Photo courtesy of Coach Robin Yamaguchi
Closing the Book: Hawaii Baptist (17-9, 7-2 ILH D-II)
vs. Top 10: 0-8 (.000)
Top 10 wins: None
Top 10 losses: SEAB, IOL, LAH, HAN, North Torrance, Menlo, MPI, HAN
Non-Top 10 losses: KLN
Home: 7-2
Away: 3-3
Neutral: 7-4
HHSAA: 1-0
The flight had some turbulence, but the Eagles of Hawaii Baptist still found a way to play their best basketball in the state tournament.
HBA’s third-place finish in the ILH was unexpected for a team that won the 2019 Division II state championship. At the ’20 state tourney in Hilo, the Eagles responded with a rout of Hawaii Prep in the opening round, the ousted Seabury Hall before falling to ILH rival Hanalani in the semifinals.
The win over Seabury Hall, the unbeaten MIL champion that was ranked in the Star-Advertiser Top 10 for a good stretch of the season, was especially rewarding. HBA lost to Seabury Hall during the Sacred Hearts Invitational.
Coach Robin Yamaguchi and his staff extracted just about all they could out of this year’s roster, going 17-1 against unranked teams. Their lone loss to a non-Top 10 team was against a much-improved Kalani squad. HBA’s key players were gone on to senior camp that weekend.
HBA opened preseason with two wins at Hanalani’s tournament, defeating Moanalua (50-38) and Waipahu (61-37). Moanalua went on to finish second in the OIA and reached the quarterfinals of the D-I state tourney.
“The Hanalani tourney, we were still tinkering. The girls have a lot of activities on the side like band, so we’re trying to fit into their schedule and see who can play. We brought some of the freshmen into the games early,” Yamaguchi said.
A week later, the Eagles hosted Kauai and prevailed, 48-35. The following week, before Thanksgiving, they met Seabury Hall in a 33-29 loss at the Sacred Hearts Invitational. Their seniors then went to camp and the younger Eagles battled Kalani before falling 41-34. They finished the tourney with a 38-12 win over McKinley.
“They matched us off with Seabury Hall off the bat. If we’d won, we would’ve been wow, they’re bigger than us. It was a good thing we lost to them. It makes you hungry,” Yamaguchi said.
The Eagles then visited defending state champion ‘Iolani.
“That one, I have everybody. It’s the first time we kept it close in the first half. We thought, once again, we’re pretty good, and Dean (Young) decided to give a pep talk to his girls and we couldn’t score in the second half,” Yamaguchi said of the 45-25 loss.
HBA took flight after that with a trip to Hawaii Prep’s Ka Makani Tip-Off. The Eagles devoured Kohala (66-14), Keaau (64-32) and HPA (57-26). They also squeezed in a Saturday morning game against Lahainaluna at Konawaena’s tourney. The Lady Lunas won, 43-32.
“That weekend on the Big Island they had SAT or something, so a lot of the Hilo (teams) couldn’t play,” Yamaguchi said. “Lahainaluna wanted a game at the Konawaena tournament, so coach (Bobbie Awa) asked if we could play.”
Of all the D-II teams in the ILH, HBA probably had the toughest preseason slate.
“I thought, it’s always that tough Lahainaluna team. Tough defense on us, they’re long and everybody’s fast, so it was tough for us. He played everybody so it kept the game close. If he kept the first team in, I don’t think he wanted that,” Yamaguchi said.
HBA went from the Lahainaluna game at Konawaena’s Col. Ellison Onizuka gym back to Hawaii Prep, a 52-mile drive, to play the host Ka Makani that same day. Then it was some rest and relaxation at their condos in Waikoloa before flying home the next day. Assistant coach Arjay Gruspe and trainer Karin Carido cooked breakfast each morning.
“I liked the pancakes,” Yamaguchi recalled.
After a 7-4 preseason, Hawaii Baptist returned to Honolulu and prepared for the ILH regular season. Hanalani hosted the Eagles on a Saturday morning and won, 59-47. In a format that had no playoffs, every regular-season game took on maximum weight — essentially a playoff in itself.
