City of Basketball Love

CoBL Staff (@hooplove215)
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Here are the standouts from the second day of the 11th annual Pete & Jameer Nelson Classic from the games played at Widener University; for standouts from the Chestnut Hill College games, click here:

Dhamir Cosby-Roundtree (F/Neumann-Goretti)
Displaying the rapid development that he’s made over the last year and change, the 6-foot-9 Cosby-Roundtree dominated a smaller Hudson Catholic team en route to 20 points, 11 rebounds, and eight blocks. Getting off to a slow start with just five points at halftime, DCR erupted after the break, throwing down numerous vicious slams in the half court and in transition as the Saints built a double-digit lead. Still a bit raw on the offensive end, Cosby-Roundtree converted a couple nice finishes around the rim and when he missed, tended to pull down his own board and put it back for a score.

Pete Gayhardt (F/St. Joseph’s Prep)
It’s a shame he’s so good at lacrosse, because the Notre Dame-bound big man--a standout attack on the turf--is quite a good basketball player, too. The second-year starter had one of his better games with 18 points and 15 rebounds in a Prep win over Salesianum (Del.). Gayhard had a good amount of his production off his favored mid-range jumper, though he also battled for some tough buckets on the glass as well with a Sallies frontcourt that wasn’t lacking for size.

Mike Lotito (F/Plymouth-Whitemarsh)
The 6-foot-6 senior forward put in a strong game versus Pope John XXIII with 14 points, seven rebounds, two assists, two steals and a block to claim game MVP honors.  Lotito consistently scored on a plethora of jump hooks and used the rim as a defender to finish on the other side past a formidable Pope John XXIII front line. Lotito is receiving interest from several high-academic Division III schools such as Haverford, Rosemont, John Hopkins, Rochester and Vassar College.

Xzavier Malone (SG/Plymouth-Whitemarsh)
The 6-3 wing guard put together a triple-double with 14 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists punctuated by a thunderous, backdoor alley-oop slam from point guard Oakley Spencer. The 6-3 Rider commit also recorded two of his team’s ten steals, and along with Lotito was a major reason the Colonials were able to pull off the upset of the day against Pope John XXIII. Malone has really come a long way in his year-plus at P-W after spending his first two years on the Martin Luther King bench, and the future certainly looks bright as he continues to polish his handle and shot.

Luther Muhammad (G/Hudson Catholic)
Although Hudson Catholic fell to Neumann-Goretti in the final game of the day, Muhammad’s game-high 24 points paced the Hawks throughout. The 6-foot-4 combo guard scored from every area on the court, specifically an electrifying reverse layup in traffic. The sophomore backcourt of Muhammad and Jahvon Quinerly was the focal point of the Saints’ gameplan; the duo combined for 36 points in the losing effort.

Kyson Rawls (G/St. George’s Del.)
Rawls controlled the game as his 21 points propelled St. George’s Tech downed Penn Wood 84-60. Rawls continually imposed his will on Penn Wood’s defense with tough drives and strong finishes. Even when Penn Wood chose not to run out at him, the 6-0 junior, who came in averaging 13.3 points per game, still got to the rim whenever he wanted to as contributed a quarter of his team’s scoring output.

Josh Sharkey (PG/Archbishop Carroll)
Carroll’s 5-10 senior point guard nearly willed his team to victory over a tough and talented St. Ben’s squad with a 13-point, eight-rebound, seven-assist effort in a 50-49 loss. His energy on the defensive end never wavered down the stretch, and he came up with several steals as well when his team desperately needed an extra possession. Sharkey, a Samford commit, has had an excellent start to his third year at Carroll and really looks the part of a Division I product on a consistent basis, and is going to be in the running for first team All-Catholic in a few months.

Josh Warren (PF/Downingtown West)
Warren, a 6-8 Cornell-bound center had himself arguably his best night of the season, dropping 22 points in Downingtown West’s 55-51 victory over Chester. The senior ripped down six boards and blocked multiple shots, on the way to winning player of the game for the Whippets following the victory. Warren went to work down low, despite being matched up with the slightly bulkier and just-as-tall Maurice Henry, and was constantly fighting for loose balls and putting his body on the line in key situations for his team.

Others of note…
--Pope John XXIII (N.J.) sophomore Louis King had a nice performance against Lotito and Plymouth Whitemarsh. The 6-8 forward scored five points in the first quarter, but did not score again until the second half, finishing with 15 points, six rebounds and four assists. He showed some range going 3-4 from behind the three-point line, and showed his athleticism by pinning a block on the backboard.

--Salesianum School (Del.) freshman Tariq Ingraham is an extremely intriguing prospect, at 6-foot-9 and a solid 210 pounds already. The Sallies’ MVP had a dozen points to go along with nearly as many rebounds and a few blocks as well; with continued work and body maturation, he’ll have high-majors all over him soon enough.

--St. George’s (Del.) freshman Nah’Shon Hyland had 16 first-half points in the win over Penn Wood, finishing with 18 total. The 6-1 guard, nicknamed “Bones” for his gangly frame, showed off his sharpshooting abilities with three early 3-pointers, then capped off the first half with a 30-foot runner at the buzzer.

--Chester senior Stanley Davis went for 19 points in the Clippers’ loss to Downingtown West. The 6-3 wing had a number of above the rim finishes and a few reverse layups to go along with several jumpers.