City of Basketball Love

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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(Ed. Note: This article is part of our 2016-17 season coverage, which will run for the six weeks preceding the first official games of the year on Nov. 11. To access all of our high school and college preview content for this season, click here.)

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As vibrant as Philadelphia’s high school scene and the City 6, the Division III competition in southeastern Pennsylvania is just as intense.

More than 30 small-college programs inhibit the area from Philadelphia to Harrisburg, up to State College and over to Allentown, and it’s quite a diverse bunch. There’s the high-academic schools of the Centennial, like Franklin & Marshall, Swarthmore and Muhlenberg; the physical and athletic schools of the Colonial States Athletic Conference (Cabrini, Neumann, Gwynedd-Mercy), the varied and talented programs in the Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC)’s Commonwealth and Freedom divisions (Arcadia, Lebanon Valley, DeSales), plus programs in the North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC), Capital Athletic Conference, Landmark Conference and more.

For the third season in a row, CoBL will be keeping track of the area’s best Division III programs, running our Top 10 bi-weekly throughout the season.

(One more Ed. Note: We would be remiss if we didn’t mention some strong South Jersey programs, including Richard Stockton and Rowan in the NJAC. But without any writers in that region, we are focusing our coverage on Pennsylvania for now)

Here’s a look at the preseason top 10 (all records/stats from 2015-16 unless otherwise noted):

Others to Watch: Albright (10-15, 7-9 MAC Commonwealth), Centenary (14-13, 10-8 CSAC), Delaware Valley (20-8, 11-3 MAC Freedom), Dickinson (13-13, 12-6 Centennial), Eastern (11-14, 5-9 MAC Freedom), Gettysburg (18-9, 12-6 Centennial), Lancaster Bible (27-1, 18-0 NEAC), Rosemont (13-14, 10-8 CSAC), Ursinus (11-14, 7-11 Centennial), Widener (13-12, 8-8 MAC Commonwealth), York (10-15, 6-12 Capital)

10. Gwynedd-Mercy Griffins (22-7, 17-1 CSAC)
Head coach: John Baron, 15th season
Key Losses: Julian Hyden (19.0 ppg, 8.4 rpg), Darnell Artis (13.7 ppg, 4.6 apg), Aaron Morgan (9.6 ppg), Brian Hennessey (6.1 ppg)
Key Returners: Cedric Elleby (Sr./F), Arron Goodman (Sr./F), Courtney Cubbage (Soph./G)

Outlook: The Griffins are a bit of a tough one to figure out -- very few teams in the area lost more to graduation, between the 6-7 Hyden and 5-7 dynamo Artis as well as the more-than-serviceable guards Morgan and Hennessey. But Baron has some pieces to work with, starting with his 6-3 workhorse Elleby, a hyper-athletic forward who averaged 16.8 ppg and 8.2 rpg last year, finishing second to Hyden in both categories; Goodman, an inside-out talent at 6-6, is back with the team and can have a huge impact if he stays healthy. They’ll also need some youngsters to step up -- keep an eye out on Cubbage, a 6-1 guard from Camden Catholic, as well as 6-0 junior point guard Rip Engel, who will assume point guard duties after transferring in from Randolph-Macon before sophomore year.

9. Susquehanna River Hawks (24-5, 13-3 Landmark)
Head coach: Frank Marcinek, 28th season
Key Losses: Josh Miller (17.5 ppg, 8.1 rpg), Brandon Hedley (13.0 ppg, 3.2 apg)
Key Returners: Steven Weidlich (Sr./G), Danny Weiss (Sr./F)

Outlook: A 15-0 start to the season had Susquehanna ranked as high as No. 12 in the D3Hoops.com national poll, and though the year wasn’t without its stumbles -- two losses in three games followed that streak, and the River Hawks were upended in the Landmark Championship by Catholic. It was still good enough to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1994, and they made it to the second round before losing to Babson. The 6-4, do-everything Miller is gone, so it’ll be on 6-1 Weidlich (16.1 ppg, 5.0 rpg) and 6-6 Weiss (10.6 ppg, 5.2 rpg) to step up and lead the way as some new faces emerge for Marcinek. Keep an eye on 5-10 sophomore Tyler Hoagland (4.8 ppg), a Cedar Cliff grad who led the team with 103 assists despite playing only 21.8 mpg.

