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Donofrio Classic Report: March 30, 2016

03/31/2016, 12:30am EDT
By Will Slover & Josh Verlin

Will Slover (@WillSlover31) &
Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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Here’s a recap of the Donofrio Classic action on Wednesday, March 30:

Game One: The Division I talent on Team Philly was too much for the juniors of Competitive Edge, as a trio of guards led the way in a 100-62 win. Rider-bound Xzavier Malone (2016/Plymouth-Whitemarsh) led the way with 24 points, capping it off with a ferocious one-handed slam, one of four straight dunks late in the second half. Jabri McCall (2016/Martin Luther King) and Penn commit Ryan Betley (2016/Downingtown West) added 20 and 19, respectively for Team Philly. Competitive Edge had four players in double figures: Ethan Norton (2017/Hill School) had a dozen, while Charlie Martin (2017/Conestoga), Mason Ressler (2017/Radnor) and Justin Jaworski (2017/Perkiomen Valley) had 10 each.

(See also: Photo gallery from the opening game)

Game Two: LVBR Beasts took care of business in the second game on Wednesday’s Donofrio action, topping Filly Sol by a score of 104-94. LVBR was led by a quartet of double-figure scorers, who combined for 88 of their team’s points. Sam Iorio (2017/Parkland) paced his squad with 31, and he was joined by Tyrese Martin (2017/William Allen), Lafayette commit Kyle Stout (2016/Parkland) and Isiah Jennings (2016/Allentown Central Catholic), who finished with 23, 21 and 13, respectively. Filly Sol’s balanced scoring attack was led by five players who reached double digits. L.J. Stansbury (2017/Hodgson Vo-Tech) was the lone scorer to reach 20 for Filly Sol, as he finished with 23. He was aided by 16 from Kyson Rawls (2017/St. George’s), 15 from Maurice Waters (2017/Constitution), 13 from Kyle Thompson (2018, St. Joseph’s Prep) and 10 from Justin Anderson (2018/Academy of the New Church).

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Anthony Ochefu (above) looked in good shape with several blocks and buckets in a Team Philly win. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Westtown's Ochefu in good shape heading into summer

Anthony Ochefu, who is just over a month off of winning a state title at Westtown School, is looking to keep his hot streak going into the live period in his first summer with Team Philly. Ochefu was a significant contributor for the 2016 PAISSA champion Moose in his first season seeing real time at the varsity level.

“It was a lot of fun, playing with a lot of talented guys at Westtown,” said Ochefu. “Coming off the bench, sixth man, just bring a lot of energy and just trying to play my role the best I can.”

Ochefu’s recent success is not going unnoted, as many college coaches are beginning to reach out to the 6-foot-8 junior. He has recently heard from Binghamton, Loyola (Md.), Saint Francis (Pa.), and Hofstra.

He also looked to be in perhaps the best physical shape of his young career on Wednesday night, and he said he’s slimmed down 10 pounds from last year despite adding muscle over that time.

“(I’m) a lot more mobile,” he said. “Just eating better, getting more sleep and working a lot harder.”

It helps that he’s been able to go up against Mohamed Bamba in practice every day with Westtown. Bamba, a 7-footer, is considered a top-3 player in the Class of 2017 and has NBA potential, with offers from just about every high-major program in the country.

Playing against such a talented athlete in his own grade has pushed Ochefu to his limit.

“You’ve got to play hard every possession, because they’re going to bring it every possession,” Ochefu said. “(He’s) arguably the best player in the country right now, in my opinion, so just pushing him to get better, him pushing me to get better and just to play hard.”

He’s hoping that hard work will pay off with Team Philly, which plays on the Adidas Gauntlet during the summer months.

Just getting more exposure, a lot better, getting more college looks,” said Ochefu. “Basically just (trying) to kill this summer.”

First, though, he’ll be flying down to Houston to watch his older brother Daniel and the Villanova Wildcats go up against Oklahoma in the Final Four.

“It’s been a lot of fun, actually, watching him play basketball for four years,” the younger Ochefu said, “and this tournament run’s been real fun to watch.”

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Sam Iorio (above, in February) has a big summer ahead of him with several Division I offers already on the table. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Iorio preparing for big role change

Sam Iorio will be the lone returning starter for the four time District 11 AAAA reigning champion Parkland next season.

After losing four teammates to graduation, Iorio will need to take on an even bigger role than before to make sure his team doesn’t lose their winning tradition.

“I mean, obviously I have a big leadership role to fill. Our seniors were great leaders and I was just as experienced on the varsity floor as they were,” Iorio said following his 31 point performance for the LVBR Beasts in the Donofrio Classic on Wednesday night. “But I have to bring even more leadership this year. I think my role is a lot bigger this year, I have to be the guy every night.”

Gone are Kyle Stout (Lafayette), Kenny Yeboah (Temple football), Devante Cross (Virginia football) and Jack Dreisbach (TBD), meaning for the first time in three years Trojans head coach Andy Stephens will have a lot to replace in the fall.

Luckily the one player he does have back is Iorio, a 6-foot-6 wing forward with a silky outside shot and a tough-as-nails mentality. Next year, Iorio won’t have the ability to lean on players like the 6-5 Stout or the 6-3 Cross, who ran point for Parkland the last few years.

But Stephens apparently didn’t need to say anything to him about becoming more of a leader over the summer.

“It’s kind of implied,” Iorio said. “As soon as the season was over, all of the talk starts with that. I’m definitely going to have to work a lot harder and it’s not going to be as easy to win games in our league. But, I’m ready for it and it should be fun.”

This summer, he’ll be playing with the same Jersey Shore Warriors program he’s been with for the last few summers, alongside fellow D-I recruits like Manheim Central’s Taylor Funk, Spring Grove’s Eli Brooks and more.

He already has offers from Lehigh, Lafayette, Boston U and Binghamton, and has taken visits to schools like Drexel, Yale and Penn while hearing from “pretty much every Philly school” and a few others.

“Definitely plan on finishing the whole summer just to see where my options are at,” he said. “I’m not in a rush. I’m trying to get the best fit for me and when that time comes I’ll know and I’ll make that decision when the time comes.”


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