skip navigation

Prepping for Preps '16-17: Westtown School

12/05/2016, 11:30am EST
By Matt Chandik

Cameron Reddish (above) and Westtown will stake their claim as the nation's best high school team. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Matt Chandik (@MattChandik)
--

(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.)

~~~

His team already sits in the top 15 of one national poll. It features a pair of five-star recruits in the top five of their respective classes, another four-star talent in the top 40 in his class and another handful of future Division I players.

Give it a couple years and there’s a better chance than not that you’ll be watching Westtown School alums become lottery picks in the NBA Draft.

“We’ve got an embarrassment of riches and talent,” Westtown coach Seth Berger said.

Yeah, that’s one way to look at it. USA Today has the Moose slotted as the 11th best team in the country, yet there’s a feeling that it might be selling Berger’s group a little bit short. The talent is all over the court and it’s in high demand.

Mohamed Bamba, a 6-11, 210-pounder, is deemed the No. 3 prospect in the 2017 class by the 247sports.com Composite. He has offers from everyone, but it looks like his college decision could come down to Duke or Kentucky. They’re pretty good at basketball, those two. Cameron Reddish, a 6-8, 195-pounder, checks in as the 2018 class’ No. 4 prospect, according to the 247 Composite. He can pick whatever school he wants, too, because they all want him.

Regardless of where they pick, the two will be a nightmare matchup for anyone.

“Mo is completely positionless as a basketball player,” Berger said. “There isn’t a spot he can’t guard defensively or play offensively. Basketball comes pretty easy to him. He can shoot, catch, run, and he’s smart enough to know what the next step is at all times. He’s got a combination of size, athleticism, coordination and raw intelligence that I’ve never seen before. There’s nothing he cannot do on the court.”

Most coaches would be beyond ecstatic to coach one player like that in their entire career, but Bamba is just the tall tip of the Westtown iceberg. When Berger first saw Reddish play a few years ago, he saw a point guard in a small forward’s body, and once Reddish decided that he wanted to be a point guard, Berger knew that he had unlimited potential.

“He’s 6-8 and very athletic, but he also has the brain of Chris Paul,” Berger said. “He knows exactly what should happen on every possession. He’s one of the best players that I’ve ever seen, but he’s also by far the hardest worker that I’ve ever coaches. Every amount of success that he’s earned, he’s earned in the gym. He gets in there at six every morning, then goes back later for more. He doesn’t do a move in the game unless he’s practiced it in the gym. When one of your best players sets an example like that, everyone wants to work like that.”

Big man? Check. Point forward who can line up anywhere on the court? Check. Probably need a scorer, right?


Arizona commit Brandon Randolph is another versatile weapon for head coach Seth Berger. (Photo: Mark Jordan/CoBL)

Brandon Randolph’s got you covered, and because this is a ludicrously loaded lineup, the No. 38 recruit in the country and Arizona commit is the third-best player on the team. Randolph can score from anywhere, but it’s his maturation in the passing game that makes him an even bigger threat this time around.

And at 6-foot-6, he's the shortest starter in the Westtown lineup.

“He’s the best scorer I’ve seen since I’ve been coaching high school basketball. There’s no play that we can run where he can’t find a good shot, but he’s also learning to pass the ball, which will give him an opportunity to eventually be a pro,” Berger said. “You can’t double him because he sees the open man. His defensive effort went from a three to a seven last year, and if he can make it go from a seven to a nine this year, it’ll be a huge help.”

It’s great to be that top-heavy, but the biggest reason why the Moose are expected to do such big things is because they’re deep. Anthony Ochefu, a Stony Brook commit and brother of Villanova national champion and Washington Wizard Daniel Ochefu, has blossomed into a legitimate force who will flirt with double-digit rebounds every game. Jake Forrester, a 6-9 junior forward, comes to Westtown from Kiski Prep.

Another Division I prospect, Forrester brings top-notch athleticism, intelligence and effort to the lineup.

“You never have to tell Jake that his effort isn’t high enough,” Berger said. “He’s a 10 out of 10 from the minute he walks in. He plays incredibly hard.”

Dylan Torpey is a 6-1 senior who’ll come off the bench who knows every position, while Noah Collier is a 6-7 freshman who’s got a Division I future as a stretch four. Fellow freshmen Seyon Kpaan and T.J. Berger, the coach’s son, will also see a good amount of time.

The Moose will be a massive favorite to win the Friends’ League and PAISAA tournament. Westtown very well may be the best team in the state and its ranking could eventually reach the top five in the country. There will be plenty of chances for Berger’s group to prove itself against the nation’s best teams, including the City of Palms tournament, in a schedule that could contain as much as eight December losses if Westtown doesn’t play to its potential.

Yet none of that is what matters most to Berger.

“It’s been this way since I started, where all I care about in practice is getting my kids better. Our job as high school coaches is to help kids improve and have them reach the highest level they can get to as players,” Berger said. “Wins and losses are way secondary. College basketball is about winning, but high school is about helping players become the best they can be. I always try to have the toughest schedule we get because we’ve always had seven or eight guys who are going to play college basketball. If we lose games and they get better, it’s great, but if you lose and you learn nothing, you don’t improve.”

Luckily for Westtown, there’s a good chance that it’ll be able to win, learn a lot and have plenty of its alums play college basketball. Seems a like a win-win for everyone.


Recruiting News:

HS Coverage:

Tag(s): Home  Old HS  Boys HS  Friends' Schools (B)  Westtown School