Royals reclaim State Title
Mar 12, 2016
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Vinnie Shahid, senior, and Simon Wright, junior, talk before the AAAA state final game.
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Erik Davis, senior, jumps for the ball at the start of the AAAA state final game.
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Amir Coffey, University of Minnesota, Basketball- First year on Varsity: Freshman year, 2012. Favorite memory: Hitting the game winning shot in the 2014 State semifinals, and winning the State championship senior year, 2015.
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Ishmael El-Amin, junior, sets up a play in the AAAA state final game.
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Ishmael El-Amin, junior, shoots a layup in the AAAA state final game.
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Amir Coffey, senior, falls in the offensive zone in the AAAA state final game.
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Vinnie Shahid, senior, dribbles the ball down the court in the AAAA state final game.
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The HHS fans cheer for the boys basketball team during a free throw in the AAAA state final game.
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Vinnie Shahid, senior, shoots a three pointer in the AAAA state final game.
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Coach Ken Novak, Jr. speaks to a referee during the AAAA state final game.
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Erik Davis, senior, shoots the ball during the AAAA state final game.
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Amir Coffey, senior, pushes away a defender in the offensive end in the AAAA state final game.
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Vinnie Shahid, senior, shoots a free throw in the AAAA state final game.
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Amir Coffey, senior, and Simon Wright, junior, embrace during the AAAA state final game.
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Amir Coffey, Vinnie Shahid, and Xavier Johnson, seniors, go in for a hug after the state championship win.
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Ishmael El-Amin, senior, holds up his uniform after the AAAA state championship win.
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Coach Ken Novak, Jr. and Assistant Coach Ken Novak hug in the last few seconds of the AAAA state final game.
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The HHS boys basketball team wins the state championship.
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The HHS fans celebrate after the state championship win.
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The HHS boys basketball team storms the court after the state championship win.
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The HHS boys basketball team brings the championship trophy to the fans in the stands after the AAAA state final game.
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Amir Coffey, Vinnie Shahid, and Xavier Johnson, seniors, receive their trophies for the All Tournament Team at the AAAA state final game.
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Xavier Johnson, senior, cuts his part of the net after the AAAA state final game.
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The HHS boys basketball team celebrates with their trophy after the AAAA state championship win.
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The Hopkins crowd is on its feet. The Lindbergh Loonies are jumping around, and the noise in the Target Center is deafening. The Hopkins Royals are the 2016 Class AAAA State Champions.
Two years ago, Hopkins led in the State Championship game against the Panthers by four points with 25 seconds left, only to lose by two. Last season, the Panthers ended the Royals’ season with a four point win in the state quarterfinals. This year, the Royals made sure things ended differently.
“Two years ago, we should have won it,” said head coach Ken Novak, Jr. “That was maybe the hardest loss I have ever had, so it was really nice to get this one.”
In the first half, both teams showed signs of big-game nerves, as Lakeville North shot 1-11 from three while the Royals shot 2-10. However, Carter Brooks ignited the Panther crowd with two thunderous first-half dunks.
Lakeville North held the Royals to 34.6% shooting overall in the first half. Despite their poor first-half shooting performance, the Royals stayed in the game by turning the ball over only six times and keeping the Panthers off the foul-line. The teams went into the half all tied up at 23-23.
Lakeville North went with a Wayzata-like approach for defeating the Royals: they slowed the game down and limited the number of possessions.
“We were pleased where we were at the end of the first half, but we really struggled to generate offense, and a lot of that comes down to [Hopkins’] level of athleticism and ability,” said Lakeville North head coach John Oxton. “They’re a very good team.”
The Royals began the second half doing what they do best: running the floor. Xavier Johnson, senior, converted a difficult fast-break layup, then followed it up with a dish to Amir Coffey, senior, for a two-handed dunk.
After the Panthers jumped out to a 42-37 lead, the Royals went on a 15-0 run. Simon Wright, junior, Vinnie Shahid, senior, Johnson, and Coffey all contributed points to the run, as the Royals took a five point lead and never looked back.
“One thing always talked about with Hopkins is their runs,” Oxton said. “That was a good run, and it put the game away.”
As he has so often in his high school career, Shahid stepped to the free throw line in a high-pressure situation. The Royals led by four with 59 seconds left in the game after the Panthers went on a 6-0 run.
“It’s just like practice where you get the ball, do your routine, and try to pause to take a deep breath,” Shahid said. “At the end of the day, you just shoot it.”
Shahid knocked down both shots.
While the Panthers held the Royals to only a few fast-break opportunities in the first half, Hopkins sped up the game in the second period, finishing with 14 transition points, all of which came in the second half.
As a star player should, Coffey put his team on his back in the second period, scoring a game-high 19 points, 12 of which he scored in the second half. Coffey was frustrated by calls early but played through it.
“There’s nothing you can really do about the refs, so it’s frustrating, but I’m still thinking about winning the game, so I just try to do things in other aspects of the game to get us a win,” Coffey said.
Erik Davis, senior, and Wright were tasked with defending Lakeville North star Nathan Reuvers. While Reuvers ended with 16 points, Davis and Wright held him in check for most of the night, holding him to 2 points in the first half.
“Reuvers is a really good player,” Novak said. “He could end up being a pro.”
Johnson stepped up once again for the Royals. This time, he did it on the defensive side of the ball, as he finished with four steals.
“My mindset was to do whatever I needed to do to help us win,” Johnson said. “If that was to get stops or to pressure their guards, I did that.”
The magnitude of winning a State Championship at Hopkins isn’t lost on the players.
“Being a player at Hopkins, you are held to a higher standard,” Johnson said. “To be a part of this program and win is phenomenal.”