City of Basketball Love

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin) &
Chad Graham (@CGraham_Sports)
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WILMINGTON, Del. — The MADE Hoops circuit made its way to the Chase Fieldhouse this weekend, with more than 60 high school programs from the region and beyond participating in the local stop on their national tour.

Spent the day on Saturday at the 76ers’ practice facility, watching a mix of local and national talent. Here’s our picks for standouts from the games we watched:

Jean Aranguren (2023 | Commonwealth Academy, Mass.)
Commonwealth Academy’s national team looked impressive in a 48-32 win over St. Rose, the squad from Massachusetts playing under control from tip to buzzer. That was paced by Aranguren, a 6-foot-3 shooting guard from Venezuela, who never got sped up or in trouble, making his way almost easily to 15 points, four rebounds, and three steals. Aranguren has offers from BU, UMBC and FDU from the June live periods, and he looked every bit the part of a D-I guard with his ability to get to spots, hit contested jumpers, and his on-court composure, not to mention his size, length and athleticism.

Brandon Benjamin (2024 | Bergen Catholic, N.J.)
A powerful 6-8 wing forward, Benjamin is an impressive physical presence with skill, a dangerous combination — especially when you add in the fact that he plays hard, all the time, and isn’t afraid to throw his body around. Benjamin is tough for almost any high school team to slow down, and he powered his way to a 11-point, six-rebound outing against SPIRE. He’s got a smooth jump shot not often seen in wings with his physicality, but he’s still an high-level finisher who dunks with ease and converts with both hands around the rim. 

Jalil Bethea (2024 | Archbishop Wood)
The long balls weren’t falling early for Bethea against St. Thomas Aquinas (N.J.), so he proceeded to impact the game in other ways. First, Bethea turned to the under-appreciated and growing part of his game - his at-rim finishing. He attacked the basket decisively, converting extension layups, cutting when off-ball, and drawing fouls. He likely led the Vikings in rebounds too, in a matchup where they were disadvantaged in terms of overall size. Defensively, he contested shots and blocked two of them. Eventually, the treys did fall for him. Three of his four makes came in the second half as Wood staged its comeback attempt. 

Adam ‘Budd’ Clark (2023 | West Catholic)
“Big time players…big time plays.” Short-handed against two talented teams in Immaculate Conception and Bishop Walsh, the senior point guard also nicknamed “Baby Jesus” delivered. Clark matched up against the opposing lead guards, who are ranked ahead of him and more highly recruited, and proceeded to drag them into heavy-weight fights disguised as basketball games. He got into their chests defensively, forcing miscues to gain early leads. Standing 5-10, his blocks on the day out-numbered his steals. But it was his craftsmanship on offense that stood out most. He finished over and around opposing bigs. In the second half versus Bishop Walsh, BW surged back into the game as the Burrs seemingly ran out of gas. Then Clark went on a tear, making fadeaway jumpers off of post ups, pull-up twos, and getting to the free throw line to take control of the game and ceil the win. After he closes out what projects to be a phenomenal senior season, someone is going to get a great Division I point guard.

Plymouth Whitemarsh (Pa.) 2024 G Chase Coleman. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Chase Coleman (2024 | Plymouth Whitemarsh)
Back in the area after spending his sophomore year mostly off the courts, a couple prep school opportunities not working out, Coleman is back in District 1 at Plymouth Whitemarsh, where the former Coatesville guard will instantly be a major factor for the Colonials. The attacking 6-2 guard scored 18 points on Saturday morning, leading P-W to a come-from-behind win over Union Catholic (N.J.), scoring 12 of his points in the second half. Coleman was 8-of-14 from the floor and 2-of-4 from 3-point range, grabbing four rebounds and dishing out four assists as well. He was aggressive as always with the ball in his hands but didn’t take many (if any) forced shots, his four assists proof that he was finding shooters and keeping the ball moving.