“The seniors were mad. They felt they should’ve played better. Some of the sophomores, I don’t know if they took it as hard as the seniors. It was a little bit of a tough practice (on Monday), but maybe by (Tuesday), we were able to forget it and move on,” Yamaguchi said.
HBA posted wins over Damien (60-46) and Le Jardin (66-30) at home. After Christmas, the Eagles lost to two California teams, North Torrance (53-37) and Menlo (61-37) in the HBA Invitational.
“When we went up to Gardena and Torrance (last year), we knew they were good,” Yamaguchi said. “They showed us why they’re good.”
The schedule also included a home game with OIA West powerhouse Radford. HBA won 60-47, then took a few days off over the New Year’s holiday.
“(Coach Charles Chong) also played everybody, so that was good,” Yamaguchi said. “We gave them time off. The next time we saw the team was on (Jan.) 2nd. We know the season’s long. We’ve had it where we’ve run out of gas at the end and had injuries.”
The new year opened with another tough road game, a 29-28 loss at Mid-Pacific.
“I think it could’ve gone either way. Whoever got the breaks. We had our chance, but we couldn’t hold on at times. I think we had to practice a little bit harder. We told them, once again, we cannot let ourselves down. We cannot let down. Yeah, we lost two, but let’s not go down three. We’ll be OK,” Yamaguchi said.
From there, the Eagles outlasted Sacred Hearts and ran the table to finish 7-2 in league play. Hanalani, MPI and HBA clinched state-tournament berths.
“I didn’t want to go in the playoff and play Damien or Sacred Hearts,” he said.
With a 16-day break until the opening round of the state tournament, the Eagles were creative and efficient with practice time.
“We play the intermediate boys, alumni. We really mixed it up and we tried to be quick about it, save their legs, so we go just an hour-and-a-half, and that’s it. Do more stretching, more lifting to keep them toned. We had to travel, so we had to make sure all their studies are up,” Yamaguchi said.
After landing on the Big Island, where the tourney was played in classic Afook-Chinen Hilo Civic Auditorium, HBA’s postseason experience showed. The Eagles met Hawaii Prep for a second time and won, 54-16. Then came the 50-37 ouster of Seabury Hall.
“The girls were feeling pretty confident going in. We hit shots. We hit some shots and it went our way. We didn’t change anything. We just spread it out a little bit more. We finally hit shots and they went in and, you know, then we were able to control the tempo of the game,” Yamaguchi said. “This time, we were a little more intense. Sasha (Philip) and Lexi (Dang) had a little bit more of a chip on their shoulder. They wanted to prove that first time, not that it was a fluke, but that they could play.”
After playing all those Top 10-level opponents, HBA was the sharper team. Seabury Hall, playing in a strictly D-II league schedule, didn’t improve as much over the course of the season.
“The losses, the different situations, they did help us,” Yamaguchi said. “Teams were bigger than us, so once we play Seabury, we’ve played somebody who’s big.”
One of those bigger teams was Hanalani, which was on a path to its first state championship. The Royals got past HBA, 52-42, and then edged Mid-Pacific, 40-37, in the state final. HBA defeated Kamehameha-Hawaii, 37-29, to finish third in the state.
“(Hanalani) was a winnable game, but once again, maybe we shouldn’t have pressed as much,” Yamaguchi said. “The third-place game, our team still wanted to play. They came back and showed that they wanted to play for each other. That’s the main thing.”
Yamaguchi began coaching at HBA in 1979 while attending college. His first varsity stint as head coach was with the boys team from ’86 to ’93. This was his second season as the girls varsity head coach. He chatted about another memorable season.
This season was ________.
Yamaguchi: “A roller coaster. We go up and come back down. It was a good season, don’t get me wrong. We were tested and we failed in some of those, and we found out what we need to work on.”
This season was the movie ________.
Yamaguchi: “We have no drama on our team. I was thinking real hard on that one. We’re not Hoosiers. We were the defending champions.”
