City of Basketball Love

CoBL Staff (@hooplove215)
--

AAU Program Previews: Jersey Shore Warriors | Philly Pride | Team Final | Team Philly | WeR1

~~~

Program Name: Jersey Shore Warriors
Coach: Tony Sagona
Circuit: Elevate Hoops
Key returnees: Sam Iorio
Notable Alumni: Steve Vasturia, Pat Carroll, Jake Silpe

Roster

Eli Brooks (2017/Spring Grove, Pa.)
Colin Daly (2017/Archbishop Carroll, Pa.)
*Ryan Daly (2016/Archbishop Carroll, Pa.)
Dakquon Davis (2017/Roman Catholic, Pa.)
Mark Flagg (2017/Pennsbury, Pa.)
Taylor Funk (2017/Manheim Central, Pa.)
Austin Gilbertson (2017/Trinity, Pa.)
Sam Iorio (2017/Parkland, Pa.)
Matiss Kulackovskis (2017/Archbishop Ryan, Pa.)
Kyle McCloskey (2017/Germantown Academy, Pa.)
Fred Odhiambo (2018/Church Farm, Pa.)

* = April live periods only

2015 Recap

After playing the 2014 summer on the Under Armour circuit, Jersey Shore was unaffiliated yet again last summer, but that’s certainly no problem for a program that’s established a more-than-solid reputation over its 25-plus years of operation under Tony Sagona. They continually pump out Ivy/Patriot League talent, like last year’s squad that included Chucky Champion (Loyola), Pat Andree (Lehigh), Kyle Stout (Lafayette) and others. They took home a few tournament wins, including a tough BasketBull field in Springfield, Mass., and another at Hoop Group HQ, with solid showings at various other Hoop Group and Elevate Hoops events.

2016 Outlook

As usual, Sagona and his coaches have put together a solid roster chock-full of high-academic prospects sprinkled in with some intriguing potential high-major targets. They're playing in several Elevate Hoops events this summer, beginning with the Spring Showdown this weekend at Staten Island College. Expect to see the Warriors at all sorts of regional events over the next few months, with colleges from up and down the East Coast courtside at all of their games.

The Star(s)

Quietly, a pair of players in the middle of the state have turned themselves into two of the best Division I prospects around for the Class of 2017. Eli Brooks, a 6-2 guard from Spring Grove (Pa.), was a second-team all-state selection after leading the Rockets to their first-ever state tournament berth, and he looks primed for a huge summer. He enters April with 11 Division I offers after picking up one from La Salle on Monday; Penn, George Mason and Bucknell are among his other 10. And often he’s able to kick it out to Taylor Funk, a 6-8 sharpshooter who has St. Joe’s and La Salle offers, plus those from Rider, Monmouth and Boston U. The Manheim Central product

The only returner from last year’s 17U squad, Sam Iorio, has been one of the gems of the Lehigh Valley since his freshman season at Parkland HS. Since then, the 6-6 wing forward has helped the Trojans to four straight PIAA Class AAAA tournaments, including a quarterfinal run this year. A terrific outside shooter (notice a theme?), Iorio--whose grandfather, also Sam, played at Villanova in the 1960s--is tough as nails and always brings a well-running motor to the court. This is the second year that Iorio will start for the 2017s; he has scholarship offers from Lafayette, Lehigh, BU and Binghamton.

The Sleeper(s)

While a good majority of this roster looks likely to take a step up in the eyes of the college coaches that will be watching them this summer, two players in particular really have a chance to nail down some Division I looks early in the offseason. Pennsbury forward Mark Flagg, a 6-7 stretch-’4’, has a promising frame and can knock down 3-pointers at a nice clip, and if he plays tough around the rim as well should get some looks in the low-to-mid range. Another excellent outside shooter on a team full of them is Austin Gilbertson, who’s got the right size (6-4) to play off the ball and can really light up the nets when he gets going.

The Supporting Cast

For April, the Warriors will have the services of Archbishop Carroll senior Ryan Daly, who de-committed from Hartford last month and is trying to find a different Division I home during the April live periods. That shouldn’t be too difficult, considering the 6-4 shooting guard won the Catholic League MVP honors after a tremendous senior season that saw him average more than 21.7 ppg. He’s turned himself into a terrific all-around scorer who always plays tough on the defensive end, and is a very good rebounding guard (7.0 rpg) as well with his big frame.

Once Daly finds a college program, expect several other players to step up throughout the summer. Matiss Kulackovskis is a big (6-7) wing from Archbishop Ryan (via Latvia) who can stroke it from 3-point range and could get some low-major Division I looks with a few big games; Kyle McCloskey (Germantown Academy) is a D-I quarterback who’s got some serious hoops skill as well at 6-5; Colin Daly and Dakquan Davis are both excellent 3-point marksman who will be counted on to take big steps up as seniors at their respective high schools. Odhiambo is a towering (6-11) but fairly-raw big man who will serve as a shot-blocker and rebounding presence on an otherwise fairly-undersized squad.

The X-Factor

What tends to make the Warriors stand out on the AAU circuit is their ability to share the ball and create open shots, playing more like a high school team at times than a typical AAU program. That "give up a good shot for a better one" mentality penetrates the whole program, and when they're clicking this is a group that's capable of absolutely burning teams from the perimeter and thus opening up driving lanes. As long as they keep that mentality, expect to see this group in a lot of tournament final fours this summer and the offers to pour in.

~~~

16U Roster: John Bol Ajak (2019/Church Farm), Aiden Ellwood (2018/Central Catholic), Mikey Esquilin (2018/Whitehall), Andrew Funk (2018/Archbishop Wood), Tyler Norwood (2018/Penncrest), Colin Phillips (2018/Episcopal Academy), Alex Serrano (201/Liberty), Andrew Sims (2018/Lenape), Kyle Thompson (2018/St. Joseph’s Prep), Karrington Wallace (2018/Archbishop Wood)

Breakdown: Going to be fun to watch this group mature together, because there are some very interesting young pieces here. Thompson, a 6-0 point guard, was a full-time starter at the Prep as a sophomore; he's one of a few players that brings some Catholic League playing experience to the fold, though both Wallace and Funk--whose older brother Tommy starred for the Warriors and is going to West Point--will see much bigger roles ahead next year. Bol Ajak is the only freshman in the group, though at 6-9 he certainly doesn't look the part, but he's a very raw African product who will need a lot of time in the gym over the next few years.