City of Basketball Love

Ari Rosenfeld (@realA_rosenfeld)
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While many area stars are being flown around the country right now on official visits to big-time colleges, one Catholic League product can breathe a bit easier after solidifying his college plans.

John Hargraves won’t be wined-and-dined by any college coaches, but the 6-foot-5 forward from Bonner-Prendergast decided to wrap up his recruitment in advance of his senior year and commit to Division III Moravian College.

“I have a great connection with the coach right off the bat and the college isn’t like a big college,” Hargraves said. “Not saying I wouldn’t have liked a big college, but...it’s more like a family-type atmosphere at Moravian. I really liked that about it.”

Most small-college commitments tend to come in the spring, with recruits generally opting to play out their senior years and see how their recruitments unfold.

Hargraves, however, saw enough on his visit to Moravian’s Bethlehem campus two weeks ago that he was ready to pull the trigger now.

“They were a little bit surprised, but they were so happy to get me,” he said of the staff’s reaction to his early commitment. “I was happy to go commit to that school because like I said it’s a great family, coaches are great, i just like the atmosphere up there. I think I could bring a big impact to the team when I get there.

“I didn’t think I would be committed this early, but I guess things happened. I really fell in love with the school.”

Other small schools such as Alvernia, Marywood, Penn State Brandywine, Arcadia, and D-II Caldwell had reached out to Hargraves, but he ultimately felt Moravian was the right fit.

The Greyhounds are undergoing a bit of a transition right now, with former East Stroudsburg assistant Justin Potts taking over for former head coach Jim Walker, who retired in March after 36 years at the helm.

Potts will have at least three Philly-area prospects to help him put his stamp on the program, as Hargraves will team with incoming freshmen Jimmy Murray (Plymouth-Whitemarsh) and Will Brazukas (Father Judge) when he arrives on campus.

Hargraves is quite familiar with Brazukas after battling with him in the Catholic League, and he already started bonding with Murray during his time on campus.

“I actually talked to Jimmy and I saw his dorm room and stuff like that,” Hargraves said. “He was just getting started with the program and everything like that, they were just starting workouts. He was enjoying it so far. He was giving me pointers here and there about college.”

Hargraves (155 points) and classmate Keith Washington (201) are the leading returning scorers for Bonner-Prendie, and the Friars will look to build off of a 12-10 season that saw them qualify for the PCL playoffs before a first round loss to Father Judge.