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Drexel Team Camp Notebook (June 25)

06/25/2017, 6:45pm EDT
By CoBL Staff

CoBL Staff (@hooplove215)
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The first Drexel high school team camp in recent memory took place on Sunday, with 14 teams from three different states coming to the Daskalakis Athletic Center for a day of hoops.

Here’s a notebook from the action:

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Joey Grula (above) is one of four upperclassman starters returning from a 21-win Hazleton squad. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Experienced Hazleton Area retooling for comeback year

After a disappointing loss to Williamsport in the District 2/4 6A sub-regional finals last year, Hazleton Area is focused on doing everything they can to make sure it doesn’t happen again.

The Cougars went 21-4 last season and were one of the stronger teams in the state, but couldn’t turn that into a bid in the PIAA playoffs, falling one game short. Losing in the subregional finals was a heartbreaker for Hazelton and definitely left the Cougars seeking revenge for next season.

“If we don't win this year, then it's almost like our high school careers were a bust, if we don't get to states,” senior wing Joey Grula said. “We gotta make sure we get it done.”

The Cougars return a core four of upperclassmen to lead the way. In the middle is 6-7 center Josh Samec, a versatile big man who can step out and knock down shots; on the wings are 6-5 senior Jeff Planutis, the 6-4 Grula and 6-5 junior Da’mir Faison. All four started last season.

In a Sunday morning win over Shipley, Grula led the Cougars to a double-digit victory after having a lead almost the whole game.  

Grula, who’s hearing from numerous Division II and Division III programs, put up big numbers with 26 points shooting 12-for-19.  He came down with seven rebounds, three of them on offense, showcasing a strong work ethic and defensive versatility.

The Cougars’ physical 6-4 wing had the hardest tandem of players to guard. At times, he was matched up against Shipley’s 5-11 point guard Sam Sessoms; at other times he was guarding 6-10 Ray Somerville.

“It’s definitely hard to guard the smaller position because he is a lot quicker than me and he has a great handle but, I was able to stay in front of him,” Grula said. “When I try to guard bigs, I just transition into the post defense.”

The Cougars’ position they have to figure out is  point guard. Joseph’s main two options are rising sophomore Andrew Vayda, who ran the offense at Drexel, and rising junior Ryan Wolk, the school’s starting quarterback on the gridiron.

Vayda certainly looked like he belonged on the court with his older, more experienced teammates, limiting his mistakes and running the offense.

“That’s a (rising sophomore) point guard out there for us, Andrew Vayda,”  Joseph said.  “I thought he handled himself pretty well, Ryan Wolk gave us some good minutes, he’s another guy that’s just a (rising junior).”

To help prepare for a key 2017-18 year, Hazleton is putting in the work this summer.

The Cougars visited Mt. St. Mary’s last week for the Mountaineers’ camp, as well as playing in the Dragons’ camp.  Hazelton also competes in the Smallwood Summer League, playing against some of the top teams from the central part of the state.

“We just want to try and get better playing against the best competition,” Joseph said.

-- Max Brandt & Josh Verlin

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Butler, Harrigan reuniting at O’Hara

Cardinal O’Hara’s basketball program is quietly coming together, as more pieces get added to the Lions’ puzzle.  

Jason Harrigan began the 2016-2017 season as the new head coach at Cardinal O’Hara transitioning to a new team and a whole new set of players. In his first year the helm, O’Hara went 5-17, and 0-13 in Catholic League play.

Prior to O’Hara, Harrigan coached the Delaware Valley Charter program for eight years.

“That was something that was very close to me. I put a lot of time and energy into that,” Harrigan said. “So there was an adjustment, but now we’re starting to feel a little bit more natural with our players [at O’Hara] and getting to build those relationships.”

At the end of this past academic year,  Del-Val closed its doors, which left rising senior Antwuan Butler in search of a new school.  

After starting his high school career at Strawberry Mansion High School, Butler played for Harrigan his sophomore season and now the pair is reuniting. The two had kept in touch as Harrigan frequented his AAU games and checked in on Butler’s progressing skills.

Playing for WeR1’s 17u team this summer, Butler has offers from both Nicholls State and Coppin State.

In a win over Academy Charter (N.J.) on Sunday, Butler scored 10 points and showed off his toughness, as he dove on the ground for loose balls and never took a play off on defense.

