City of Basketball Love

Ari Glazier (@AriGlazier)
--

This season, Bonner Prendergast sophomore Tyreese Watson made the jump from JV to varsity. Now, he’s not just getting minutes for the Catholic League contenders, he’s the Friars’ starting point guard.

The 6-foot-2 West Philly native was not intimidated by this major jump in responsibility. Instead he dove head first into a leadership role for Bonner, using his fun loving personality to connect with his teammates.

“Most of the kids are just semi-introverted...but Tyrese is more of a vocal leader,” Bonner coach Jack Concannon sad. “He’s not afraid to tell the older kids where they should be and what they should do, which is part of being a point guard, that’s what you want out of your point guard: leadership.”

Tyreese credits his leadership ability to the example set by his brother Maurice Watson Jr.

Maurice, who went by the nicknamed “Doo-Wop,” had a prolific career as point guard for Boys’ Latin, and went on to be a star for Boston University and later Creighton. He was getting All-American buzz and leading the nation in assists before a knee injury prematurely ended his collegiate career last season.

“My brother, he has leadership, he’s one of the top point guards,” Watson said. “So I just follow after him and see, he’s a leader.”

Watson’s leadership translates to his style of play. He’s not a primary scorer for the Friars; they don’t need him to be.

He’s surrounded by scoring threats like junior guard Isaiah Wong, junior forward Tariq Ingraham and senior forward Ajiri Johnson. What he does do is play the role of a “true point guard” and facilitate for his teammates, setting them up for open looks.

In Sunday’s 49-37 win against Bishop McDevitt, Wong led Bonner with 15 points and Johnson added 13.

While Watson struggled offensively, scoring one point and going 0-for-3 from the field, he was a pest on defense, getting three steals, and he did a good job of setting up the offense, totaling four assists.

“That’s what we need, we need him to get us into something, to allow us to enter the ball into the post to our two big guys,” Concannon said, “and if he does get overplayed or pressured, to go by people and make a basket.”

The Friars graduated seven seniors last year, and now only have two on the roster. Johnson is the only senior in the Friars’ starting five.

Bonner’s departure of upperclassmen opened up several spots for younger talent this season.

Including Watson, three sophomore guards are part of Concannon’s rotation. Sophomore guard Donovan Rodriguez is one of the first players off the bench, and fellow second-year guard Mahir Sharif also sees minutes.

It wasn’t until after the first scrimmage of the season against Dieruff when Watson learned he would likely start.

“Coach told me, he said I played good against Dieruff and then told me that I’ve got to prove to him that I want to start Friday, which was against Overbrook,” Watson said. “[He] told me if I work hard in practice then I got the role.”

With the win Sunday, the Friars advanced to 9-2 on the year, their only losses coming to The Patrick School, and against 6A top dog Plymouth Whitemarsh in a double OT thriller. Their next three games take place against Catholic League heavyweights Archbishop Wood on Friday, St. Joe’s Prep on Sunday, and Roman Catholic on Jan. 19.

Watson emphasized working on his strength as well as jump shot this offseason. There’s certainly work to be done in order for his production on the court to match his leadership off the court, but he has plenty of time. As it stands it speaks volumes on Watson’s poise and maturity that he has been able to step into his role with such gusto.

“He’s getting more confident each week,” Concannon said. “To walk into this league as a sophomore and have the ball in your hand for most of the game, it’s not an easy thing to do. I know a lot of people that are really good players that wouldn’t be able to handle that.

“I’ve been working, this is what I’ve been working for, so I’m taking advantage of my opportunity,” Watson said. “I’ve got to keep my confidence up, run my team and keep leadership. At a young age I’ve still got to talk to my guys.”