Dean Coleman-Newsome (2023 | Archbishop Carroll)
Coleman-Newsome wasn’t able to make Carroll’s first game of the day, a 61-54 win over Teaneck (N.J.), but looked plenty good in their 64-46 win over South Shore (N.Y.) to merit inclusion on this list. The 6-3 senior guard is the Patriots’ on-court leader and their best player, but he’s able to do less than he had to do a season ago, allowing him to be more efficient and effective. He finished with 15 points, five assists, five rebounds and two steals in the win, shooting 6-of-10 from the floor (1-3 3PT, 2-2 FT), including some tough reverse layups and finishes through traffic. 

Jaiden Glover (2024 | Patrick School, N.J.)
Glover continues to impress as a perimeter player who would conventionally be categorized as “3 and D.” On Saturday, he was flying around defensively, eliminating Executive Education’s advantages with hard closeouts and by helping on drives. Executive tried to take the air of the game with their 2-3 zone, but Glover’s ball pressure and ability to play-off his teammates after halftime helped them flip the momentum. Glover caught fire in their first six possessions of the second. He caught an alley oop in transition, hit a mid-range jumper on the move, stepped into his second made 3-pointer, and put someone on a poster in transition again. The game was out of hand shortly after that. 

Isaiah Griffin (2024 | Math, Civics & Sciences)
The 6-4 forward has been nothing but consistent since February. MCS won both their games, in part, because he was so active on both ends of the floor. He was a key piece of what they did on defense, using his wingspan to muck up passing lanes. His steals and deflections resulted in easy transition buckets. From there, he ran the floor, cleaned the glass, and found ways to get open in the post. Whether the defense was in man or zone, Griffin slipped into windows where he teammates could find him for easy layups.

St. Rose (N.J.) 2024 F Matthew Hodge. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Matthew Hodge (2024 | St. Rose, N.J.)
St. Rose had a tough game against Commonwealth in that 48-32 loss, but the older of the two Hodge brothers still put together a solid outing that showcased his versatility and upside. The 6-8 forward is alllllmost a wing, pretty good with the ball in his hands and dribbling out of double-teams and bringing the ball up court multiple times; he’s also able to attack the bucket and finish around the rim, and he’s got a nice jumper with his feet set as well. Defensively, he’s versatile to defend wings and bigs, and he’s got length and leaping ability to defend the rim in weak-side help. He finished with nine points, five rebounds, three blocks, two assists and two steals.

Gabe Hornberger (2025 | Executive Education)
There’s something to be said for being able to play your game against different styles of opponents. Hornberger made multiple pull-up twos while being tasked with some ball-handling versus a quick and aggressive MCS team. After they settled in, the 6’4 two-guard added 2 threes off the catch. Those shots were there for him when they played the longer, taller The Patrick School a couple sets later. Only this time, Hornberger extended the pull-up to the three-point line, got a steal and a couple blocks.

Mike ‘Deuce’ Jones (2024 | St. Thomas Aquinas, N.J.)
Jones brought his usual intensity with his new team. Trusting his teammates and not forcing shots on offense allowed him to lock in on the defensive end. He made opposing ball-handlers uncomfortable, resulting in them starting their sets far beyond the NBA three point line. Unable to count on his three-pointers against Archbishop Wood, he made a living in the paint. Jones created space with his handle then used his burst to blow by his defender and play through contact. His insistence on getting to the rim made him a regular at the charity stripe, which he converted at a high rate and ultimately made the difference in the game. 

Chidi Nwigwe (2026 | Bergen Catholic, N.J.)
There aren’t going to be too many gyms Nwigwe steps into when he isn’t up there with the best prospects around, the 6-7 wing guard dripping with potential, not just because of his age and his frame but his already-mature game for his age. Nwigwe has fantastic size on the perimeter and a smooth outside shot, and he’s also an impressive distributor from the wing, racking up six assists along with 14 points and four rebounds in Bergen’s 62-40 win over SPIRE (Ohio)’s main squad on Saturday afternoon. Twigwe was 4-of-5 from downtown, and while he’s got to add strength to his frame to better finish around the rim and handle himself against more physical guards and wings, there’s a ton to like about where he’s at and his potential down the road.

