City of Basketball Love

Graham Foley (@graham_foley3)
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(Ed. Note: This story is part of CoBL’s “Prepping for Preps” series, which will take a look at many of the top high school programs in the region as part of our 2016-17 season preview coverage. The complete list of schools previewed so far can be found here.)

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When you walk into the Youth Center of Bright Hope Baptist Church on 12th and Cecil B. Moore Ave, it takes your eyes a minute or two to adjust to the abnormally dim lighting.

The small, suffocatingly gray basketball court takes up almost the entire space and is lit by a few large fluorescent bulbs on the ceiling. There is little room for any spectators to stand on the sidelines and watch a game.

But there, on the baseline, is a group of determined young men sweating hard and breathing rapidly. Behind them, a group of coaches yell “suicides” and the guys begin their sprints.

This is where last year’s Class A state runner-up Math, Civics, and Sciences High School basketball team conducts its practices. It may not be ideal, but the building’s grit and character mirrors that of the team’s players and provides a humbling background for them.

Head coach Dan Jackson, who led his guys through an up and down regular season and tremendous postseason last year, is appreciative of the church’s help as the school prepares to build an on-campus court.

“They just opened their doors to us this year,” Jackson said. “So we’ve been here practicing this year at the church.”

Jackson said by this time next year, MC&S should have their own court at the school. In the meantime, the team will not let this minor inconvenience bring down what looks to be an exciting season.

After an ultra-competitive 2015-16 season that ended on the floor of Hershey’s Giant Center in a close state-championship loss, Math, Civics, and Sciences High School has many reasons to feel proud.

But don’t you dare think they are satisfied.

Last season’s improbable and exciting run that included a nail-biting semifinal win over Public League rival Constitution High School and back-to-back overtime playoff victories has made this year’s team more motivated than ever to get back to Hershey and come away with a win.

“We’re bringing the majority of our team back this year so our ideal goal is to get back what we achieved last year by reaching the state playoffs,” Jackson said. “Guys are more experienced, have more continuity playing together so I’m looking forward to another exciting year with higher expectations than we started off with last year.”

Junior guard Kwahzere Ransom, whose buzzer-beating 3-point shot won the playoff game against Constitution last season, shares this goal and understands what it would mean to return to the state championship and be victorious.

“It would be awesome,” Ransom said. “Just to win it and bring one back home. We just, going into a game, have to not be playing around as much as we used to and taking everything seriously.”

And this is not an unreachable goal.

In the state championship game last year, freshmen, sophomores, and juniors accounted for 57 of the team’s 60 points in a 71-60 loss to an upperclassmen-heavy Kennedy Catholic team. Almost all of those scorers are back with a vengeance this year save Edward Croswell (St. Joe's Prep) and Ja’Quill Stone (Archbishop Ryan).

Ransom, plus senior guards Malik Archer, Saheed Peoples, and Tymier Johnson are all experienced leaders that are looking to put up more points and accumulate more victories this season.

Ransom, who averaged 8.7 ppg last season, will look to be a vocal leader as well as a major scoring threat. Ransom said he worked hard over the offseason primarily on shooting to improve his mid-range shots, three point shots, and free throws. All of this is in an effort to push the team in the right direction.

“We need to start off better than we did last year,” Ransom said. “And just, compete with everybody to go back to the state championship and possibly the (Public League championship).”

Archer led the team by averaging 15.7 ppg last year. In the state title game, he totaled 21 points and was the only player who scored more than 20 for either team. Coming into his senior season, Archer is expected to provide most of the scoring and lead the team overall.

“I just got to go out and be a leader, get everybody involved and score the ball,” Archer said. “And we just have got to work hard play defense.”

According to Archer, he worked hard over the offseason to improve his game. He spent a lot of time on coming off the dribble and shooting instead of just catching and shooting while also working hard on his defense.

Jackson believes that he will work in tandem with senior forward Maqi Watson, a transfer from Parkway Center City High School, to lead the team in the scoring department.

“Malik Archer and a transfer we have Maqi Watson, I think they both are going to be kind of the catalysts for our offensive attack.” Jackson said.

Watson brings a dual-threat presence under the basket to MC&S. Last season with Parkway, he averaged 12.2 ppg while also grabbing 8.1 rpg. On a team that, according to Jackson, is primarily focused on defense, he is expected by his new coach to be a top defender for the Mighty Elephants while also making a difference on the scoreboard.

In addition to Math, Civics, and Sciences’ core group of big, experienced guards, a first-year player will also see a decent amount of playing time. Freshman Jaleel Christian, the smallest player on the team, is a “talented” shooter according to Jackson who can help the offense. He is expected to see “a lot” of playing time at the point guard position.

Despite the hype for some great shooters, Jackson believes his team is primarily a defensive one. Guys like Johnson and junior guard/forward Anthony McFall are expected by Jackson to “bring the strength defensively” and lead what he believes the team does best.

“I don’t think we’re the most high-powered offensive team that I would like,” Jackson said. “But I think defensively, we pull it together as a unit and I think we should be good to go.”

In the end, it does not matter if defense or shooting wins the games for Math, Civics, and Sciences. The team is primarily focused on getting back to the state championship game and replicating last year’s exciting season.

To do so, simplicity will be the key. Jackson believes that if his practices at the small church in North Philly mirror those the team held last season, they will be able to recreate last year’s accomplishments and maybe bring home a title.

“We’re going to keep the same principles, the same strategies, just up them up a little bit,” Jackson said. “And we’ll get better at attacking and doing what we do to make us successful.”