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12/14/2018 11:00 PMThe Guilford boys’ basketball squad graduated a ton of talent from a team that put together one of best years in program’s history last winter. While the Indians may be short on varsity experience entering this season, they will still be hitting the floor with tons of intensity, while taking on some of the best adversaries the state has to offer.
In the 2017-’18 campaign, Head Coach Jeff DeMaio’s club posted a program-best record of 19-1 for the regular season. The Indians also won a share of the SCC Hammonasset Division title. In the SCC Tournament, Guilford earned a first-round bye and then defeated Career 49-47 in the quarterfinals to advance to its first SCC semifinal in 16 years, where the Indians took a 71-69 loss against Hamden.
After that, Guilford began the Division III Tournament and as the top seed and received another first-round bye. The Indians earned a 64-48 win versus No. 16 seed E.O. Smith in the second round, before taking a 56-51 quarterfinal defeat versus 9th-seeded Avon to finish the year with an exceptional record of 21-3.
This season, the Indians are only returning two players who gained any varsity experience last year. They’ve also moved up from Division III to Division II for State Tournament play. Coach DeMaio knows that Guilford is going to face its fair share of challenges during the regular season, but he still believes the Indians have what it takes to reach the magic number to quality for the playoffs.
“If you look at our schedule this year, you’ll see it’s gotten more difficult based off of our recent success the last two years,” DeMaio said. “The goals are similar to past years. We want to get to eight wins to make the playoffs. We have to get to that mark to make the SCC and State tournaments.”
Guilford’s two returning veterans are also serving as the team’s senior captains this season. The Indians’ co-captains are center Ian Slattery and guard Colin Kellaher. Coach DeMaio said the duo is imparting what they learned last year to the team’s younger athletes in an effort to help Guilford continue its efficiency on the floor.
“The biggest thing with these two guys is that they were part of successful teams here. They’ve seen how we want the program to be run, and they know the expectations here,” said DeMaio. “They bring tremendous leadership qualities. They are both humble and hard-working.”
Guilford’s senior class also features guard Ryan Costanzo, along with forwards Braden Stephens, Jamie Andrus, and Ben Panagoulias. Stephens was one of the captains for the Guilford boys’ soccer team during the recent fall season.
The Indians’ junior class will look to receive contributions from guard Ethan Vashel, who played quarterback for the football squad, as well as fellow guard John Petonito.
Looking deeper at his team’s regular-season schedule, Coach DeMaio said the Indians have their eyes on a familiar rival, in addition to a new host of new divisional opponents. Guilford is now competing in the SCC Quinnipiac Division, instead of in the Hammonasset Division.
“We always circle the games against Hand. Those are always intense matchups,” DeMaio said. “We’re also focused in on our division games with Xavier, West Haven, Branford, and Law in our division this season.”
As a new campaign gets underway, Coach DeMaio said Indians are focused on playing hard for all four quarters on a nightly basis. DeMaio wants to see Guilford dig deep on the defensive end, while playing with poise on offense this winter.
“The biggest thing for us this year is that we are going to put out a hard-working team,” said DeMaio. “Our defense will look to be more of a staple, and we need to bring that defensive intensity every single game. We have goals to bring an aggressive defense, and then have a patient but efficient offense.”
DeMaio begins his 10th season as Guilford’s head coach. Dante Parisi will serve as the Indians’ JV coach, and former Branford boys’ basketball assistant coach Rusty Gordon is coaching the Indians’ freshman team. DeMaio’s son Sam is a volunteer assistant coach for Guilford.