Boys basketball advances past SLP

  • Coach Novak and the Hopkins bench observe the game.

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  • John Warren, senior, shoots a baseline three-pointer.

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  • Graham Hutson, senior, shoots a layup.

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  • Vinnie Shahid, junior, shooting a three-pointer.

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  • Ishmael El-Amin, sophomore, shooting a three-pointer.

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  • Lindbergh Loonies rile up during the halftime break.

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  • Parker Beak, senior, senior, takes a floater in the middle of the lane.

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  • Ishmael El-Amin, sophomore, goes up for a layup.

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Kyle Makey, Staff Reporter
Feb 27, 2015

The second-seeded boys basketball team tipped off postseason play on Wednesday Feb. 25 with a dominating performance over seventh-seeded St. Louis Park. The win comes as no surprise as the Royals controlled the game from start to finish.

After a solid start and some rest for the starters, the Royals played sloppy basketball for a four minute stretch towards the end of the first half but still went into the locker room with a comfortable 22 point lead. In the second half, they hit on all cylinders thanks to Ishmael El-Amin, sophomore, who had 18 points, most of which came in the second half.

John Warren, senior, had 22 points and Xavier Johnson and Vinnie Shahid, juniors, added 9 and 11 points, respectively, for the Royals. The starters were pulled from the game with 11 minutes remaining.

This year’s section tournament is different than in years past. The first round games are hosted by the higher seed, but the semi-finals are hosted at the home court of the highest seed remaining. This means that the semi-finals will be played at Eden Prairie High School because they are the top seed remaining seed in the section.

Next up for the Royals is Minneapolis South who shocked Minnetonka with a buzzer beating three to win 105-104 at Minnetonka High School. The Tigers entered the game with a record of 11-15 but clearly showed they can score against the Skippers. They face the Royals on Saturday Feb. 28 at 3PM at Eden Prairie High School.

The Tigers have had an up-and-down season, defeating teams like Minneapolis North and Minnehaha Academy, but losing to teams like Minneapolis Southwest and Breck. They are a team that you wouldn’t expect to make it past the first round of sections, but could spring an upset and become a “Cinderella” team.

Keep in mind that this is the section tournament and that any loss will end the Royals’ season, who have state tournament aspirations.

On the other side of the bracket, top seeded Eden Prairie defeated Minneapolis Southwest and Armstrong defeated Edina handily. The winner of the EP/Armstrong game will face the winner of the Royals/Tigers contest on March 4 at 7PM at Cooper High School.