“That [last game] was an example of what he brings,” Harrigan said. “The toughness and winning mentality. That team was really really tough and it was a scrappy game. We had a guy out there that was equally as tough, and he kind of showed our guys the way and they followed suit and that was exactly what we were looking for.”

Now that the two are coming together again on the O’Hara team, along other new underclassmen and transfers, Harrigan will be pushing him to step up his leadership skills and vocality on the court. Though the Drexel team camp was the first day Butler has played with his new team -- the reason he didn’t speak with any media, as he “wished to focus on his teammates,” per Harrigan -- the coach is confident that with some time he will fall into place.

“I’ve talked to him since the 10th grade about him just being more vocal,” Harrigan said. “He is a mature player and an experienced player, and I think that he can use some of his knowledge and experience to help the less experienced players.”

Harrigan has a lot of faith in Butler and is hopeful he will impact the program during his last high school season.

“He’s a natural winner. He competes every day,” Harrigan said. “[He has] that attitude of just competing every day in practices and offseason games and workouts whatever it is he’s going to always compete and that is going to change the mentality.” -- Tyler Sandora & Isabella Sanchez

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Jeff Planutis (above) is a lanky wing at 6-5 with a great rise and relase and the ability to finish above the rim. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Quick Hits
-- One of the other four upperclassmen starters returning to Hazelton, Jeffrey Planutis showed a great deal of explosiveness against Shipley, at one point stealing the ball, taking it down the court and throwing down the first of multiple impressive dunks. Planutis averaged 15.6 points per game last year, and his role on offense will only increase this year, even taking some reps as the team’s point guard. He struggled shooting at Drexel, going 5-13 from the field.

“(I’m working on) my catch and shoot,” he said. “My pull-up jumper has always been a little bit above average but I need a little work spotting up and shooting.”

Planutis is drawing attention from multiple D-I schools, including Mt. St. Mary’s, where his older brother, Bobby is about to start his freshman season. The younger Planutis brother said he’s
not 100 percent sure” if he’d want to end up at Mt. St. Mary’s, though so far that’s his only offer. “I don't know if I want to play with him but then again, I've been playing with him my whole life and it hasn't been too bad,” he said.

-- Playing without senior stars Aaron Clarke and Samba Diallo, a small Pope John XXIII team struggled mightily in their loss to Bonner Prendergast, losing 88-35. One bright spot for the Lions from Sparta, N.J. was rising junior Jack Cavanaugh, who scored seven points to lead the team. A 6-4 combo guard with a quick first step and a quick trigger from deep, Cavanaugh unofficially visited Columbia last year and he’s recently been in contact with Temple, Drexel, Columbia, Princeton, and Yale. This offseason, while playing with PSA Cardinals’ 16u squad, Cavanaugh said he has been working on his handle and ability to run the offense.

-- UNC Greensboro and Towson are two schools that have offered Jayden Saddler, he told CoBL. Formerly of St. Benedict's Prep (NJ), Saddler has decided to reclassify to the class of 2018 and transfer to Mount Zion Prep (Md). At 6-foot-tall, Saddler has a very quick first step, and possess a knack for getting to the rim, where he can score in a variety of ways. While at Mt. Zion, Saddler hopes to improve his SAT score and develop his body before he gets to college. In a matchup against West Catholic on Sunday, Saddler scored 17 points and grabbed six rebounds while playing the role of point guard for his team. This summer, Saddler has been playing with the D.C. Blue Devils 17U squad on the Under Armour Association. While no official visits are planned, Saddler took an unofficial visit to UMass last week, and Coastal Carolina has been in contact.

-- Fresh off an appearance at Bucknell’s elite camp, Hazleton (Pa.) 2018 F Josh Samec got a good idea of what it’ll take for him to get a Division I scholarship. The 6-8, 180-pound stretch-forward with a smooth shooting stroke and great mobility around the rim is hearing from a boatload of Division II schools (“Millersville, Bloomsburg, Kutztown, West Chester, USciences, to name a few,” he said), but is still awaiting his first offer at any level. He’s heard from different coaching staffs about tips and tricks to focus on as the July periods approach, including now the Bison staff’s thoughts: “It was little things,” he said, “like sprinting in and out of ball screens, crashing the boards.” Aside from the trip to Bucknell for camp, Samec also said he plans on visiting Millersville this Wednesday and “probably” USciences before a busy July with JB Hoops takes him from Florida to New York to Manheim, Pa. and then finally Atlantic City.


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