Trojans win Class AAAA Section 6 Title in Front of a Capacity Crowd
Tickets for the Wayzata boys basketball Class AAAA Section 6 were in such demand they sold out a day in advance, and many attendees were turned away at the doors to the athletic entrance by signs that indicated “Sold Out.”
At least a dozen photographers and videographers lined the baseline of the court, and two full pep bands–one from Wayzata and one from Hopkins were in attendance.
The crowd helped to create an electric atmosphere that helped your Wayzata Trojans (27-1) jump out to an early lead against Hopkins (23-6) as Wayzata played stellar defense, grabbed rebounds and got the ball to the open man on offensive possessions.
Hopkins Caught Off Guard
The Trojans figuratively punched the Royals in the mouth right from the start in seemingly all facets of the game, and Hopkins wasn’t ever able to recover.
Securing this victory allowed Wayzata to avenge their sole loss of the season, which occurred on January 23rd at the Royals Athletic Center by a score of 80-69.
Team First Basketball on Display
Unselfish basketball, epitomized by consistently passing to the open man for the perfect shot, stood as a cornerstone of Wayzata’s strategy and one of the primary reasons they were able to outplay Hopkins easily.
“Our guys moved the ball really well tonight and it was what created so many great shots. We have so many guys that can put the ball in the hoop and when we share it like that it is scary. Every single one of our guys gave it their all tonight and that is what it takes in March,” stated Head Coach Bryan Schnettler after the game.
As one example, Brayden Sandman hit a 3-pointer in the corner after what seemed to be a dozen passes from one side of the perimeter to the other to make it 27-12 with 10:23 remaining in the first half.
Another example includes this Wyatt McBeth 3-pointer off the assist from Isaac Olmstead to make it 41-18 with 6:41 remaining in the first.
McAndrew scores 40 points to lead Wayzata
Jackson McAndrew went off against the Royals, scoring an eye-opening 40 points in the contest.
One illustration of McAndrew’s scoring talent was highlighted when teammate Nicklaus Hein passed the ball to Jackson, who was left completely unguarded in the lane, leading to an effortless dunk.
McAndrew scored from seemingly everywhere on the court, including 5 makes from behind the 3-point line, a number of layups and mid-range jump shots as well as a number of free throws.
Christian Wiggins had 20 points including this 3-pointer from the right wing to make it 79-61 with 9:10 remaining in the 2nd half.
Wiggins would finish with 20 points for the Trojans including 9 points from the charity stripe and two 3-pointers.
A bit of foul trouble in the 2nd half
As indicated, the Trojans exhibited a strong performance across the board save for a hiccup early in the second half where they struggled with foul discipline, accruing 9 team fouls in relatively quick succession.
This lapse in control not only tested their defensive strategies but also inadvertently altered the game’s rhythm by slowing the tempo of the game down, allowing the Royals to get within 12 points.
Regardless, Wayzata was able to avoid allowing the double-bonus penalty to impact the game towards the end as the Trojans continued to build on their lead towards the end of the second half.
Sharp shooting
Wayzata scored a mind boggling eighteen 3-pointers in the contest for 54 points from behind the arc, or said another way more than half the team’s points!
As stated previously, McAndrew led Wayzata with 40 points, and Wiggins added 20 points.
Isaac Olmstead had 18 points, Wyatt McBeth finished with 9 points, Ben Shaffer had 6 points, Brayden Sandmann had 5, Evan Johnson scored 3, Drew Nepsatd had 2, as did Daniel Grubesic.
Hopkins was led by Anthony Smith with 31 points and Jayden Moore who finished with 22 points.
State Tournament schedule will be released soon
The State Tournament brackets will be release shortly, and you can stay tuned to Wayzata.com for more information.
“That was a great win for us, but we aren’t done yet. We have a week to keep getting better before the state tournament,” stated Coach Schnettler.
In the meantime, feel free to visit the MSHSL website here:
