Halfway there and everything looks…bad?

One by one, they passed us by outside the locker room. Batavia boys basketball fans, all of them. And each wore a scowl as they descended the stairs from the upper balcony, where they'd just seen the Bulldogs scratch out a teeth-grinding win at Kaneland.

"That," many of them commented, "was flat-out ugly."

Or, "They played like (you-know-what) tonight."

My sports writer colleague and I exchanged glances. Batavia had just won for the 13th time in 15 games, and this was the team's fifth straight win without its top player, Northwestern-bound Nick Fruendt.

And their fans were complaining.

It reminded me of the fans and pundits who said the New England Patriots were "struggling" during the last month of the season when they failed to blow out several opponents and only won those games with late heroics.

Geez, I wish the Bears would have struggled that bad.

Beauty -- or in this case, performance -- is in the eye of the beholder. Batavia fans have earned the right to expect victories not only in quantity, but quality as well.

But every coach will tell you a win is a win is a win. Some are bigger and better than others, but that left column of the ledger doesn't reflect style points, only numbers.

As Batavia's fans demonstrated, it's all a matter of perspective. On the other side of the court, Kaneland -- a youth-laden team still cutting its teeth -- was relatively pleased with the team's effort after taking the mighty Bulldogs down to the wire.

Next season, with an added year of experience under their collective belt, the Knights will likely be disappointed with the same result.

Perceptions change as quickly as this past week's weather. Take Aurora Central, for example. For the last three years, the Chargers have struggled as a sub-.500 team. Now, they realistically expect to win every game (and nearly have). In contrast, merely stringing together a few wins over the last several years would have defined success.

Or, in West Aurora's case, a few losses can raise eyebrows. When the previously unbeaten Blackhawks went 0-2 at the Pontiac Tournament for the first time since who-knows-when, the alarm bells went off. Was it a forebearer of struggles to come? Or was it just a couple of bad games that, by coincidence, came back-to-back?

It's all part of the discovery process, which is what the first half of high school basketball season generally is. Sure, we can project and prognosticate in November. But once January rolls around, we get a clearer picture of what these teams can do.

Naperville North coach Mark Lindo told me long ago the nearly five-month long basketball season is like a fitness program. The first two months are spent getting into shape, identifying strengths and weaknesses and overcoming the aches and pains after each game.

Now that it's January, the gears shift. The team should be in "basketball shape" by now. It's time to elevate the performance, round into top form and begin to gel as a program. With the homestretch looming, all designs are on peaking toward mid-February and carrying that momentum into post-season play.

Of course, seasonal timelines -- like too many fitness programs -- don't always go according to plan.

"In theory, that model looks good and should work well," Batavia coach Jim Roberts said. "But we can only concentrate on what's in front of us. What's most important is that you try to get a little bit better each day."

That task will be made easier for Batavia with Fruendt's anticipated return next Friday against Yorkville after an eight-game absence due to mononucleosis.

Meanwhile, as teams like Batavia, Geneva and Aurora Central fine-tune their well-oiled machines with visions of dancing into March Madness, others like Kaneland, Marmion, Aurora Christian, St. Charles North and St. Charles East will hope to find a groove.

"We've been sporadic, but as a young team, you're going to be that way," Kaneland coach Dennis Hansen said of his team, though he could have been speaking for a handful of area teams. "We've hit a few bumps in the road, but we're coming along. We're learning and getting better each week, which is exactly what you want to see."

Going back to Lindo's model, it's all about putting everything together at the right time. What these teams do from this point could serve as a springboard once the push to Peoria begins in seven weeks. And with the new four-class system, the opportunities for advancement are expanded with a more level playing court.

Catching lightning in a bottle in January is possible. The tougher test is converting it into a steady current of electricity that powers your team into the post-season.

Success, however, is defined differently from team to team. Just ask Batavia fans.