Second-ranked Hopkins overcame a slow first half to cruise to a 88-73 victory over fifth-ranked Eden Prairie on Tuesday night thanks to some hot shooting from senior guard and Citadel commit Jake Wright.

"I thought we started off sloppy and sluggish," Wright said. "In the second half for a 10-minute stretch there, we were really moving the ball, playing with energy ... (my teammates) found me in open spots and I was knocking them down."

Wright notched three of his five 3-pointers in the second half to pace the Royals with 26 points, while talented sophomore Amir Coffey tallied 21 points. 

"We had to get out onto Wright because he doesn't need much space, and he made plays in the second half," Eagles head coach David Flom said. "And obviously Coffey is a great playmaker and makes everyone around him better. Those two guys are very, very good."

Hopkins head coach Ken Novak Jr. said the Royals struggled early with Eden Prairie's size in the opening half, as 6-foot-9 Eden Prairie center Aaron Workin and 6-foot-5 center Zach Hovey caused problems down low for Hopkins early.

"(Eden Prairie) is a good team and we knew they were going to be a good team," Novak said. "They're big, and we had some trouble. We're all guards. So they took advantage of that matchup pretty good (in the first half)."

The Eagles ran the floor well in a hard-fought first half and seemed to outwork Hopkins on both ends of the floor. Eden Prairie only held a 37-36 halftime lead on a Hopkins team that averages just over 90 points per game.

Eagles senior guard Andre Wallace finished with 21 points to lead Eden Prairie scorers, passing well and crashing the boards in search of the upset.

But it was all Hopkins in the second period, with Coffey putting up 14 of his 21 points in the second half.

"In the first half I noticed they were sagging off shooters like me and Jake Wright," Coffey said. "Different nights people step up, and I guess tonight it was me (in the second half)."

Tuesday's victory gives the Royals their 10th straight win and second in as many tries in the Lake Conference, but Novak knows this is only the beginning. 

"I don't read too much into it," he said. "This is the second game of conference. It's still really early and (Eden Prairie) will get better and better ... I feel good we won. It was a nice one to get."