The Austin boys basketball team didn’t have a lot of trouble on the scoreboard, but it continued to struggle with ball control and focus as the Packers beat Red Wing 72-51 for their eighth win in a row in Packer Gym Tuesday.

Austin (10-1 overall, 7-1 Big Nine) built up a an 18-point halftime lead, but it outscored the Wingers (2-8 overall, 1-6 Big Nine) by just three points in the second frame, committing 20 turnovers.

“I don’t know if we got anything out of this one,” Austin head coach Kris Fadness said. “I think once we got the big lead early in the first half, it became apparent that we were more interested in making highlights plays than playing basketball. On a night where we really needed to be more physical inside, guys simply didn’t want to do it. They wanted to run around the three-point line and dribble.”

Agwa Nywesh, who had 12 points, four steals and seven steals, got the ball rolling for the Packers early on as he converted four steals into immediate breakaway jams to give Austin a boost. Teyghan Hovland added 14 points as he was able to find success in the paint in the first half.

As the game went on, the Wingers were able to hang around behind the three-point shooting of Deso Buck.

“I’ll give Red Wing credit. They played a packed-in man (defense), but I was frustrated with the way we played tonight in a home game,” Fadness said. “I’m frustrated with myself and I wish I would’ve kept our varsity guys out there longer. I was unhappy with the last five or six minutes of the game. I thought we got really sloppy and careless.”

Austin senior Moses Idris finished with 11 points and his younger brother Victor Idris added seven points. Moses is returning from an injury and he showed that he is back to his old self as he threw down an alley-oop on a lob pass from Ogur Gari, who had 10 points and nine rebounds.

“I’m starting to get my pace back. It’s been fun (playing with Victor),” Moses said. “I like to see him grow as a player through this varsity season.”

Red Wing 25  26  —  51

Austin 43  29  —  72

Austin scoring: Teyghan Hovland, 14; Agwa Nywesh, 12; Moses Idris, 11; Ogur Gari, 10; Victor Idris, 7; Okey Okey, 6; Pierre Lilly, 5; Tony Ciola, 5; Lero Oman, 2; free throws: 71 percent (17-for-24); rebounds: 23 (Gari, 9); turnovers: 20