ST. PAUL — The Austin boys basketball team still can’t crack the DeLaSalle code.

The Islanders ended Austin’s season for the fourth time in the last six years, this time by a score of 82-61 in the Minnesota Class AAA Boys State Basketball Tournament third place game at Concordia University Saturday.

The Packers (27-4 overall) jumped out to a 17-9 lead early on as Medi Obang, who finished with 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting, hit a pair of early three-pointers and Ngor Deng connected from deep.

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“They were giving me some space and I felt like I could just shoot,” Obang said. “I wasn’t scared at all, it was just another game to me.”

The Islanders followed with a 14-3 run and led by as many as 11 points in the first half.

Austin picked up a little momentum heading into the break with a 9-1 spurt as Duoth Gach drilled a three-quarter court shot to beat the buzzer. That shot brought Austin within 47-42 and Austin was within 47-44 early in the second half.

“We had a fun first half and things got away from us. It is what it it is and it’s hard to get pumped up for a third place game, after your dreams have been crushed,” Austin head coach Kris Fadness said. “When you’re playing against guards that are as physical as their guards are and you’re trying to trap him and he basically runs through you, it shows that you’ve got to get stronger. They’re a tough match up for us and they were lights out shooting today.”

While the Packers were right in the thick of things early in the second half, they eventually lost a grasp on things when the Islanders began to force turnovers and get out and run. DeLaSalle (26-5 overall) broke open what was a 13-point lead with 8:01 left by putting together a 13-0 run.

Gach, who was selected to the All Class AAA State Tournament Team, had 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting in his final game with the Packers.

“We just had to make more shots and get more shots. It’s tough, but it’s over with now,” Gach said. “They’ve got a great program and they’ve got a bunch of guys that can score.”

Austin shot 44 percent on three-pointers, but it committed 20 turnovers. The Islanders, who were led by University of Minnesota commit Gabe Kalscheuer’s 29 points and 11 rebounds, went 10-for-19 on three-pointers.

Fadness said he’s going to miss the graduating senior class, which led Austin to back-to-back state tournament appearances.

“They created a nice chemistry and bond with each other,” Fadness said. “I’m proud of the way they’ve accepted each other and been friends with each other and grown as people. They’re a great group and I wish we could’ve brought home a championship. I really love this group. They’re going to be missed, no question about it.”

DeLaSalle 47  35  —  82

Austin 42  19  —  61

Austin scoring: Duoth Gach, 19; Medi Obang, 17; Ngor Deng, 7; Gavin Owens, 6; Tate Hebrink, 6; Moses Issa, 2; Nyagoa Obany, 2; Logan Braaten, 2; field goals: 47 percent (24-for-51); three-pointers: 44 percent (12-for-17); free throws: 16 percent (1-for-6); rebounds: 25 (Hebrink, 5); turnovers: 20

DeLaSalle scoring: Gabe Kalscheur, 29; Tyrell Terry, 15; Rayquan Moore, 15; Jamison Battle, 11; Sage Booker, 8; Malik Lamin, 3; Julian Wright, 1; field goals: 47 percent (28-for-50); three-pointers: 53 percent (10-for-19); free throws: 73 percent (16-for-22); rebounds: 31 (Kalscheur, 11); turnovers: 13