Whenever I’ve talked about the Austin boys basketball team this season with a fan or another media member, quite often the three words that comes up are that the Packers are ‘fun to watch.’

That is true. The Packers are fun to watch. They’ve made a bevy of highlight plays this season ranging like Both Gach dishing alley-oops to his twin brother Duoth Gach, Tate Hebrink making pin-point around the back passes on fast breaks and Moses Issa rising above the rim to block an opponent’s shot.

Plays like that will get the student section on their feet in a hurry and they’ll often bring the energy up to another notch. But now is not the time of year for the Packers to focus on being ‘fun to watch.’ With the Section 1AAA title game looming against Northfield in Mayo Civic Center 6 p.m Friday, the Packers must focus on a different three words — ‘playing to win.’

I’m far from a curmudgeon as I can enjoy a good highlight play as well as anyone else, but if the Packers want to get back to the Minnesota Class AAA state boys basketball tournament after a two-year absence, they will have to move their feet and communicate on defense, hustle for every loose ball, and box out on every shot attempt. Chances are, those are the plays that will put them over the top, not the highlight plays that get replayed over and over again.

While Austin has swept the regular season series from Northfield, that is by no means a guarantee that they will advance on Friday. Last season Austin had won both games in the regular season against the Raiders, only to have their season come to an end to Northfield in an overtime loss in the Section 1AAA semifinals.

If Austin wants to get back to state it will likely have to bring it’s ‘A’ game to get past the Raiders.