was appreciative of the fan support when the team needed it most in wake of the five-game losing streak.

"I think it's the fact that they still had faith in us," Shepherd said. "Through all those losses and tough times, they're still with us. It just shows all the love they have for this school."