MARBLEHEAD— English boys basketball coach Antonio Anderson feels his team has no shortage of scoring threats who can hit outside shots. Anderson’s Bulldogs proved him right Wednesday night at Marblehead.
English featured 11 scorers and netted 14 three’s en route to a 84-44 win over the Magicians.
“We made some shots,” Anderson said. “That’s all we want to do. We practice extremely hard and I tell the guys to use the games as a reward. They’re starting to get the hang of that.
“We’re just trying to get them to take better shots,” Anderson added. “That’s the bonus of having so many guys that can make shots as well as we do. I tell them all the time, ‘I want good shots.’ I know they’re young and they’re going to take some bad shots but they’re learning. I can’t ask for more.”
More importantly, the Bulldogs remain undefeated in Northeastern Conference play.
“It feels good,” Anderson said. “We’re just taking it game by game. That’s the motto we’re trying to use. I think the guys bought into that. We’re not trying to overlook anyone. Anyone can give you a game on any given night. We have to bring it and our guys get it.”
Jarnel Guzman did the heavy lifting for English, scoring 26 points with four 3-pointers. Calvin Seng scored 11 points off the bench. Joaquin Crespo and Kanye Wavezwa each added 10 points.
“We went zone and we hoped they weren’t having a shooting night,” Marblehead coach Mike Giardi said. “Then you go man and they hit every shot. The matchups were already tough enough against any team we play but against that team, they’re so athletic, so explosive.”
Adam Zamansky led the Magicians with 11 points as Marblehead’s lone scorer in double-figures. Sean Grady and Devin Romain scored eight points each.
Guzman hit a 3-pointer on the first possession to start a 7-0 English rally out of the gate. Marblehead burned an early timeout looking to stop the bleeding sooner rather than later. Brendan Bugler netted a 3-pointer to get Marblehead on the board. From there, it looked as though the Bulldogs were ready to run the Magicians out of the gym. Marblehead hung tough, trailing 24-9 after Seng swished a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
“You have to have every little thing go your way and you have to win all the battles,” Giardi said. “We didn’t do that early on. I think the first six or seven possessions, we lost them all. You can’t do that right away. We had opportunities but I thought we played scared and intimidated.”
English carried its unfinished business into the second quarter and that’s when the Bulldogs put the game away. A 15-0 English run to start the quarter placed Marblehead in a 39-9 deficit. Zamansky hit a free throw to end Marblehead’s drought but they trailed 48-15 at halftime.
The Bulldogs cruised through the second half. They led 66-33 at the end of the third quarter and played their reserves in the fourth.
“Once we got down, I think the kids played hard in the second half,” Giardi said. “That’s the type of thing we need. The kids did a good job of sticking with it and working, but it’s tough against a team like English. They’re probably one of the top teams in the area.”
Both teams are back in action Friday night. Marblehead (2-6) hosts Revere (7) while English (7-1) visits Beverly (7).
“They’re going to play hard,” Anderson said of the Panthers, who are 5-1. “(Panthers coach) Matt (Karakoudas) has those guys playing extremely hard. They’re going to fight. They’re going to be at home, that’s a tough place to play. We’re just going to bring our game and we’ll see what happens.”
