Hopkins hammers Cooper, proves dominance

At this point, the story sounds cliché: Minnesota Class 4A's No. 1 ranked Hopkins boys' basketball team kept another challenger at arm's length on the way to yet another blowout win. But the Royals' matchup with No. 3 ranked Cooper Tuesday night provided a little more substance. As both teams entered the game with 15-0 records in Class 4A, the game was billed to be the Battle of the Undefeateds. Then, there was the battle between the Gophers' top recruits, Hopkins' 6-foot-8 forward Royce White versus Coopers' 6-7 swingman Rodney Williams Jr., which had seemingly attracted everybody in the Minnesota basketball scene, from for Gopher greats Flip Saunders to Trent Tucker. But when the Royals, ranked No. 16 in the nation by USA Today, escaped in the end with a melodramatic 100-78 win in front of a packed 2,400-seat gym, the focus shifted the question from 'Is Hopkins is the best team in the state?' to 'Just how good are these guys?' Cooper head coach David Johnson had no problem ranking them as the best team he's ever faced in his coaching career. "I haven't seen a high school team that good," Johnson said of Hopkins moments after the game Tuesday night. "They're just so deep and they're strong physically, too, and we had a tough time with that. They're just so tough to defend." With four Division-I signees, and undecided point guard Marcus Williams on the verge of making it five, the Royals have simply overmatched every team they've played so far this season, including No. 2 Henry Sibley, who Hopkins beat 77-66 on Jan. 9, and now Cooper. Hopkins guard Trent Lockett, who is committed to Arizona State, led all scorers with 23 points, and all but six were scored in the second half. Raymond Cowels, who is committed to Santa Clara, added 13 points, including three three-pointers for the Royals. White chipped in 21, besting his future teammate Williams Jr., who finished with 19. Johnson said his team wanted to stay away from the Royce vs. Rodney hype, and Williams Jr. chose to guard Hopkins center Mike Broghammer, a Notre Dame recruit. That just ended up being the lesser of the two evils for the Hawks, considering Broghammer finished with 17 points and Williams was in foul-trouble with three in the first half. "That was the difference in the game, I think, Royce just got too active inside for us and then Rodney got in foul trouble in the first half, so that hurt us a little bit," Johnson said. "We were really afraid of (White's) deep penetration in the lane, and that was really a factor late in the first half and in the second half." White scored 16 points and controlled the paint in the first half, leading the Royals to a 49-40 halftime lead. Trying to stay within reach, the Hawks used an array of threes from Quincy Bethea, who finished with 14 points, and strong inside play from Joe Bright, who finished with 17, but Hopkins was just too overwhelming. The scary thing is that the Royals don't think they've yet hit full stride. Lockett, who held Williams Jr. to just 1-of-4 shooting in the first half, said Tuesday's nights win over Cooper was just an average game for his team. "I think we have a long ways to go," said Lockett, who is ranked No. 73 in the list of the top 150 seniors in the nation by rivals.com. "We're striving for perfection every game and we haven't hit that. It's very hard to, but we haven't gotten close to the best game we can play." News and Notes: -Marcus Williams, who was also a standout wide receiver for the Hopkins football team, said he is still undecided as National Signing Day approaches Wednesday. Willams, who is likely getting D-I offers from several college football and basketball teams, said he's coming close to making a decision, but has yet to figure out what sport he's going to play. Sounds like a good problem to have. - Royce White is ranked No. 19 in the list of the top 150 seniors by rivals.com. Rodney Williams Jr. is No. 95.