Nine thousand fans in the stands and perhaps as many as a half a million more watching on TV were treated to Lake Conference girls basketball at its best March 16 at Williams Arena.
Minnetonka, the Lake runner-up, scored a 64-56 victory over Lake champion Hopkins in an intense battle for the state Class AAAA crown.
The Skippers held a 14-point lead in the second half, but Hopkins was able to cut the lead to three at 59-56 before Minnetonka made its final push to victory.
Secret weapon
There was certainly some adversity for the new state champs, who lost center Sidney Reed and star guard Aaliyah Crump on fouls late in the contest. But the Skippers had “a secret weapon” on hand to close out the win.
With Minnetonka holding its 59-56 lead, senior forward CeCe Nesseth grabbed a loose ball in the lane and banked the basketball off the glass for two points. She was fouled on the shot and swished the free throw to put the Skippers up by six.
Shortly thereafter, Anna McKinney made a steal for Minnetonka and passed to Nesseth, who was again fouled. She stepped to the foul line and drained two more foul shots, and that was the ballgame.
“CeCe sealed the deal,” Minnetonka head coach Brian Cosgriff said after the game. “It was a great way for a senior to go out.”
Nesseth described her key three-point play: “I kind of knew the shot clock was running out. I shot the ball with my left hand, and the Hopkins player hit my right arm.”
After Nesseth expanded Minnetonka’s lead, the Skippers still had to deal with Hopkins’ come-back ability and McDonald’s All-American senior guard Liv McGill.
“The last two minutes of the game felt like eternity,” Nesseth said.
“At that point, I thought to myself, all we need is a stop,” Minnetonka senior captain Tori McKinney said. McKinney blocked a shot in the lane and the Skippers regained possession.
Watching from the bench, Crump realized that even though she couldn’t be on the court, she could impact the game by cheering for her team. “I have so much trust in our team,” she said. “I love all of our seniors.”
Royals’ comeback
Hopkins head coach Tara Starks never gave up hope of winning the game. Cutting the Skippers’ lead from 14 points to three was something to be proud of, but still, it didn’t yield the win.
“We needed to fight just a little harder,” she said. “We missed a box-out and they beat us to a couple of balls. Our girls have battled all season. They will never quit and they bought into everything we asked them to do.”
Starks saw Hopkins’ chances improve when Crump picked up her fifth foul on a charging call with 1:47 remaining in the second half.
“We didn’t talk about trying to foul her out,” coach Starks said. “I just wanted the officials to call something when she pushed off. Even before Crump fouled out, we were able to find some mismatches and get back in the game.”
“A good three-minute stretch picked us up,” Hopkins junior guard Lauren Hillesheim said. “We had the momentum, we just couldn’t finish it off.”
“Our comeback was too late,” Hopkins junior guard Tatum Woodson said. “We came out flat for the start of the game.”
Top players shine
For both teams in the championship game, the big players came through. Each side had only six scorers.
Crump made eight of 20 shots from the field to lead her team with 23 points. In three state tournament games, she had 81 points for an average of 27. Tori McKinney was next for the Skippers with 18 points. Nesseth scored eight, Lanelle Wright had six, Reed contributed five points along with 10 rebounds and Harley Wock finished with four points.
McGill led Hopkins with 18 points and made three of six three-point shots. Ninth-grade post Erma Walker had 14 points and 11 rebounds. Hillesheim chipped in with 13 points and eight rebounds. Other scorers were Tatum Woodson with five, London Harris with four and Ava Cupito with two.
Minnetonka finished the season 29-2 overall and Hopkins finished 27-4.
Next season
At the beginning of the 2023-24 season, McGill was the only Hopkins starter returning from a team that finished second at state behind St. Michael-Albertville last season.
“We are graduating one of the best players in the game,” coach Starks said, referring of course to McGill. “She instilled a legacy here and we’re going to miss her leadership. Liv is the one who brought everyone together.”
For next season, the Royals can bring back four starters - Harris, Hillesheim, Walker and Woodson - plus key reserves Cupito, Maliyah White and Le’Sedra Williams.
Minnetonka’s biggest graduation loss is Tori McKinney. “Tori is the best defensive player in the state,” coach Cosgriff said. Next stop for McKinney is the University of Minnesota women’s basketball program.
The Skippers can bring back two of the best players in the state with Crump at shooting guard and Wright at point guard. Wright played all 36 minutes of the state championship game and was the only player on either side to do so.
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