8. Arcadia Knights (17-11, 9-7 MAC Commonwealth)
Head coach: Justin Scott, 5th season
Key Losses: John Landro (15.8 ppg, .388 3PT%), Alex Cohen (7.3 ppg)
Key Returners: Ryan Kelley (Sr./G), Josh Scott (Soph./G), Phil Pierfy (Soph./F),

Outlook: The youth movement is on for Scott’s Knights, centered on a talented sophomore class that’s eight deep on the roster and will make up at least three-fifths of the starting lineup; there are only four upperclassmen (three juniors, one senior) on the entire roster. While the 6-6 Pierfy had a solid beginning to the season, averaging 13.4 ppg and 5.2 rpg before going down after 11 games with an injury, the rising star in the area might be Scott. A 6-4 guard out of Penn Wood, Scott averaged 12.0 ppg, 4.9 rpg and 2.7 apg as a freshman, earning our area Rookie of the Year honor. Look for him to make a big jump in the scoring column with Landro’s graduation, though classmate Evan Slone (Souderton) should also chip in after averaging 9.3 ppg and 5.0 rpg in only about 20 minutes per contest as a freshman.

7. Cabrini Cavaliers (16-11, 13-5 CSAC)
Head coach: Tim McDonald, 3rd season
Key Losses: Jair Green (17.2 ppg, 6.1 rpg), Ace Henry (9.1 ppg)
Key Returners: Deryl Bagwell (Jr./F), Tyheim Monroe (Jr./F), Ivan Robinson (Soph./G)

Outlook: After a stranglehold on the CSAC that lasted the entire six-year run under former head coach Marcus Kahn (2008-14), the Cavaliers haven't been quite as dominant under McDonald, though they're still one of the most feared teams in the league. An extremely young squad -- the Cavaliers only had one senior (Henry) and one junior on the roster -- had its struggles throughout the season, overcoming a 2-5 start to finish just behind Gwynedd and Neumann in the CSAC standings, and now bring a lot of talent back for McDonald's third season. Perhaps the most statistically impressive player in the area last year was Monroe, a 6-6 forward who averaged 18.4 ppg and 15.3 rpg, putting up a double-double in all 27 games; he, Bagwell (13.7 ppg, 4.3 rpg) and Robinson (12.8 ppg, 4.0 apg) will be the backbone of the program the next two years.

6. Lebanon Valley Dutchmen (16-11, 10-6 MAC Commonwealth)
Head coach: Brad McAlester, 23rd season
Key Losses: Zack Mrozek (10.4 ppg, 4.1 rpg), Kyler Burker (3.1 ppg)
Key Returners: Travis Conrado (Sr./G), Andy Orr (Jr./F), Sam Light (Jr./G),

Outlook: The success of the LVC program over the next two years is going to depend almost entirely on its current junior class, which is led by one of the best players to ever put on a Dutchman uniform. The MAC Commonwealth Rookie of the Year in 2014-15, Orr -- a 6-7 forward and Conrad Weiser graduate -- jumped his scoring average to a team-best 21.3 ppg, earning him MAC Commonwealth Player of the Year honors as he shot a nifty 53.1 percent from the floor while knocking down 23-of-52 (44.2 percent) from beyond the arc. Just behind him was the team’s gunner, Light, as the 6-0 guard averaged 19.1 ppg on 42.6 percent from 3-point range; together, they form an inside-out combination few teams can match.

5. Alvernia Crusaders (15-11, 11-5 MAC Commonwealth)
Head coach: Mike Miller, 13th season
Key Losses: Charles Cooper (15.0 ppg, 4.7 rpg)
Key Returners: Marquis Marshall (Sr./F), Mike Miller (Jr./G), Alex Shippen (Jr./G), George Sapp (Jr./G)

Outlook: After winning 24 games and making it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament back in 2013, the Crusaders have seen their win total slip slightly in each season since. But this figures to be the year that they reverse that trend under Miller, who’s looking to take his seventh different squad into the NCAAs. They’re led by Marshall, a 6-6 forward and son of former NBA forward Donyell Marshall, who averaged 18.8 ppg in his first full season as a member of the Crusaders after stops at Towson and East Stroudsburg. Out on the perimeter are Miller’s son, the team’s third-leading returning scorer (13.5 ppg) and a 35 percent 3-point shooter, as well as Shippen, a 6-0 Harriton grad who averaged 11.7 ppg and 3.7 rpg, and Sapp, a 5-7 point guard from Timber Creek (N.J.) who averaged 10.2 ppg and a team-high 3.1 apg.

