KAILUA, KONA — After a historic whirlwind journey from a rugged slope (Kalaepohaku) on O'ahu to a smoother one (Hualalai) on the Big Island, the Saint Louis School boys basketball team finally secured that coveted 12th and final state tournament berth yesterday.

The Crusaders, ranked No. 3 in The Advertiser's statewide Top 10 poll of coaches and media, raced past Konawaena, 63-42, before a crowd of about 350 at Kealakehe High School Gym. It was the first-ever state tourney play-in game pitting the third-place teams from the Interscholastic League of Honolulu and the Big Island Interscholastic Federation.

Saint Louis (12-3) will begin state tournament play with first-round action Tuesday.

"Like I said before, I don't mind this at all," said Crusaders senior Scott Smith, a 6-foot-7 center who finished with 11 points, five rebounds, two blocks and two steals, all in the first half. "I love to play."

That's a good thing, because despite being ranked in The Advertiser's top 5 all season, Saint Louis had to win three do-or-die games last week to earn its state berth. And after a slow start yesterday, the Crusaders left no doubt they are a legitimate championship contender.

Saint Louis led 12-11 after a sloppy first period plagued by poor shooting and multiple turnovers, but found its groove and began the second quarter with a 17-3 run built mostly on transition layups.

Cole Shidaki's driving double-pump finger roll gave the Crusaders a 29-14 lead with 3:36 remaining in the half.

"I don't know what happened; we just got beat," said Wildcats coach Donny Awa, whose team finished 14-5. "I think our running game backfired on us, because we weren't getting layups off of it and when we couldn't get a fast break, we would rush our shots in the halfcourt (set). And (the Crusaders) are big, so they alter a lot of shots."

Konawaena tried attacking the post to get Smith and 6-2 forward Solomona Aigamaua into foul trouble, and Aigamaua picked up his third foul with 32 seconds left in the half and Smith was whistled for his third just 46 seconds into the second half.

"But that didn't work, either, because we couldn't make our free throws (5 of 14 in the first half)," Awa said. "And they had a big enough lead where they could rest (Smith and Aigamaua)."

Saint Louis led 38-19 at the half and 51-24 late in the third period. The Crusaders' reserves played the entire fourth quarter.

"I was very leery coming in, because we were playing them basically sight unseen," Saint Louis coach Delbert Tengan said. "We don't have any film on them, so I called ('Iolani coach) Doc Mugiishi last night because they played Konawaena in the preseason. We were out of our routine, meeting at 8:30 (a.m.) on campus, going to the airport and then flying here. The floor was harder than ours, the ball was over-inflated and the shots were going hard off the rim, so the first quarter was tense.

"But at this point in time, the wins don't have to be pretty."

SAINT LOUIS (12-3) 12 26 5 10 — 63

KONAWAENA (14-5) 11 8 8 5 — 42

SAINT LOUIS — Jamison Miller 3 0-0 6, Kuli'a Aiona 2 0-0 4, Lucas Gonsalves 1 0-0 2, Scott Smith 5 1-6 11, Micah McClinton 1 1-2 3, Ricksson Pacarro 1 2-2 4, Cole Shidaki 2 4-4 8, Solomona Aigamaua 2 3-4 7, Michael Tuiloma 3 2-3 8, Kyle Gonzaga 2 1-2 5, Siunipa Fiefia 0 3-8 3, Corey Lau 1 0-0 2, John Quindara 0 0-0 0. Totals 23 17-31 63.

KONAWAENA — Keoni Carvalho 3 0-2 8, Shane Heinecke 0 1-2 1, Ho'okela Liftee 0 1-2 1, Kali'i Kunitomo 0 2-2 2, Kekoa Carvalho 1 3-10 5, Darryl Milana 4 2-2 13, Dane Demello 2 0-0 4, Paul Deniz 0 2-4 2, Tim Johnson 0 0-0 0, Isaiah Tavares 1 1-2 3, Daniel Royce 0 0-2 0, Nicko Casuga 0 0-0 0, Sam Unger 1 0-0 3. Totals 12 12-28 42.

3-point goals — Saint Louis none; Konawaena 6 (Milana 3, Keoni Carvalho 2, Unger).

Reach Wes Nakama at wnakama@honoluluadvertiser.com.