Review: Starters and key rotation/role players
Sasha Philip, 11 ppg, 5-8, Sr.
Yamaguchi: “This year, she rebounded a lot. Most times, she wouldn’t rebound as much. She surprised me by how much she wanted the ball, rebounding-wise. She made herself a presence in the paint, as well as shooting the ball from 3.”
Alexis Dang, 12 ppg, 5-5, Sr.
Yamaguchi: “She didn’t surprise me. She was more steady from the previous year. She was player of the year but she came back and worked hard, perfected her shot a little more inside the paint. All-around, she was a good leader for us. Quiet, but she did everything on the court to help us.”
Emi Wada, 9 ppg, 5-5, So.
Yamaguchi: “I liked her ball handling. She helped out Lexi a lot, taking the pressure off. What I’d like her to do for off-season, learn to be a little more confident, don’t be afraid to make a mistake. Sometimes, she makes a bad pass and (thinks) she’s going to come out. I’m not a quick yanker of people. The Seabury game, she hit some nice shots for us.”
Hayley Taka, 5-7, So.
Yamaguchi: “She’s our leading rebounder. She guards the biggest person the opponent has. She brings so much intensity on the court. She’ll dive for all the loose balls.”
Cydni Yoshida, 5-5, Sr.
Yamaguchi: “She was more consistent this year. She was able to knock down some shots, some 3s for us. Just a steady player and she was able to bring the senior leadership along with Lexi and Sasha.”
Zoe Lorica, 5-7, So.
Yamaguchi: “At times, she made shots like, where did that come from? Why can’t you do that consistently? What I need for her to do is be more confident on the court. Don’t look over your shoulder. She showed she can play.”
Brianne Pascua, 5-4, So.
Yamaguchi: “She was more on our defense. She would spell Lexi or Emi, and we put her in more to be our defensive stopper. I’d like her to be able to just play more in the off-season and continue with that tenacious defense.”
Did the rotation change?
Yamaguchi: “In the beginning, because the girls had all those activities, we put the freshmen in early, then later on we put them in for a break or a spark here or there. We have little energizer bunnies. They go in and play.”
What or who surprised you most?
Yamaguchi: “I think Sasha surprised me most. Most times, before, she deferred, but this year she took it upon herself to want the ball, rebound and lead the team. Before, when things go bad, she would be sulking, but this year, she was the one who said something.”
What were the most adverse challenges?
Yamaguchi: “Trying to mix, because I got juniors and sophomores coming up. I don’t have any seniors, finding somebody who will take the leadership and chemistry with this new group.”
What was the peak? What was the low?
Yamaguchi: “The peak was just beating Seabury. That was our peak. The low, of course, was losing to Hanalani twice.”
What will you miss about this group?
Yamaguchi: “None of our groups give me any drama. There’s something about the HBA kids. I hear from other coaches who have drama. Our parents are very supportive. I do miss the team. They’re on time, they call when they’re going to be out. It’s not like at work.”
What are you anticipating for offseason and next season?
Yamaguchi: “Right now, we just do everything online and the girls do everything online. Whether they’re doing everything, I don’t know. They send us how many shots they make, their dribbling and exercising routine we’ve made for them. Some of them have rims (at home), so some of them are shooting. Most of them are dribbling. We meet with them online, we Zoom them and talk to them.”
With summer leagues cancelled, what will you do if the facilities open up in the latter part of summer?
Yamaguchi: “We’d be willing to play some summer games. The players want to play.”
Will there be travel next season if things get back to normal?
Yamaguchi: “We’ll see if we can travel. This would be the year we go back to California again. The bonding of the team, you know. They get to go out there, be away from their parents and be more responsible.”
The ILH’s D-I teams would like to have more variety in scheduling since there are only four of them. Would HBA be interested in playing those teams during the regular season, even if the games are exhibitions?
Yamaguchi: “We play ‘Iolani every preseason. We play them in the summer league. I really don’t want to play them (in regular season), but if there’s a break, we could play the D-I teams. It would make us better.”
Comments