4. Swarthmore Garnet (22-8, 13-5 Centennial)
Head coach: Landry Kosmalski, 5th season
Key Losses: Shane Loeffler (4.7 ppg), Sean Thaxter (4.2 ppg)
Key Returners: Chris Bourne (Sr./F), Matt Brennan (Jr./G), Zack Yonda (Jr./G), Robbie Walsh (Jr./F)

Outlook: No Garnet squad had ever broken the 20-win barrier, with 17 victories the program record before last year’s team blew that mark out of the water. And with the top six scorers all coming back from last year -- including the return of Bourne, who went down with a knee injury 13 games in -- it’s possible that the new high-water mark for victories only lasts one year. The 6-4 Bourne (14.3 ppg, 7.2 rpg) and 6-8 Walsh (10.7 ppg, 7.6 rpg) are both versatile forwards who work well with a perimeter group that’s led by Brennan (12.8 ppg, .400 3PT%) and Yonda (12.2 ppg, 4.1 rpg). Kosmalski also has four other players returning who saw 10 minutes per game or more, including a few sophomores; the 2000 Davidson grad has certainly set the stage for this program to be good for years to come.

3. DeSales Bulldogs (20-8, 11-3 MAC Freedom)
Head coach: Scott Coval, 24th season
Key Losses: Cody Deal (13.6 ppg, 4.2 rpg)
Key Returners: Kuity Slanger (Sr./G), Ryan Callahan (Sr./F), Brian Laird (Sr./G), Brandon Bridy (Sr./G)

Outlook: The Bulldogs had a strong close to the 2015-16 season, winning seven of eight down the stretch, but lost to Wilkes in the MAC Freedom semifinals, costing them an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament. Playing in the ECAC South tournament -- the D-III version of the NIT -- DeSales beat Juniata in the first round before losing by two to Neumann. Though Deal, a versatile 6-3 wing forward who shot better than 40 percent from 3-point range as a senior, is gone, the team still returns four players who started 19 games or more in Slanger (12.4 ppg), Laird (12.4 ppg), Callahan (7.7 ppg) and Bridy (7.4 ppg). That gives Coval a strong perimeter group to work with, led by Slanger, a terrific all-around talent; the 6-2 Upper Darby grad also averaged 6.2 rpg and 4.9 apg as a junior.

2. Franklin & Marshall Diplomats (22-6, 15-3 Centennial)
Head coach: Glenn Robinson, 47th season
Key Losses: Cedric Moune (15.6 ppg, 9.4 rpg)
Key Returners: Hunter Eggers (Sr./G), Brandon Federici (Jr./G), Matthew Tate (Jr./G)

Outlook: The most victorious coach in NCAA Division III history, Robinson has yet another team that should pile plenty of wins onto his career total of 912. Fresh off the 24th NCAA Tournament appearance of his reign, the Diplomats return three of their four leading scorers, led by Federici, who averaged 17.6 ppg as a sophomore; the 6-4 guard out of Lawrenceville Prep (N.J.), a potential All-American, shot 42.9 percent from beyond the 3-point arc, and enters his junior year just six points shy of 1,000. The biggest task will be replacing the inside presence of Moune, a 6-7 forward who was the only player on the team to average more than five boards per game; senior Lior Levy (6-8), junior Lionel Owona (6-6), sophomore Jordan Phelps (6-6), and freshman Julius Stoma (6-6) will all have to chip in to fill his big shoes.

1. Neumann Knights (22-8, 14-4 CSAC)
Head coach: Jim Rullo, 4th season
Key Losses: Kevin Green (10.1 ppg), Denzel Yard (11.5 ppg, 4.5 rpg)
Key Returners: Darian Barnes (Sr./F), Jimmy Butler (Sr./F), DeShawn Lowman (Sr./G), Tyaire Hudson (Jr./G)

Outlook: In three seasons at Neumann, Rullo has already guided the Knights to two 20-win seasons -- and the year they didn’t (2014-15), they won the CSAC championship and went to the NCAA Tournament. Despite winning 10 out of 11 to close the regular season, Neumann was upended by Gwynedd-Mercy in the CSAC championship game, and had to settle for winning the eight-team ECAC South postseason tournament to end the year on a good note. Though a graduated class of three  will present some holes to be filled for Rullo, a six-man senior group this year means the best time to get back to the Knights is right now. Lowman (17.6 ppg, 5.8 rpg) and Butler (16.2 ppg, 8.3 rpg) are one of the best 1-2 punches around; add in a full season of Barnes (14.5 ppg, 11.9 rpg) and the return of sharpshooter Billy Cassidy from a knee injury, and it’s a dangerous squad for sure.