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Rambo Gant (33) of the host Yokota Warriors goes to the hoop against Joseph Heuwitt of Okinawa's Torii Knights during Monday's championship game.

Rambo Gant (33) of the host Yokota Warriors goes to the hoop against Joseph Heuwitt of Okinawa's Torii Knights during Monday's championship game. (Dave Ornauer / S&S)

Rambo Gant (33) of the host Yokota Warriors goes to the hoop against Joseph Heuwitt of Okinawa's Torii Knights during Monday's championship game.

Rambo Gant (33) of the host Yokota Warriors goes to the hoop against Joseph Heuwitt of Okinawa's Torii Knights during Monday's championship game. (Dave Ornauer / S&S)

K.J. Jackson (23) of the host Yokota Warriors has the ball slapped away by Marcus Pricher of Okinawa's Torii Knights during Monday's championship game. Jackson had 26 points, including seven three-point goals, as Yokota beat Torii 91-57 for its third straight tournament title.

K.J. Jackson (23) of the host Yokota Warriors has the ball slapped away by Marcus Pricher of Okinawa's Torii Knights during Monday's championship game. Jackson had 26 points, including seven three-point goals, as Yokota beat Torii 91-57 for its third straight tournament title. (Dave Ornauer / S&S)

YOKOTA AIR BASE, Japan — Mired in a slump for the first three days of the Warrior Classic, K.J. Jackson picked the best of times to get hot.

The shooting guard scorched the nets for 26 points, including seven three-point goals, and host Yokota roared to a 13-0 lead and beat Okinawa’s Torii Knights 91-57 in Monday’s championship game of the Warrior Classic Pacificwide Open Basketball Tournament.

"Everybody kept giving me confidence, told me to keep shooting and it will come eventually," Jackson said. "No better time than this one."

"K.J. had a tough tournament," Warriors coach Norzell Harris said. "I knew that one game, he would do it for us. And he came through for us when we definitely needed it."

Harris and the Warriors were all too aware that the Knights entered Monday’s title game on a roll, having ousted Guam’s Andersen Bombers, Okinawa Blackwood and South Korea’s Osan Defenders earlier Monday.

"We definitely didn’t want to play another game against Torii," Harris said, which his Warriors would have had to do if the Knights won.

But the Warriors took control from the outset. K.D. Harris opened the scoring with a three-point goal, Jackson followed with a pair of threes, then Brandon Hawkins thrilled the crowd with a two-handed dunk off a rebound and the rout was on.

The Knights kept it close for awhile, with Keenan LeVant’s three-point goal slicing the margin to 36-28 6:31 before halftime. But that was as close as Torii got.

Harris totaled 24 points, 19 in the first half, and Hawkins posted 11, all in the first half. Hamadi Stewart collected 12 rebounds for the Warriors.

Three-time All-Marine Yonnes Sanders paced Torii with 16 points, and Joseph Heuwitt added 13, including three three-pointers.

Sanders gave Yokota credit, but also said playing four games in a day was a challenge.

"It was sitting in the back of our minds, if we won that game, we would have to play another. And that’s tough."

"They showed up this week," Yokota coach Harris said of his charges. "Eight games in four days. They deserved this title."

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Dave Ornauer has been employed by or assigned to Stars and Stripes Pacific almost continuously since March 5, 1981. He covers interservice and high school sports at DODEA-Pacific schools and manages the Pacific Storm Tracker.

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