By STEVE MAZZONE

Call Sports Writer

For head coach Scott Colantonio and his Mount St. Charles boys’ basketball team, the No. 13 just might be a lucky number.

That’s how many varsity players will be seated on a crowded bench this season when the Mounties hit the hardwood in Division III this winter.
“This is my seventh year coaching the varsity and this is the deepest team I have ever had without question,” Colantonio said. “That’s why I took 13 guys. I usually take 11 but nine through 13 were talented ballplayers. Playing time is going to be a little difficult this year.”
That, of course, is a “problem” that Colantonio is willing to deal with this season as his Mounties will be looking to improve on last year’s team that finished a respectable 13-5 in the league and lost a heartbreaking 58-55 overtime decision to Burrillville in the quarterfinals of the playoffs.
The Mounties have three returning starters from last year — sophomore forward Colin Russell, senior shooting guard Dan Keyes and senior guard/forward Josh Lancellotti. Keyes and Lancellotti each averaged nine points a game during the 2006-07 campaign.
“Dan and Josh are third-year varsity players,” Colantonio said. “They do everything — defense, shooting, passing, leadership, sportsmanship.”
Junior Dave Anderson, a junior varsity player last season, will be at point guard. He was a swing player for the Mounties as a tenth-grader.
“We played him more on JV than varsity to get him minutes. He really developed,” Colantonio said. “They (the coaching staff) did a good job developing him on JV…He did an unbelievable job. He’s ready to play a level higher at varsity. He has wonderful court vision. He runs the point extremely well.”
Junior twin brothers Josh and Ryan Pangborn and seniors Gerry Davis and Tim Fitzpatrick, who missed Thursday’s non-league game with Classical due to a slight hand injury, are other solid players that the MSC coach feels can contribute greatly this season.
“There’s a solid work ethic on all 13 guys,” Colantonio said. “They’re disciplined. They play the game the right way. There’s no selfish attitudes. It’s a great group of guys. I am excited to see what these guys can do.”
Since he took over the helm seven years ago, Colantonio has stressed team cohesiveness to his players. With a new season, he hasn’t changed that philosophy. Offensively he’s not relying on just a handful of players to get the job done.
“We play a team game,” he said. “The scoring can come from anywhere. We try to be as balanced as we can. The open guy takes the open shot.”
With his deep bench, Colantonio’s feels he could have an edge defensively with his talented squad.
“We are going to work very hard defensively,” he said. “With depth, we can do that. We plan on working extremely hard defensively.”
The Mounties have made it to the playoffs four times in the last six years, including advancing to the Division II semifinals in 2003-04. With its latest batch of players, another postseason berth for Mount looks like a possibility.
“I’m extremely excited about everything this season,” Colantonio said. “This season we have one of the best group of guys I have ever had. Their families are supportive. It’s a very nice situation.”
Reach Steve Mazzone at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it