Minnetonka Faces Rival Hopkins In Hoops Matchup

MINNETONKA PATCH GAME OF THE WEEK

Boys Basketball
Minnetonka (14-4, 1-1 Lake Conference) vs. Hopkins (17-1, 2-0 Lake Conference)

CHEAT SHEET
SITE: Hopkins High School
TIME: 7 p.m. Monday
LAST MEETING: Hopkins defeated Minnetonka all three times they played each other last season. The Royals won 87-62 at Minnetonka, 91-44 at home and 87-61 in the playoffs.

ON THE LINE
The Skippers bounced back from two straight defeats to beat No. 7 ranked Eden Prairie 80-63 on Friday. They face another ranked opponent in crosstown rival No. 2 Hopkins. The Royals have won three straight Class 4A titles. Hopkins has had Minnetonka’s number the past three years, winning eight straight games. The Skippers last defeated Hopkins 74-71 in the 2008 Section 6AAAA finals on their way to winning the state title. Hopkins has won 13 straight games after losing to No. 1 Class 3A team Benilde St. Margaret on the road.

The Skippers are getting excellent scoring balance with five players averaging double figures. Senior guard Tommy McDermott has scored in double figures in all 14 games, including a season-best 27 against Eden Prairie Friday. Patrick Henry transfer Latrell Love has scored in double figures in 16 of 18 games and is averaging 15.4 points per game. Junior Riley Dearring, who played at Minneapolis DeLaSalle last season, is scoring 15.1 points per contest. Guards Andrew Grosz and Joe Risinger add 10.3 and 10.1 points per game, respectively.

Hopkins has won three straight Class 4A titles and is going for an unprecedented fourth crown. They have had to replace nearly 40 points per game with the graduation losses of Mr. Basketball Joe Coleman and Marvin Singleton this season. However, they still have plenty of offensive firepower.

Senior Zachary Stahl was named the Best Buy Holiday Classic MVP after scoring 22.7 points per game in the three wins. He is averaging 19.3 points after missing the first six games of the season. Point guard Siyani Chambers, who is headed to Harvard, is adding 16.6 points. Senior shooter Demitrius Martin has more than doubled his scoring from last season as he is contributing 14.1 points per game. Nicholas Jorgenson, who is a good outside threat, adds 10.9 points per game. Andre McDonald, who is the state’s top wide receiver and a Minnesota signee, has shown off his skills on the hardwood by averaging 8.3 points. The Royals have plenty of talent off the bench in sophomores Jacob Wright (8.2) and Stephon Sharpe (4.8) and junior Jamal Davis (7.5).

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Tommy McDermott - Minnetonka guard
The senior has provided key leadership and backcourt scoring for the Skippers since his return after missing the first four games of the season. He leads the team in scoring with 17.0 points per game.

Zach Stahl – Hopkins forward
The senior has scored more than 20 points in four of twelve games.

SKIPPERS WIN IF...
They can continue to get balanced scoring from their up-tempo offense and improve their defense to slow down a high-scoring opponent in Hopkins.

ROYALS WIN IF...
They can hit their outside shots to take the pressure off their inside scorers.