The Hopkins boys’ varsity basketball team raised more than a few eyebrows Tuesday night with a 59-56 victory over previously unbeaten West Michigan Aviation Academy.
The Lady Vikings also won at home Tuesday evening and had an easier time of it, 54-29.
The Viking boys lost their first two games this season, but this time overcame a 31-29 deficit at the half to overtake WMAA, which entered the contest with a 4-0 record, including a nine-point victory last month over Wayland.
Hopkins actually trailed in all of the first three periods and had to battle back from behind for most of night.
Tristen Perry finished with 24 points. Josh Tew added 17 and Jayden Prather finished with 8 points.
Coach Jake Jewett said, “Both Noah Corneille and Trent Baugh came up big tonight on the defensive end, coming up with key steals and pressure on the ball. It really helped turn the momentum back our way down the stretch.
“After a slow start, we battled back and showed a lot of resiliency tonight. We had to fight through adversity and believe in each other in order to win. We’re getting better each practice and each game. West MI Aviation gave us all we could handle, and we were fortunate enough to beat a very good basketball team tonight.”
The Vikings, now 1-2, will be back in action Friday at home vs. Sparta to open up O-K Silver Conference play. The Lady Vikings now are 2-3.
