City of Basketball Love

Ryan Coyle (@ryancoyle35)
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The Plymouth-Whitemarsh spring league continued its six-week-long season Thursday night, with its eight teams back in action for the third of eight ‘regular season’ games before the league playoffs in June.

(Ed. Note: We’ll have the remainder of the schedule for the P-W League, which is currently closed to spectators, posted early next week)

Here’s a two-part notebook from Thursday night’s action:

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Lee aiming to lead CB West back to districts
Under head coach Adam Sherman, Central Bucks West has been a regular contender in the SOL and District 1 6A. Last year was an unfamiliar season for the Bucks that saw them finish 3-14 overall (3-7 in SOL Colonial Division) and miss the district playoffs for the first time since the 2012-2013 season. 

CB West loses Millersville commit Teddy Spratt to graduation, but does return rising senior point guard Donte Mancini, rising senior forward John Lee, and rising junior forward Mike Fountain. 

Lee impressed in CB West’s 44-31 on Thursday night over Penn Wood with his ability to impact all areas of the game and be a vocal leader on the floor. The 6-3 forward showed the ability to make good reads from the high post, making good high-low passes and dropping in a floater over a taller defender. 

Lee is hoping to help lead CB West back to districts after failing to reach the playoffs for the first time in nearly a decade and put the Bucks back in the mix as a top-tier SOL team next season.

“We didn’t have a very good season last year,” Lee said. “But I am feeling very good heading into this upcoming season. We need to just keep getting everyone to these games and playing well for the experience.” 

Under Sherman, the Bucks are known as a fundamentally sound team, one that runs crisp offensive sets and plays high-level defense. 

In the win over Penn Wood, West was moving the ball with precision against the Patriots’ 2-3 zone that was pressuring their guards, allowing them to work the high post and the high-low entry pass. The Bucks’ execution led to several easy open baseline jumpshots and dump-down passes for layups.

Mancini was running the show on offense for his teammates, handling the defensive pressure from Penn Wood and helping set up his teammates for open looks. 

To get back to their winning ways of the past, Lee feels as if these offseason leagues will allow the team to continue to develop together to gain crucial experience and work on their execution in Sherman’s system. 

“In order to get where we want to go back in the mix in the SOL and for districts, we have to continue to improve and get our execution better,” Lee said. We are trying to get everyone here that experience that they need, so that they know what to expect and are ready to go come the season.”

Lee, along with the other returning varsity players in Mancini and Fountain, will continue to show the young guys the ropes as they get adjusted to playing at the varsity level. 

“We have been getting a lot better so far,” Lee said. “Last year we didn’t have any offseason so that killed us, but going into this upcoming season with the ability to play in these leagues and have our normal workouts, I am very optimistic. I think these leagues are going to help us a lot to prepare for the upcoming season.”

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Colzie Ready to Make Year Two Leap for PW
A rising sophomore point guard for Plymouth-Whitemarsh, Jaden Colzie earned the opportunity last year to start as a freshman at point guard on a perennial PIAA District One contender under longtime head coach Jim Donofrio.

Colzie didn’t disappoint as he averaged 8.5 ppg during his freshman campaign, helping lead PW to a 14-3 regular season record, going 9-1 in league play to capture the inaugural SOL Liberty Division title for the Colonials. Colzie and his teammates earned the No. 3 seed in the district but lost in their district playoff opener to SOL foe Abington.

This year Colzie — who already holds an offer from North Texas — and his teammates are ready to make a jump and compete for their first district crown since 2016, when they defeated Chester at Temple University. 

“I feel like going into next season that we are a District championship-type of team,” Colzie said. “I think we can do that for sure.” 

Returning for the Colonials is an experienced bunch from last season that includes senior guards Zende Hubbard, Taji Hubbard, and Marshall Baker who are all disruptive guards on the defensive end and are able to execute Donofrio’s 94-foot pressure style defense to a ‘T.’ 

Rising junior forward, Qudire Bennett returns for the Colonials as well; standing at 6-3, he impressed in the Colonials win over Methacton on Wednesday night scoring 14 points in a multitude of ways and crashing the glass hard. 

In a long line of recent PW guards to make an impact on the SOL such as Jimmy Murray, Andre Mitchell, and Xzavier Malone-Key, Colzie appears ready to make that leap heading into next season as he showcased his abilities on Wednesday night running the show for PW on offense, scoring 20 points, including knocking down three straight three pointers to open up the second half. 

“I felt like the biggest thing I improved on last year as the season went along was my patience,” Colzie said. “My confidence grew throughout the season too as I became better with the pace of the game and being able to handle pressure.”

The experience that Colzie and his backcourt mates were able to get last year should be key in making a run at the District One title this upcoming season.

 “I am looking forward to carrying that experience over and being the leader out there.” Colzie added.