And now that this group has reached their final seasons as high school players, the familiarity has paid off.

"I've felt the energy in practice and guys coming to work every single day," said Dobbs, who has varsity experience going back to his eighth-grade season. "We really get after it on the defensive end every single day in practice."

These players have already experienced two state tournaments, starting with the season they were sophomores. Last year, Eden Prairie (7-0, 0-0) finished with 22 wins and clinched the Section 2, 4A championship, but fell to Lakeville North in the first round of the state tournament.

While a second consecutive state tournament berth was exciting, the first-round exit left the players wanting more.

"Last year, we had a great opportunity to win, but we had some lack of focus in the first round of state and lost," said Dobbs. "Now it's our last year; we're not taking any game or practice for granted."

With 10 seniors listed on the varsity roster, Eden Prairie head coach David Flom has the level of experience many coaches desire. He said they are working on aspects in practice they often would not touch until February.

However, the key will be to continue steadily improving.

"We're way ahead of everybody at this moment because we're so experienced. I think other teams could potentially catch up because their teams are still formulating. It's December, but we're ahead in that regard,” Flom said. 

While East Ridge (4-2, 3-0) has its fair share of talented players, like Carlson and Kendall Blue, who are each averaging more than 13 points per game this season, they also have some players jumping into new roles this season.

The Raptors won 28 games last season and advanced to the semifinals of the state tournament. But the team also graduated talented players like Courtney Brown Jr., who is now playing at UW-Milwaukee. Kendall Brown, who last season averaged more than 15 points per game as a sophomore, also transferred to Sunrise Christian Academy in Kansas.

Head coach Josh Peltier said the difference in experience likely played a role in East Ridge's loss to Eden Prairie Saturday.

"Their experience really showed there," he said. “We have a lot of guys who haven't been in big games like this."