Baker Takes Cap to New Heights

Evan Baker routinely goes up against players nearly a foot taller than him with a  big heart and a chip on his shoulder.

And he usually wins.

Baker, a 5-foot-8 senior guard (he was barely 5-feet tall in middle school) has been underestimated since he started playing organized ball when he was 5 years old. Opponents still tease him and try to push him around the court.

And that’s fine with him.

“There have always been doubters,” he said. “I love proving people wrong.”

These days, Baker is turning his doubters into believers.

Baker was one of four Cap boys basketball players to recently be named to the all-league team for the Peninsula Athletic League's Lake Division. Baker was named the PAL Lake's most valuable player. Mark Luttrell and Daniel Afeaki were first-team all-league selections, and Zach Khotz was selected second-team all-league.

Baker has been the catalyst in what’s already been the most successful season in recent memory for long-suffering Capuchino. The Mustangs earlier this month won a share of the PAL Lake title — their first league championship anybody can remember. Capuchino’s 59-46 PAL tournament victory over Hillsdale on Feb. 15 was the program’s first postseason win in eight years.

Capuchino is in the Central Coast Section Division III playoffs for a second straight year. The Mustangs (16-8), seeded 13th, play at No. 12 Valley Christian (7-18) at 7 p.m. on Tuesday.

'I just let my game do the talking'

Baker, an excellent perimeter shooter, isn’t shy about attacking the basket. He leads the Mustangs, averaging 13.2 points, 5.5 assists and 4.2 steals. He’s also impressed coaches with outstanding defense, passing and dribbling skills.

“He doesn’t get recognized for how good he is,” Capuchino coach Doug Fountain said.

The recognition is starting to come, though.

Baker is being recruited by several National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics and Division III schools, and he has already visited Bethany University (Santa Cruz).

Baker hopes to become his family’s first scholarship athlete.

“That would be a great accomplishment,” Baker said. “I know everybody in my family would be really proud.”

“He will get a scholarship,” Fountain said.

Baker, who plays much bigger than his size, has literally taken the Mustangs to new heights.

He’s wowed crowds by dunking three times in games this season.

“That's what I love, when the crowd is just in shock,” Baker said. “That pumps me up to play even better.”

It pumps up his teammates, too.

“Everybody was just screaming and everything,” said Capuchino senior forward Michael Alva, who first saw Baker dunk at a non-league tournament in Kelseyville (Lake County) in December. “I was just like, ‘Wow!’”

Baker has routinely faced defenses designed to contain him since his breakout junior year, when he led the team averaging 12.8 points.

“He knew he was going to be the guy that everybody's going to try to stop and he took that as a challenge,” Fountain said. 

Baker hasn’t backed down yet.

“A lot of people talk (trash) during the games,” Baker said. “They’ll try to rough me up sometimes, but that's OK. They're just trying to play basketball and trying to win the game. I can respect that. I just let my game do the talking.”

Baker’s game speaks for itself, and his character, work ethic and leadership have been just as impressive as his high-flying dunks, Fountain said.

“The thing that really sets Evan apart from the other players on the team is his character,” Fountain said. “Evan is a role model for the other kids on the team. On the court they go to him for guidance, and off the court they go to him for counseling.

“When you've got a kid that can do that, that's pretty special," Fountain added, "especially when you're kind of ‘the guy.’”