Lawrence coach Jeff Molinelli, left, talks with Hopewell Valley coach Matt Stein, right, prior to the start of the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Hopewell Valley’s Milan Desai, center, grabs a rebound as his teammate Cooper Briehler, right, and Lawrence’s Deacon Moore, left, also go up for the ball during the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Lawrence’s Deacon Moore shoots a 3-pointer against Hopewell Valley during the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Lawrence’s Noah Johansen, 3, puts up a shot as he gets fouled against Hopewell Valley during the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Lawrence’s Noah Johansen, 3, reacts with teammates Deacon Moore, 22, and Marvin McNeil, left, after scoring a basket and getting fouled against Hopewell Valley during the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Hopewell Valley’s Ethan Rich, right, shoots over the defense of Lawrence’s Noah Johansen, left, during the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Lawrence’s Marvin McNeil, right, tries to drive past Hopewell Valley’s Dean Mantuano, left, during the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Hopewell Valley’s Cooper Briehler drives to the basket against Lawrence during the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Hopewell Valley’s Jude Berman, left, and Kyle Yadamiec, right, react after Berman scored a basket and was fouled against Lawrence during the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Hopewell Valley coach Matt Stein smiles after defeating Lawrence during the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Lawrence coach Jeff Molinelli speaks to the crowd as he announces this was the 20th and final edition of the John Molinelli Holiday Classic on Saturday in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Lawrence coach Jeff Molinelli, right, hugs his mother Joy, left, as he announces this is the 20th and final edition of the John Molinelli Holiday Classic on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Hopewell Valley players and coaches pose for a photo after defeating Lawrence during the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Lawrence’s Connor Crowley, center, puts up a shot as he moves between Hopewell Valley’s Kyle Yadamiec, left, and Cooper Breihler, right, during the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Lawrence coach Jeff Molinelli watches the action as members of his family sit behind the team’s bench against Hopewell Valley during the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Lawrence’s Marvin McNeil, 11, puts up a shot as he’s defended by Hopewell Valley’s Ethan Rich, 33, during the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Hopewell Valley’s Ethan Rich, center, and Dean Mantuano, right, go up for a rebound alongside Lawrence’s Noah Johansen, left, during the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Hopewell Valley’s Jude Berman, right, puts up a shot as he’s defended by Lawrence’s Deacon Moore, center, and Noah Johansen, left, during the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Show Caption1 of 18Lawrence coach Jeff Molinelli, left, talks with Hopewell Valley coach Matt Stein, right, prior to the start of the 20th annual John Molinelli Holiday Classic championship game on Saturday afternoon in Hopewell Twp. (Kyle Franko/ Trentonian Photo) Expand HOPEWELL TWP. — When the Hopewell Valley boys basketball team needs to find another gear against rival Lawrence, the Bulldogs are typically able to regroup and get the job done. Such was the case Saturday afternoon in the championship game of the John Molinelli Holiday Classic. Faced with a 10-3 deficit at the 2:51 mark of the first quarter, Hopewell called timeout and proceeded to explode with a 20-2 run over the next eight minutes of game action including eight straight made field goals. The end result was a 66-54 win to secure Hopewell’s fifth Molinelli Classic title since the event began in 2004, as well the Bulldogs’ fifth straight win over the Cardinals since January of 2023. “Lawrence did a great job,” Hopewell coach Matt Stein said. “(We) just settled down and just played our style our basketball. The intensity needed to pick up, and more importantly our focus.” The tournament, which honors Lawrence coach Jeff Molinelli’s late father, is ending after a 20-year run. “It’s very special to win the last one,” said Stein, who grew up as best friends with Jeff in Lawrence. “The guys did a great job, so I’m proud of them.” Senior Milan Desai, who buried three of Hopewell’s eight 3-pointers and finished with 16 points, was named Tournament MVP. “It’s really special,” Desai said. “We know how much this means to Coach Stein. He tells us every year, and we’re a big family at Hopewell, so however much it means to him it means to all of us. And it’s really special to go out with the last Molinelli Tournament ever, I guess. We put a lot of work in, and it all paid off.” Seniors Ethan Rich and Dean Mantuano each scored 14 points for Hopewell, with Mantuano’s total being a career high. The 6-foot guard has been a key sixth man for the Bulldogs with hustle plays on defense and quick bursts offensively. “Dean just brings the energy right off the bench, never says anything, just lets everything go,” Stein said. “He plays a major role on this team and brings a spark immediately to the floor.” Hopewell has already had five different leading scorers in a game this season. Junior Jude Berman scored all eight of his points in the second half Saturday, while junior Kyle Yadamiec and sophomore Cooper Briehler each had six points and junior Christian Heide had two points. “This year we have a lot of depth on our team,” Desai said. “Jude is our best player, but even though he wasn’t getting his buckets (in the first half), he was getting steals. He leads our team in steals, assists, so he’s contributing. And we know we’ve got Dean off the bench, we’ve got new guys: Heidi, Ty Becker, even Nate Berman, and they all contribute and keep us in the game.” Junior Marvin McNeil starred for Lawrence with a game-high 28 points. Desai, McNeil’s primary defender, called the 5-foot-11 guard an “amazing player,” but Hopewell limited the rest of the Cardinals to 25 points combined. Jeff Molinelli said Hopewell’s defensive pressure and switching makes it challenging to run your offense. “We didn’t turn the ball over, (but) we took a lot of quick shots, and then our quick shots led to them getting out in transition,” Jeff Molinelli said. “We started making some 3s, so once we settled down in the second half and we didn’t let their pressure make us take quick shots, we had a lot better of a second half. But they’re a good team.” Hopewell, which beat Harry S. Truman on Friday in the opening round, 47-26, will next host Hamilton West on Tuesday in its final game before the New Year. This game, though, was the Bulldogs’ first major accomplishment of the season — especially since it required perseverance. “We got it on our shirts — ‘no quit’ — so no matter if we go down, we keep our heads up and we’re just gonna keep playing hard,” Desai said. “That’s a credit to Coach Stein, too. He always keeps us in the game level-headed, makes sure we’re staying under control.” LAWRENCE (54) Johansen 3-4-11, McNeil 10-3-28, Wilson 2-0-4, Tembo 4-0-8, Siano 1-0-2. Totals — 20-7-54. HOPEWELL (66) Rich 7-0-14, Desai 6-1-16, Yadamiec 2-0-6, Mantuano 6-0-14, Berman 3-1-8, Briehler 3-0-6, Heide 1-0-2. Totals — 28-2-66. Lawrence (4-3) 12 5 15 22 — 54 Hopewell (4-2) 15 17 18 16 — 66 3-point goals: McNeil 4, Johansen (L), Desai 3, Yadamiec 2, Mantuano 2, Berman (H).