NIAGARA FALLS - It took a half, but eventually Ben Drake's Jamestown Red Raiders began to play the way he'd expected them to all along.
Leading by just three points, 25-22, at the break against Erie County Interscholastic Conference Division 2 squad Williamsville South, Jamestown, a member of ECIC Division 1, came out with renewed vigor in the third period, outscoring the Billies 25-8 on the way to a comfortable, 68-46 victory in the Cataract Classic at Niagara Falls.
"I don't know whether it was first-game jitters or what," Drake said after the season-opening victory, "because in the first half we didn't play well on either end.
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ZACK PANEBIANCO
"But in the third quarter we played some really good basketball, played the way we expected them to in the first half."
Zack Panebianco delivered an especially noteworthy performance as he stuffed the stat sheet with 14 points, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals to earn the game's most valuable player award.
Along with Panebianco, Branden Kellam recorded a double-double with 14 points, 12 rebounds and three steals; Quinn Lee Yaw had 14 points and eight rebounds; and Tommy Campion poured in a game-high 19 points to go along with five assists.
Panebianco, the 6-foot-5 Kellam and the 6-6 Lee Yaw were especially effective in the third quarter. During the frame, Panebianco hit seven of his 14 points while Kellam chipped in with six and Lee Yaw eight to balloon the formerly slim advantage to a sizable 20 points, 50-30.
Jamestown, thanks to its ample size, outrebounded their opponents by a large margin, 38-20, and held them to a field goal percentage of just 33 percent.
The Red Raiders fared much better, connecting on 29 of 54 shots (49 percent) from the field.
Jamestown is back in action on Tuesday at St. Mary's where it will be taking on St. Joe's at 6 p.m., in the ECIC-MMA (Monsignor Martin Association) Challenge.
JAMESTOWN (68)
Campion 7 2 19, Panebianco 6 1 14, Carlson 1 0 2, Kellam 6 1 13, Lee yaw 6 2 14, McBride 2 0 4, Hoaglund 0 0 0, Colwell 0 0 0, Frank 1 0 2, Sisson 0 0 0. Totals 29 6 68.
WILLIAMSVILLE SOUTH (46)
Nettles 2 6 11, Varner 3 0 7, Castronova 3 0 8, Powers 1 0 3, Beyer 1 1 3, Stasiak 1 0 2, Ferguson 4 2 10, Isselbaecher 1 0 2. Totals 16 9 46.
3-point goals: Campion 3, Panebianco, Nettles, Varner, Castronova 2, Powers.
Jamestown15 10 25 18 - 68
Williamsville South10 12 8 16 - 46