Thu, Feb 26, 2015 @ Moanalua

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Kahuku

67

Konawaena

45

Final	1	2	3	4
Kahuku (12-2, 18-6)	14	11	15	27	67
Konawaena (6-5, 9-9)	9	10	9	17	45

• Points
• Rebounds
• Assists

Cameron Howes 21 pts  2 3pm  9/10 FTs

Denhym Brooke 16 pts  4/9 FTs

Naea-Kaya Leleiwi 4 tot  3 off  1 def

Denhym Brooke 10 tot  5 off  5 def

Austin Ewing 2 ast

Tamamoko Green 2 ast

Kahuku's Denhym Brook goes up for a shot against Konawaena. Evan Asato | SL

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Kahuku's Denhym Brook goes up for a shot against Konawaena. Evan Asato | SL

View image 1 of 1

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SALT LAKE — Kahuku turned to its bigs in this one.

Senior forward Denhym Brooke registered a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds and senior center Hyrum Harris added 13 points and eight boards as Kahuku pounded fourth-seeded Konawaena Thursday night, 67-45.

The win puts the fifth-ranked Red Raiders (14-2) into Friday's semifinals of the New City Nissan/Hawaii High School Athletic Association Division I Boys Basketball State Championships, where they will play fellow-Oahu Interscholastic Association member Kalaheo at 7 p.m. at the Stan Sheriff Center.

Kahuku's offensive approach against the Wildcats (8-7) was in stark contrast to a one-point win over Moanalua in Wednesday's opening round, when it attempted 18 3-pointers and the duo of Brooke and Harris combined for just 14 points.

"We wanted to get it inside," Red Raiders' coach Alan Akina said. "We knew Konawaena was going to be scrappy but small, so we felt we had the advantage and once we started attacking our bigs looked good. They were a little passive in the beginning, but they came through for us."

Kahuku shot a blistering 52.5 percent (21 of 40) from the field and attempted just five 3-pointers Thursday. Meanwhile, Konawaena was held to 28.8 percent (15 of 52) shooting from the field and were out rebounded, 36 to 26.

The Wildcats took an early 5-0 lead before the Red Raiders stormed back with an 8-0 run of their own.

Kahuku took a 14-9 lead after the first quarter and a 25-19 edge going into halftime.

Brooke scored six points during a 7-0 Kahuku run to open the second half, which helped stretch his team's lead to 40-28 after three quarters.

"We started attacking," Akina said. "When we attack we're really good, but when we wait then they don't get those baskets, we don't get those fouls. Once we went on the attack in the second half we got the momentum back and it was hard for them to get back in."

The Red Raiders outscored the Wildcats, 27-17, in the final quarter.

"We need to start off like that," said Brooke, who was 6-of-11 shooting from the field. "If we don't start off like that against (Punahou), then we're done."

Cameron Howes scored 16 of his team-high 21 points in the second half and was the lone scorer in double figures for Konawaena, the Big Island Interscholastic Federation champion.

Keanu Akina added 12 points and Tamanui Nagy eight for the Red Raiders.

Kahuku, which finished second in the OIA tournament last week, is seeking its first return to the state final since 2012, when it lost to Punahou. It also played in the title game in 2009, losing to Kamehameha, but has yet to claim a championship in school history.

"I'm excited for our boys, I'm excited for our program," Alan Akina said. "We've still got a little bit of work to do, but it feels good."