Aispuro wins fifth Hoopfest title

SANDPOINT — You don’t become a five-time Hoopfest champion without some serious basketball chops.

Sandpoint’s Joel Aispuro has plenty of them, teaming up with longtime friend and former Bulldog Blake Mahler and brothers Taylor and Shayne Jensen to win their six-feet and under bracket at Hoopfest last Sunday, beating both their opponents and the oppressive triple digit temperatures.

For Aispuro, 27, the win marked his fifth championship in the world’s biggest outdoor 3-on-3 tournament, joining a relatively small contingent of ballers who need all of the digits on one hand to count their titles.

The fifth win was extra special, partly due to conquering the heat and partly due to reuniting with Mahler, who now lives in California. The two won three straight Hoopfest championships years ago, and it says much about the beating the body takes playing streetball that Aispuro referred to he and Mahler as “the older guys out there.”

They once played on a team that got second in the highly-competitive Elite Division six-feet and under bracket, and teaming up again on the streets of Spokane again brought back a lot of fond memories.

“This one was fun and special. We’re older, we got in a little bit of shape and went out there and it felt really good,” described Aispuro, known to many who frequent Joel’s Mexican Restaurant. “We’ve played some pretty good teams and we’ve won. We’re not always the best team. That’s the cool thing, we know each other so well.”

The team, named Dunamis after the Greek word for power, got its biggest scare in the first game on Saturday, trailing 18-12 before Mahler erupted for three straight two-pointers (3-point shots) and the team closed things out, avoiding the much longer consolation route, no small thing with temperatures reportedly reaching 150 degrees off the asphalt.

“We persevered, and Blake scored nine unanswered points,” said Aispuro, nnoting keeping his composure was the toughest challenge amid the heat. “Keeping a competitive edge when it’s hot, keeping your sportsmanship. Our wives helped too. Every time we came off the court they had towels with ice cubes.”

The young legs of the Jensens didn’t hurt either. Aispuro is the coach of the Kootenai Thunder, and both Shayne, who will be a senior, and Taylor, who played for him two years ago, got to see first hand that coach practices what he preaches.

While most players are all about scoring, Aispuro takes pride in stopping his man from doing just that.

“His biggest strength is defense. He’ll neutralize the other team’s best player, that’s what he does,” described Taylor, who plays hoops in college at Pensacola Christian College, of Aispuro. “He’s quick, a good passer, and has a great knowledge of the game. His defense sets him apart from other players. He’s real selfless, lets whoever’s hot take control of the game.”

The team hung its hat on defense and threes, which took yeoman work in the heat, and scored another come from behind win en route to going 4-0 over the weekend.

Taylor said Aispuro was a driving force in all four wins.

“He’s extremely competitive. A great defensive player and coach, it’s a mindset thing,” said Taylor. “He enjoys the game a lot to, keeps a light spirit.”

Aispuro enjoys coaching the Thunder, imparting some of the life lessons that carry on far past sports. He says he wants the person his players end up working for to say ‘this is a great kid.’

Aispuro, who recently had his first kid with wife Moriah, said he plans to get in even better shape next year and start working on the task of needing a second hand to count his Hoopfest titles.

“We’ll probably play until we lose,” he said or he and Mahler, admitting they’ve beaten teams with far better talent. “A couple of nobodies from Sandpoint beating the competition. It feels pretty good.”