Hopkins overcomes Wayzata, snags spot in the girls basketball state tournament

Hopkins players laced up their sneakers for the section championship game in a different locker room. They ran onto the Wayzata court with their Royals fans, stunningly, on the visitors' side.

In the end, it didn’t matter for the eight-time state champs.

In Thursday’s Class 4A, Section 6 championship game, Hopkins avenged its two regular-season losses to Wayzata in a 74-60 victory, booking its 11th consecutive trip to state.

Wayzata is ranked third and Hopkins fourth in the Star Tribune’s Minnesota Top 25.

Hopkins hadn’t lost both regular-season games to Wayzata in four decades and hadn’t been the visiting No. 2 seed in any of the six consecutive years that this section-championship matchup — Minnesota’s most electric one-sided rivalry — showcased the likes of Paige Bueckers, Amaya Battle, Mara Braun and Liv McGill with a trip to state on the line.

“[We] never gave up,” Hopkins sophomore guard Jaliyah Diggs said. “The game that matters is the last game of the season.”

This won’t be Hopkins’ last game, thanks in part to Diggs, who etched her name into this chapter of the rivalry. She scored a game-high 20 points — her season-high; she’s averaging 9.9 per game this year.

“I came to the game confident,” Diggs said. “From the jump, I was like, ‘This is our game.’ My teammates, we really uplift each other.”

At 5-5, Diggs was the shortest player on either team, and she jumped into the arms of Hopkins alum and assistant coach Alexis Garcia after the game.

“She’s really tough, and so she’s hard to stay in front of,” Hopkins head coach Tara Starks said. “When we’re playing against big kids, I try to tell her to make the reads.”

Wayzata, looking to make it to state for the first time since 2010, had height on Hopkins and outrebounded the Royals in the two regular-season games. On Thursday, the Royals boxed out, knocked down shots against the zone and forced tough turnovers, with key steals from senior Maliyah White.

Sophomore Erma Walker and senior Lauren Hillesheim, a North Dakota commit, each added 14 points for Hopkins.

After Hopkins stifled Wayzata early, the Trojans took a 30-27 edge at halftime, led by senior Allie Berns, who finished with 15 points.

But the Royals came out hot in the second half. Five straight points from sophomore Liv Bell. Five straight from Diggs. Five straight from Hillesheim. They took the lead for good with 4:30 left to play and never trailed again.

“It feels great to be a champion,” said Diggs. “But we’re not done.”

Both teams relied on deep rosters to make it to the section title game. Wayzata senior Sophie Hawkinson and junior guard Kate Amelotte were sidelined with torn knee ligaments, while two big-time Hopkins scorers — senior Tatum Woodson and sophomore Ava Cupito — were out with injuries.