Packers are all set for Big Nine showdown with Rockets
Published 7:23 pm Wednesday, March 1, 2017
The No. 2 ranked Austin boys basketball team has plenty of high hopes for the upcoming postseason, but before it starts to worry about chasing a Section 1AAA title, Austin will be locked in on earning a share of the Big Nine title.
The Packers have a chance to do just that when they host Rochester John Marshall (22-3 overall, 21-0 Big Nine) in Packer Gym 7:30 p.m. Friday. The Packers (24-1 overall, 20-1 Big Nine) suffered their only loss of the season when they lost to the Rockets 75-64 Jan 14. Since then Austin has racked up 15 straight wins.
“It’s about a Big Nine championship and even to get a share of it is special,” Austin head coach Kris Fadness said. “It’s what you’ve done over the course of the season and it speaks to what you’ve done every night. When you can win a conference championship in a 12 team league, that’s a big deal.”
While the Packers want their defense to have a big impact on the game, they are well aware the game could become a track meet. Both teams like to run up and down the floor and both teams have offenses that are capable of putting up big points.
Austin’s Duoth Gach throws down in the first half against Albert Lea in Packer Gym. Herald File Photo
The Rockets will likely look for sophomore Matthew Hurt to lead the way as he scored 39 points and missed just a handful of shots in the teams’ first meeting of the season. Fadness said Winona State commit Isaiah Walden and Dedoch Chan are also big play-makers for JM, but Austin must try and contain Hurt — who has scholarship offers from Kansas, Louisville, Minnesota, Wisconsin and many other Division I powers.
“I think we learned how good Matthew Hurt really is [in the first matchup.]” Fadness said. “In the 20 years I’ve been in Austin he’s by far the best single player we’ve had to go against and he’s only a sophomore, that’s the scary part. He’s a guy who could be a future NBA player. He’s that good.”
Fadness said the Packers are hoping to turn Hurt into a passer, but he emphasized that the Austin still needs to be alert of JM’s other options. The Packers will look to do their damage behind the play-making of Both Gach and the shooting of Douth Gach and Tate Hebrink.
“I think we can beat them. I think we’re pretty good in our own right,” Fadness said. “I like what we can do offensively and defensively. Last time we didn’t shoot the ball that well and I think we’re better now than we were back then.”
The game is currently sold out with expected capacity of around 1,300 fans in attendance. For those who don’t have a ticket, the game will be streamed in Ove Berven Gym on a big screen for free.
