Panthers Cruise Past Broncos, 76-48

The boys basketball game on Feb. 8 was, on the one hand, similar to most of the games they've played this season: the Panthers took another victory, this time over Burrillville, 76-48.

On the other hand, Tuesday night's contest had its contrasts from past games, in that it was Senior Night, a chance to honor the Panthers in their last year at J.H.S.; it was an opportunity to present senior captain Isaac Medeiros with a plaque commemorating his ; and it was the first of four games in five nights for the Panther squad because of prior school cancellations.

Medeiros, who will learn whether he has been selected for the All-American team on Feb. 10, started off the game lights-out from the field. He had six of the first 10 points for his team as Johnston bolted out to a 10-5 lead.

"Isaac is very big and strong, not many people can match up with him," Johnston coach Steve DeMeo said. He added, "Nobody here works harder than him."

The Panthers (14-0 in Division III, 17-2 overall) blew the game open over the next several minutes with a 17-0 run. Medeiros had four points and two assists, and junior Ryan Anderson sunk a three-ball to cap off the rally.

A three-pointer by Panther Steven Simone upped the lead to 30-9. Burrillville showed great effort all night, but could not keep up with Johnston. With only a minute left in the half, the Broncos' Ben Girard knocked down a three, cutting the lead to 37-16.

Burrillville captain Andrew Gongoleski scored the first four points of the second half, cutting the Panthers' lead to 39-22. However, Johnston answered right back with their own 9-2 run. Medeiros had six points, including two reverse layups.

The Broncos (6-10 in D-III, 6-15 overall) kept digging and Gongoleski's layup made the score 48-26. Anderson led the charge for the Panthers, as they notched an 8-0 run to take complete control of the game. He knocked down two three-pointers during the stretch, which extended the lead to 30 points.

Their biggest lead of the game was 32 points, at 62-30. With only two minutes left in the game, Panthers junior Gian Bianchi dazzled the crowd with a behind the back pass and Tony Parente converted on the layup, pushing the lead to 64-33.

Although the Broncos kept pace in the final minutes (Johnston outscored Burrillville 15-13), the game was well out of reach.

Medeiros finished with 23 points, 5 assists, and two blocks. Anderson ended the night with 16 points, including four three-pointers.

"I thought we played very well tonight," coach DeMeo said, adding it was important to rest the front five toward the end of the game. "We got a big lead, so we could rest the starters."

After a night off Feb. 9, the Panthers travel to East Greenwich for a highly-anticipated matchup Thursday, then visit North Smithfield on Friday night.

Update: The last paragraph was added just after publication of the original article following a phone interview with Coach DeMeo.