"I told our guys in the first half, we're playing at their tempo," head coach Larry McKenzie said. "We had to speed the game up so we could get into the flow of the way we wanted to play basketball. And we did that in the second half."

The win ended a tournament run where the closest margin of victory was 16 points, an 84-68 win vs. Providence Academy in the section semifinals.

With a section title out of the way, the Polars have their eye on the season's largest goal. They have come close to winning Class 2A state titles in recent seasons, including a run to the state title game in 2019. The Polars lost to Caledonia 60-55 in last season's state semifinals.
Now the seven seniors on the state roster would like to make a state title a reality.

"We've seen people in the past win state championships for Minneapolis North," said Jacob Butler, who finished with 15 points in the section championship game. "We just need one. It's a must. It's a championship or bust in our eyes, and me and the guys talk about it almost every day."

Minneapolis North last won a state championship in 2017, defeating North Woods 96-49 in the title game. This year's Minneapolis North team has risen to No. 2 in the final Class 2A Minnesota Basketball News state polls by playing a challenging schedule, with its only losses coming against outstate schools or teams in Class 4A.
Now the Polars' focus is on the state tournament, starting March 22 with games at Target Center and Williams Arena.

"All we focus on is putting a banner on the wall and bringing it back for our community," said Willie Wilson, who scored a team-high 18 points on Friday. "Tonight, we're happy, but we know we're not finished."