REDMOND — The first team meeting this season for Redmond High boys basketball featured a much different vibe than the same meeting one year ago.

Last year the Panthers set out to prove the state wrong, as the perception was that there was going to be a drop off after a talented team graduated most of its key players. And Redmond did just that, advancing back to the state tournament for the third-straight season and bringing home a sixth-place trophy.

But this year, with four starters returning, the Panthers (3-1) are again viewed as one of Class 5A’s top teams.

“We try to limit the outside noise,” said Redmond coach Reagan Gilbertson. “But we talked about it — there is high expectations on you guys now. We can’t get content with last year’s success, we have to build on it. We have to get better in practice every day. Our motto is ‘one game at a time.’”

But the underdog mentality that was key to the Panthers’ 19-win season, including a 19-point come-from-behind win in the playoffs and nearly upsetting No. 2 Wilsonville in the quarterfinals, is still very much present this season.

“It might seem different but we still try and keep that chip on our shoulder,” said Redmond senior guard Ian Pearson. “We just try and bring that every night.”

Pearson, junior Wyatt Horner, senior Ukiah Monson and senior Jack Snyder (currently out with a shoulder injury sustained during football) are returning starters from last year’s squad.

That has allowed the Panthers to hit the ground running this winter.

“It is nice because we aren’t doing a lot of new stuff,” Gilbertson said. “We have a lot of the same guys. So it is less thinking and more playing. They aren’t thinking about what they have to do on both ends of the court. They can just go out and play, which is fun.”

Saturday night in a 75-59 win over Silverton (0-1), Redmond showed, especially in the second half, why it is viewed as a team destined to make a return trip to the state tournament.

The Panthers trailed the Foxes 18-10 after the first quarter, but then rallied to take a 33-30 lead by halftime. But in the third quarter, Redmond delivered a knockout blow.

“We didn’t play a bad first half, but we knew we could do better,” Gilbertson said. “We were better in the second half. And when we get rolling, we are fun to watch.”

With a suffocating full-court press, the Panthers outscored the Foxes 31-17 to build a double-digit lead. Horner scored 14 of his game-high 28 points and Pearson scored 12 of his 22 points in the third quarter to help Redmond pull away.

“We just realized that it was going to be a dogfight in the second half,” Horner said. “We came out and brought the energy. We all worked even harder in the second half.”

“When we come out with that energy that we did in the second half for the whole game, we will be able to beat a lot of good teams,” Pearson said. “We just have to come out with that energy all the time. We love playing at home and we wanted to show everyone what we are capable of this year.”

Two more Panther players taking on bigger roles this season reached double figures in the win. Senior guard Kaleb Losoya and junior wing Tatum Aeschliman each scored 11 points.

This week, the Panthers will be on the road playing in the South Coast Les Schwab Holiday Tournament in Coos Bay. Their first game will be Thursday against Crook County.

REDMOND — Down 53-32 entering the fourth quarter, the Redmond girls basketball team mounted a ferocious rally against the defending Class 5A champions, but there was not enough time to complete the comeback.

In a rematch of last year’s semifinal game at the state tournament, Silverton once again got the better of the Panthers, winning 58-50 Saturday evening.

The Panthers (2-2) held an early 13-11 lead after the first quarter with junior guard Mylaena Norton scoring six of her team-high 18 points. But over the next two quarters, the Foxes (3-0) went on a 42-19 run to pull away.

Silverton’s senior Hadley Craig scored 23 of her game-high 24 points in the second and third quarters to help build a 21-point lead heading into the fourth quarter.

In the final period, the Panthers came alive from behind the arc. After making only one 3-pointer in the first three quarters, the Panthers hit four of them in the fourth to inch their way back into the game.

Senior guard Dylan Cheney scored nine points on three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter to finish the game with 11 points.

— Brian Rathbone, The Bulletin