AJ Bianco scored 14 points and Aiva Arquette tallied 12 as top-seeded Saint Louis pulled away for a 40-32 win over fourth-seeded Baldwin on Friday night at Moanalua.

Saint Louis (19-2 overall) advanced to the final of the Heide &Cook/HHSAA Boys Basketball State Championships. The Crusaders will play Mililani at Blaisdell Center at 7 tonight. The Trojans beat ‘Iolani 45-39 in overtime in the other semifinal.

“All year, we fought through adversity really well, and tonight we were down and Baldwin is a great team,” said Bianco, who is originally from Maui.

Arquette also had a team-high seven rebounds and Bianco added five caroms. The two seniors also had three steals each. Baldwin committed 24 turnovers against Saint Louis’ ballhawking pressure. The Crusaders had just 10 giveaways.

“This game easily could have gone either way,” Crusaders coach Dan Hale said. “This was a slugfest, blood everywhere. Mark my words, that was a very, very good team.”

The game was unusual for Saint Louis, with Bianco sitting a large chunk of the first half with foul trouble. Reserves held down the fort until Bianco returned in the second half.

“Jordan (Posiulai) and Pupu (Sepulona) did a great job,” Hale noted. “They’re our future, but they’re our present, too.”

In addition, point guards Hayden Bayudan and Shoncin Revuelto faced a triangle-and-two defense part of the way. Bayudan was scoreless, but led the Crusaders’ press breaker against a rugged, tall and quick Baldwin squad. He finished with three rebounds and two assists.

Baldwin’s 6-foot-7 bookends had their moments. Quintan Akaka had 14 points and 11 rebounds but suffered leg cramps during the second half and had just two points in the fourth quarter.

“Q was cramping up — his quads, his Achilles, his calves. You could see it. It’s not an excuse. Whoever is in has to step up,” Bears coach Cody Tesoro said.

Hudson Yarbrough had eight points on 4-for-8 shooting. Avery Pauole, a 6-6 junior, had four points and five boards.

Turnovers were a critical factor for Baldwin against Saint Louis’s fullcourt and halfcourt defensive pressure.

“I’m so proud of this group. They fought through so much adversity this year,” Tesoro said. “The MIL is tough. People sleep on the MIL. The players work hard.”

Saint Louis led for most of the first half, taking a 7-2 lead on a wing 3 by Arquette. The Bears chipped away and took a 14-13 lead into the half on a driving layup by Yarbrough.

Saint Louis regained the lead with buckets by Arquette and Bianco, and after Bianco swished two free throws, the Crusaders led 21-16.

Akaka hit a bank shot to spark a Bears rally. Another drive to the rim resulted in a basket for Yarbrough, and Baldwin led 24-23 entering the fourth quarter.

Bianco again attacked from the block against the giants and succeeded again. He was kryptonite against a defense that thwarted just about every foe. His bucket on the block gave Saint Louis the lead for good, 25-24, early in the fourth quarter.

Moments later, Arquette stole the ball and broke away for a thunderous dunk to open Saint Louis’ lead to 29-24 with 4:14 left.

“That was a momentum play for sure,” Hale said. “Both teams are going back and forth. That little burst of energy really helps.”

A three-point play by Cole Schmidt on a pass from Bianco opened the lead to 32-26 with 2:58 remaining.

Yarbrough’s 15-foot jumper cut the lead to four points, but Saint Louis free throws — the Crusaders were 8-for-12 in the final 1:22 — put the game out of reach.