The phones were turned off, and the newlyweds were blissfully unaware of how desperate their situation would soon become.

The “Road to Hana” is a popular tourist attraction in Maui, a 60-plus mile stretch of secluded highway that takes drivers through the scenic hidden interior of the island. Zach Ruebesam and his new wife, Hallie, planned to take that journey on the first day of their honeymoon.

Ruebesam, an assistant coach and the director of player development for the Colorado men’s basketball team, couldn’t sleep that night. A restless mix of excitement, jet lag, and the ruckus caused by a maniacal wind that was tossing the patio furniture around made sleep impossible.

Since the wind had knocked out the power at the hotel anyway, the newlyweds set out just before dawn for the Road to Hana. It was the last they would see of their hotel, and the last they would see of the belongings they packed for months.

While the Ruebesams were driving, those winds stirred a fire that changed life on the island forever. By the time they figured out what was going on, the fire was well on its way to ravaging the town of Lahaina. The firestorm in early August of 2023 killed more than 100 people and destroyed more than 2,200 structures, causing billions of dollars in damage.

Ruebesam has a chance to return to Maui this weekend, as the Buffaloes travel to the islands to compete in a star-studded field at the Maui Invitational, with CU opening play on Monday against Michigan State (3 p.m. MT, ESPN2). This year’s Maui Invitational is the 40th edition of the prestigious tournament, and it marks a return to the Lahaina Civic Center after the tournament was held in Honolulu last year.

“We got there the night before and went to a dinner in downtown Lahaina. The Cheeseburger in Paradise,” said Ruebesam, who had no way of knowing that restaurant soon wouldn’t be there. “We put our phones away because there’s no service on the Road to Hana. And we had a great day. We did a waterfall hike at the end.

“Once we had service, we’re trying to put in our hotel. And Siri is saying no, you can’t go this direction. This road is closed. You can’t go this way. So we just went towards the airport and Hallie finally got on social media. That’s when we saw how bad it was.”

Ruebesam and his wife were able to relocate to the Big Island with the clothes on their back. The Maui fire occurred less than two years after the Marshall Fire devastated large swaths of Boulder County, affecting many within the CU athletic department and destroying the family home of former Buffs basketball player Sabatino Chen. The Buffs traveled on Friday and are scheduled to participate in several community events ahead of Monday’s tipoff. Nothing will ever replace what was lost on Maui, but CU head coach Tad Boyle — whose childhood home in Greeley, where his mom still lived, was destroyed by fire in late 2016 — is grateful for whatever small part his team can play in making the return home for the Maui Invitational a memorable one.

“The one thing I learned living through the Marshall Fire is how devastating it can be for families, interrupting their lives and really turning their lives upside down,” said Boyle, whose mom wasn’t home when the 2016 fire broke out at his family home.

“Unless it’s happened to you, I don’t know if you truly, fully understand it. I know we had people in our athletic department that lost their homes. Thankfully nobody lost their lives within our department. Those fires, they’re life-changing. For a community, for families and for individuals.

“What Maui as a community went through, to have the tournament back there, it’s a small step to the return of normalcy.”