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Penn officially announces incoming freshman class

07/02/2015, 2:00pm EDT
By Ari Rosenfeld

Ari Rosenfeld (@realA_rosenfeld)
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As incoming freshmen around the country begin to arrive on college campuses for summer workouts, first year Penn head coach Steve Donahue officially announced his six-max class on Thursday.

As opposed to recruits at programs that offer athletic scholarships, which the Ivy League’s schools do not, Penn’s recruits don’t sign National Letters of Intent. Therefore, it is not until after today’s announcement that Donahue can officially comment on his new group.

"This is a solid all-around class that fills a lot of different needs," Donahue said in a press release. "I look forward to getting these guys on campus and integrating them with the returning players as we look to return Penn to the top of the Ivy League standings."

The class is headlined by the Northfield Mount Hermon (Mass.) duo of Jackson Donahue (no relation to Steve Donahue) and Collin McManus. Donahue, a 6-foot guard, is a knockdown shooter who can spend time at both guard spots, while McManus is a bruiser inside at 6-foot-10.

McManus could potentially start right away at center, but both should expect to see minutes right away regardless.

Another incoming recruit who will be competing for a starting spot this season is Cherry Hill East (N.J.) grad Jake Silpe. A four-year starter in high school, Silpe led the Cougars to two consecutive South Jersey Group 4 titles as an upperclassmen and was named the South Jersey Player of the Year by both the Philadelphia Inquirer and the Courier Post.

A 6-foot-2 point guard, Silpe excels in setting the table for his teammates, but can also get into the lane and finish when the opportunity presents itself. Silpe is expected to challenge for a starting role at the point right away.

The only wing in the class is 6-foot-4 wing Tyler Hamilton, an Atlanta native who did a prep year at Cheshire Academy (Conn.). Hamilton comes from a long line of basketball players; his father, Derrick, starred at Southern Mississippi before a lengthy overseas career, while his uncle, Angelo, played at Oklahoma.

Rounding out the class are 6-foot-8 power forward Max Rothschild, a Chicago native who did a prep year at New Hampton (N.H.), and 5-foot-10 point guard Morris Esformes out of RASG Hebrew Academy (Fla.). Esformes was the first member of the class to commit to the Quakers, doing so back in March of 2014.

All six recruits originally committed to former head coach Jerome Allen, but stuck with the program after Donahue was hired to replace Allen in March.

This group will look to help the Quakers rebound from a 9-19 season (4-10 Ivy League) that included a last place finish in Ivy competition. Things may be looking up, however, as last year’s top six scorers will all be returning, led by senior Tony Hicks (13.2 points per game) and four sophomores who made significant contributions last season as freshmen.

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