Defending Class 4A champion Wayzata maintained its place as a top team in state this year, despite graduating its two primary ballhandlers and losing Division I recruit Camden Heide to a Utah prep school.

On Tuesday, the Trojans extended their season with a 77-55 victory over Minneapolis South in the Class 4A, Section 6 final at Wayzata High School to earn a second consecutive state berth.

Senior 6-9 forward Carter Bjerke, who has signed with St. Thomas, scored a game-high 26 points. Spencer Hall added 12 points, and Hayden Tibbits and Drew Berkland each scored 11 for the top-seeded Trojans (25-4), who took an early 26-point lead behind stingy defense and a patient offensive attack.

“We were really locked in from the start, and that was kind of our game plan,” Tibbits said. “We just kept that throughout the whole game.”

Tibbits, a junior, became Wayzata’s starting point guard this year after playing a minimal role on last year’s squad. He said the Trojans focused defensively Tuesday on limiting South’s ability to drive to the hoop through gaps in the defense. That forced South to settle for long jumpers early, allowing Wayzata to build its big lead.

Offensively, the Trojans kept South on its toes with a mix of strong shooting, post moves from Bjerke and even an alley-oop from Ryan Harvey to Hall.

Bjerke credited Wayzata’s younger players with filling in the gaps left by last year’s key departures and said the team is confident heading into state. “We’re ready to make some noise in March,” he said.

For third-seeded South (18-7), which defeated second-seeded Hopkins in the section semifinals, the loss ended its best season in years. Sophomore guard Jerome Williams Jr., who scored 11 points, said the team was excited for Tuesday’s final, so much so that he couldn’t sleep the night before.

He said South has a lot to be proud of this season.

“We could have done better by winning, making it to state, but I feel like a lot of people doubted us, and we showed people that we belong here.”