Looking back at games with down-to-the-wire finishes

ScoringLive photo illustration

I hope everyone is safe and healthy during these uncertain times. I, like many of you miss everything sports has to offer. I miss going to different schools, venues, hearing the roar of the crowd, and interacting with coaches and players.

Doing this piece gave me an opportunity to take a stroll down memory lane. Here are some games that I covered that still stick with me after all these years.

Boys Basketball
Kamehameha 54, Iolani 47, 3OT - Jan 30, 2013

I cover a lot of basketball, but to date, this was the only game I ever did that needed three overtimes to decide a winner. Noa Kinimaka forced overtime with a triple from the left corner. Zach Buscher's potential game-winning basket was called off, but Ikaika Philip made a three to force another overtime. The Warriors closed out the Raiders from the free throw line to escape with the win.

Football
Kaimuki 27, Nanakuli 22 - Oct 16, 2015

This game had the wildest sequence in the final seconds. The Golden Hawks scored on a 5-yard touchdown and decided to go for two. I was thinking that Nanakuli was going to pull off some late game magic, but Andrew Neves took the ensuing kickoff the other way for the walk-off touchdown that sent the Bulldogs to the Oahu Interscholastic Association Division II title game.

Boys Basketball
Seabury Hall 40, Saint Francis 37 OT - Feb 19, 2016

The Spartans won on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer that catapulted the Spartans to the Division II state championship game. That play was well-executed to set up Cameron Hanisch from the corner for the win. Looking back, this was the game that fueled Kameron Ng and the Saints' dominance in Division II the next two seasons.

Girls Basketball
Maryknoll 63, Lahainaluna 61 - Feb 11, 2016

Alexis Delovio's buzzer-beating layup in the Division I semifinals helped the Spartans make school history. It was a game of runs as the Lunas took the lead, but the Spartans came back to tie it with just over 16 seconds left in regulation.

Football
Roosevelt 17, Pac-Five 15 - Aug 11, 2018

Mason Morishige's game-winning field goal from 38 yards out gave the Rough Riders the win over the Wolfpack. The best part about this game and story was getting Morishige's reaction and finding out it was his first year ever playing football.

Football
Saint Louis 56, Narbonne 50 - Sep 23, 2017

A non-league matchup pitted two high-octane offenses and it was probably the wildest game I ever did as a statistician. The game had over 1,000 yards of total offense, 106 points, and Chevan Cordeiro (University of Hawaii) and Jalen Chatman (Portland State) combined for 13 total TDs. I can't remember any game with so many yards, points, and long touchdowns.

Reach Brandon Ching at [email protected].