The Lynn English boys basketball team was undermanned against Revere Thursday night – that didn’t matter. The Bulldogs didn’t skip a beat as they dominated the Patriots in front of their home crowd 80-36.
English was without its starting sophomore guard Warren Keel Jr., but other Bulldogs stepped up in his place, something head coach Alvin Abreu was excited to see.
“We just have a next-man-up mentality, and the kids really responded well tonight to that test,” Abreu said. “Some kids got more of a chance than they would normally get, and they took advantage of that opportunity which is great to see.”
The Bulldogs were down 3-2 in the first quarter, but answered with a 23-3 run over the final 6:30 of the frame. Key plays were two impressive dunks from senior forward Joshua St. Jean and a pair of three-pointers swished by senior captain Tyrese Melo Garcia.
Melo Garcia’s second three beat the buzzer from just over half court, giving English a 25-6 lead after one.
The Bulldogs opened the second quarter on an 11-0 run, and held a 36-6 lead midway through the quarter. English sophomore guard Denzel Guillen ended the second finishing a beautiful reverse-layup before the final whistle blew in the first half – one that ended 50-13.
English opened the third quarter with Melo Garcia intercepting a pass from Revere and finding St. Jean wide open down at the other end. He finished with another power dunk that lifted the home fans out of their seats.
The Bulldogs scored at the buzzer for the third straight quarter, as Melo Garcia corralled a rebound and found junior forward Joshua Anderson on an alley-oop that Anderson finished off the glass. English led 68-28 at the end of the third.
The Patriots played a much more competitive third, as they were only outscored 18-15 in the frame. Abreu feels the third quarter will be a teaching moment for his team.
“We got a little stagnant and complacent in the third quarter,” Abreu said. “We messed up some coverages, and gave up too many wide open opportunities to Revere. This is something we will clean up moving forward.”
The Bulldogs were led by Melo Garcia, as he finished with a game-high 26 points, also adding nine assists and five steals. English also received strong performances from St. Jean (19 points and 15 rebounds) and Nelson Obarisiagbon (eight points and 13 rebounds).
English upped its record to 14-0, and Abreu has high expectations for his team.
“We are taking the season one game at a time, but I feel we have a group that can achieve something special this year,” Abreu said. “My expectations are to make a deep run in the state tournament when that time comes, but we need to maintain our focus for each and every game.”
