The Hopkins boys’ varsity basketball team, which seems to be playing its best basketball at the right time of the season, posted a 63-43 triumph over Plainwell in the Class B district tournament opener Monday night at Otsego.
The Vikings, who have won their last four ballgames in a row, won by a larger margin than expected because both teams entered the contest with 11-9 overall records at the end of the regular season.
It was an even game through two quarters and Hopkins was down by two points at halftime. The Trojans took a seven-point lead in the third quarter, but then, fueled by their defense, the Vikings came storming back, sparked by a steal for a transition dunk by junior Hunter Lewellyn.
The Vikings again had balanced scoring. Lewellyn and freshman point guard Colin Weber led with 12 points apiece, sophomore Tyler Zomerlei had 11, Josh Sapp chipped in 10, and Nolan Smith and Drew Weber had 9 and 8 points, respectively.
Hopkins last week beat Comstock 72-44 after getting sweet revenge for a 63-54 loss earlier in the season to NorthPointe Christian in a 71-58 victory Feb. 23.
Coach Jake Jewitt’s group will face an Allegan team that went 4-16 in the semifinals at 7 p.m. Wednesday night at Otsego. The 5:30 game will pit Wayland (8-12) against Otsego (19-1). The winners of the two Wednesday night games will meet in the finals Friday evening at 7 p.m.
Interestingly, Jewitt was a basketball coach at Otsego until this year and he still teaches there, in the case two battle for the district crown.
