City of Basketball Love

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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Conwell-Egan (Pa.) 2016 point guard Stevie Jordan picked up his first offer on Wednesday night, when Richmond head coach Chris Mooney gave him a call and extended a scholarship.

"It feels great," Jordan said by text. "I'm glad I finally got my first offer."

A 5-foot-11, 160-pound point guard, Jordan was named the PIAA Class AA Player of the Year by the state's high school sportswriters after leading the Eagles to the 2015 state championship in that classification. He averaged 16.8 ppg during the season, including 19.6 ppg in the state playoffs.

(See also: Jordan's CoBL scouting profile)

Mooney, a Philadelphia native, coached at Lansdale Catholic in the mid-90s before a stint at Beaver College (now Arcadia University) from 1997-2000. He and C-E head coach Frank Sciolla have a long-lasting relationship that goes back to their days as young HS coaches in the region.

With Jordan playing well at the Under Armour Association's first event in New Orleans (April 10-12) for the Philly Pride AAU organization, it was enough to convince Mooney that he should start recruiting Jordan and become the first school to extend a scholarship.

"That was my first time hearing from them," said Jordan, who added that Hampton University was the only other school to call since New Orleans. "I was very surprised."

Sciolla wasn't.

"Stevie can play any style and is coachable," he said. "That's a very marketable skill today."

This year, Richmond went 21-14, including a 12-6 record in A-10 play. They made it to the NIT quarterfinals before losing to Miami (Fl.).