Breaking News
Local Sports

Improving Bears take down Lunas 73-37

By Robert Collias 5 min read

LAHAINA -- What a difference two solid days of practice and a renewed lineup can mean in these days of COVID-19 protocols.

The Baldwin High School boys basketball team has been one of the fortunate few in the Maui Interscholastic League to have played all four of its games as scheduled, but the Bears have steadily improved from the beginning of the league season.

The latest stop on the improvement train was Saturday night in Lahaina, where Baldwin dismantled a previously unbeaten Lunas team 73-37.

"One, we had a great two days of practice after Maui High -- I preach to them: 'You are going to practice the way you play, you come prepared for practice, you are going to play well,' " Baldwin coach Cody Tesoro said. "That's just at all levels."

The Bears (4-0) opened the MIL season with an overtime win over King Kekaulike when several players and coaches were sidelined by COVID, followed that with a 14-point victory over Kamehameha Maui and a 22-point win over Maui High on Wednesday.

One of the key returnees Saturday was senior guard Kobe Gonzales, who sank four 3-pointers and finished with 13 points, all in the first half when the Bears roiled up 51 points and led by 25 at the break.

Tesoro fittingly calls his front line of 6-foot-7 Quintan Akaka, 6-7 Hudson Yarbrough and 6-6 Avery Pauole "the big three."

Akaka poured in all 24 of his points in the first half, while Yarbrough finished with 17 points and Pauole had six points -- all three had numerous blocked shots.

The flow of the offense, especially in transition after rebounds or blocks by the big boys, was moving beautifully for the Bears on Saturday night. Perhaps the prettiest play of the night was with just over 5 minutes left in the first half when Pauole grabbed a rebound, turned and fired a floor-length outlet pass to Akaka in stride, and Akaka laid the ball in at the rim -- he clearly could have dunked but did not.

"It was our practices," Akaka said of the improvement from Wednesday to Saturday. "We've been working hard, our second group, they're really out there pushing us. They make us better."

In the second half, the Bears emptied the bench.

"We got Kobe back, he played well; the big three, they played well, they did their thing," Tesoro said. "The role players, they did what they needed to do and that's what we preach: 'Do your role and do it well.' "

Tesoro says Akaka is an NCAA Division I prospect.

"You see, he's inside out, he can handle, he can pass, he's a special player, he's a very special player," Tesoro said. "And he's unselfish, too. You can see he looks for his other teammates, but that's Hudson and Avery -- they all look for each other.

"When you have three bigs who are as skilled and tall as they are and they look for each other, it's beautiful basketball."

The Bears turned on the 30-point mercy rule running clock on a baseline 3 by Gonzales with 7:15 to go in the third quarter. The lead reached its largest margin, 65-26, on a nifty play in the key by Yarbrough late in the third quarter.

The Lunas (2-1) dressed just eight players.

First-year head coach T.J. Rickard has his father, Todd Rickard, and Lunas' girls head coach Iolani Kaniho on the staff as assistant coaches.

"It feels great (to be head coach), you know, sooner than expected, but you, I love coaching and it was an opportunity, so, yeah, why not?" said T.J. Rickard, a 2011 Lahainaluna graduate who played at the University of Jamestown and Southern Oregon.

T.J. Rickard said the Bears were on point on Saturday night. The Lunas were led by Kana'au Castro's 11 points.

"They're tough, they're well coached, they have size, and they came to play," Rickard said. "A lot of length, they really just bullied us. They pretty much out-physicaled us and we couldn't do anything about it."

* Robert Collias is at rcollias@mauinews.com.

BALDWIN (4-0)

Quintan Akaka 24, Hudson Yarbrough 17, Avery Pauole 6, Kobe Gonzales 13, Alex Murata 1, Kai Shing 0, Jayden Torres-Leeber 0, Brody Reformina 2, James Medeiros 0, Kona Anderson 2, Darren Castillo 8, Trotter Apo 0.

LAHAINALUNA (2-1)

Kade Cunningham 6, Cruz Cosner 9, Kana'au Castro 11, Joa Navarro 6, Denver Duque 0, Carldave Salem 0, Teva Loft 1, Jayah Bayol 4.

Baldwin 23 28 14 8--73

Lahainaluna 12 14 1 10--37

*****

KAMEHAMEHA MAUI BOYS 49

MAUI HIGH 28

MAUI HIGH (0-2)

Devantae Myrick 0, Jazz Castro 4, Ethan Takara 2, Justin Tolentino 2, Jermaine Baguyo 6, DJ Sabas 0, Fidel Ortiz 4, Trajan Cantere 10.

KAMEHAMEHA MAUI (2-2)

Logan Rickard 10, Keanu Kanekoa 10, Pookela Aiu 11, Brevin Carillo 0, Cade Cagasan 4, Imaikalani Kramer 2, Noah Kalehuawehe 0, Cody Gardanier 0, Kahiau Chow 8, Kamahiwa Molitau 4.

Maui High 7 7 5 9--28

Kamehameha Maui 11 13 13 12--49

*****

MIL Standings

DIVISION I

W L Pct. GB

Baldwin 4 0 1.000 --

Lahainaluna 2 1 .667 1 1⁄2

Kamehameha Maui 2 2 .500 2

Maui High 0 2 .000 3

King Kekaulike 0 3 .000 3 1⁄2

DIVISION II

W L Pct. GB

Lanai 2 0 1.000 --

Hana 0 0 .000 1

Haleakala Waldorf 0 0 .000 1

Maui Prep 0 0 .000 1

Seabury Hall 0 0 .000 1

Molokai 0 2 .000 2

Saturday's Results

Baldwin 73, Lahainaluna 37

Kamehameha Maui 49, Maui High 28

Haleakala Waldorf at Hana, ppd.

Molokai at Seabury Hall, ppd.

Wednesday's Games

Baldwin at Kamehameha Maui, 7 p.m.

King Kekaulike at Maui High, 7 p.m.

Starting at /week.