On the eve of the 2016-17 hoops season, Malibu High basketball player Jake Hughes told Sharks coach Richard Harris he wanted to commit his athletic life fully to basketball. The shooting guard also asked his coach if he had a chance to play basketball in college.
Harris told Hughes that he was a good shooter and if he dedicated himself to hoops, the outcome would be positive. Hughes responded by quitting baseball and shooting—and shooting, and shooting some more. In fact, the 6-foot-1 senior is still shooting, and his deadeye three-point-shot making has helped lead Malibu to a 3-1 record and the No. 1 spot in the CIF Southern Section Division 5AAA top 16 poll on MaxPreps.com.
Hughes said he hoists jumpers and three-pointers up for at least an hour every day. He called it a “healthy addiction.”
“If I’m gone all day for some reason and can’t find time to shoot, then I will come home and shoot in the dark at 10 p.m. with no lights,” Hughes said. “My coach and others might say that I work very hard on my shooting, but it doesn’t feel like hard work because I truly enjoy every moment of it.”
Harris said Hughes has made himself into an exceptional player.
“He is the best three-point shooter I have ever coached,” Harris said. “Jake hits a lot more than he misses in-game and that’s rare. He is also a great character person off the court. That translates to the team.”
Hughes has shot the lights out in three of Malibu’s four games, tallying 20 or more points in each. The 12th grader dropped 20 points in Malibu’s 86-71 triumph over Pacifica Christian on Nov. 30. The win garnered Malibu a third-place trophy in The Milken Classic Basketball Tournament in Los Angeles. Hughes and his teammate, 6-foot-3 freshman guard Corey Cofield II, who scored 32 points against Pacifica Christian, were named to the event’s all-tournament team.
The win was Malibu’s last game until 2018 due to last week’s wildfires, and cemented the Sharks atop the Division 5AAA ranking. Malibu is ranked above schools such as Providence, Garden Grove, Buckley and Santa Clarita Christian.
Harris said defeating Pacifica Christian, ninth in the Division 5AAA poll, showed his group doesn’t quit. Malibu was down 19 points at halftime before storming back.
“To see kids have fight like that is quite a positive,” Harris said.
Harris said different Sharks played a part in the comeback. He said Hughes hit four threes. Junior guard Tanner Sausser hit two big triples. Six-foot-five senior Canaan Wilson had steals, rebounds and tip-in baskets.
Cofield, the talented point guard, scored on drives to the basket and fast-breaks to lead Malibu.
Harris said Cofield has special talent.
“He is the best player I ever coached,” Harris said. “He can take over the game in so many ways. In a pivotal moment—an important rebound, important block or an important score—it is always Corey making the play. If he decides to go coast-to-coast on a play, it is almost like he is playing with little kids because they can’t stop him.”
Harris added that Cofield has a court awareness that is rare for a freshman. He said some players have talent, but not the “it factor.”
“This guy has it,” Harris said of Cofield. “He has all the skills.”
Hughes said his freshman teammate has a passion for basketball.
“He has already been huge for us as a rebounder and scorer,” he said. “I really don’t know where we would be without him.”
Harris said Corey and his older brother, sophomore Elisha Cofield, added a lot of athleticism to Malibu’s ranks this season. The coach said the other first-year Shark, senior guard Anthony Chandrasena, has the pass-first mentality the team needs.
Sharks that were also on the team a year ago are no slouches. Harris said 6-foot-4 senior David Hudson is the best rebounder in the Tri-Valley League, and Wilson and Sausser are energizers off the bench. Dylan Hicks, Matthew Miller, Edouard Clausse and Arman Santizo are also contributors.
“I was expecting to have a good year with our returning group,” Harris said.
Malibu’s other two wins were a 69-49 victory over Milken on Nov. 27 and 55-47 over Valley Torah on Nov. 28. Malibu was defeated on Nov. 29 by Mary Star of Sea.
Malibu was supposed to play in another tournament last week, but the event was canceled. Instead, Malibu will just practice until their first Tri-Valley League contest, Jan. 9 at Santa Clara.
Hughes said he expects his squad to sweep the league.
“I would be lying to you if I told you anything other than 12-0,” he said. “I have seen all the teams that we play and I know that they are going to give us everything they have to beat us, but I also have tremendous confidence in my teammates and coaches that we will not take anything for granted.”