Chimeziri Okeoma (2023 | Union Catholic, N.J.)
Okeoma was all over the court for Union Catholic in its close loss to Plymouth Whitemarsh late in the morning, the 5-11 point guard leading his team with 18 points, playing effective ball in both halves. The attacking point has a smooth mid-range pull-up jumper, and though he didn’t connect on either of his 3-point attempts, his shot looked good from distance as well. Okeoma also did well at getting to the rim and converted on several reverse layups; he finished 6-of-11 from the floor and 4-4 from the foul line. 

Emmanuel Okitondo (2024 | Bishop Walsh, Md.)
In both their Pack School and West Catholic games, Okitondo proved to be a lethal scorer whenever he caught it on the wing or in the short corner. The modern forward showed his vertical when he was the recipient of drop offs in the dunker spot. What was more eye-popping was the ability to create for himself in space. Besides his catch-and-fire threes, he hit some pull-ups from deep and used his footwork for turnaround jumpers. The vertical pop was equally evident when he altered shots around the basket.

Terrell Pitts (2024 | St. Thomas Aquinas, N.J.)
Fresh off his commitment to East Stroudsburg University, Pitts had a physically dominant day. Against Wood, his strength-based creation style shined. He got to his spots by moving defenders off of theirs on drives and while posting up. Pitts used his strength to create space for layups and to access passing windows for dump-offs to teammates in the post. When he was on defense, his mature body helped him slow down players slashing to the basket and box-out to end possessions in a hard-fought win. The ESU Warriors got another good one.

Tavian Pullock (2023 | Immaculate Conception, N.J.)
Pullock’s impact defensively was invaluable for this young Lions team.. He got deflections, steals, and blocks using his long 6’5 frame. They rewarded him by getting the ball to him on the move where he made open threes, and got to his spots in the mid-range and to the cup. Pullock’s skillset in isolation was on display too. Whether it was facing up or with his man on his hip, Pullock used his footwork and ball-fakes to knock down fadeaway jumpers.

Bergen Catholic (N.J.) 2025 G Austin Spencer. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Austin Spencer (2025 | Bergen Catholic, N.J.)
Yes it’s three from Bergen, but Spencer was another major factor in Bergen’s big win over SPIRE, and we couldn’t leave him out. The 6-3 sophomore guard is the perfect example of a scoring point guard, Bergen’s main offense-initiator who could certainly get his own bucket when the opportunity arose. Spencer finished with 17 points, six assists, three steals, two rebounds and a block for good measure, going 6-of-11 from the floor and 3-of-6 from downtown; he’s got a smooth game with the ball in his hands and great lift on his pull-up jumper. 

Zion Stanford (2023 | West Catholic)
Size disadvantages rarely bother Stanford. No taller than 6-6 and maybe only 6-5, Stanford got busy in and around the painted area. The tweener forward attacked the glass for second-chance opportunities, protected the rim, and just pushed opposing players around in general. He won his matchups on switches too, sliding his feet quietly and not getting too handsy. The finesse side of his game came out when he caught the ball on the perimeter. Stanford was able to put the ball on the floor regardless of who was guarding him and get where he wanted or pass out of it. He cashed in multiple three and long twos. With his agility, plus-plus positional strength, and offensive feel rapidly catching up with his defense, Stanford could have a long basketball career.

Jake West (2025 | Archbishop Carroll)
West had himself a nice day at Chase Fieldhouse, first as one of the major factors in the Patriots’ win over Teaneck — didn’t keep stats for that one — and then followed it up with 18 points on 8-of-12 shooting (1-3 3PT, 1-1 FT) in the win over South Shore. The 5-11 point guard is a strong finisher around the rim, knowing when to throw up a floater or use the glass at odd angles, and he’s also smooth on reverse layups. A natural point guard, West is adjusting to playing off the ball more regularly in Carroll’s multi-point guard offense, and he did a great job of moving and cutting and finding open spots, as well as attacking the basket in transition.

Honorable Mention

Su-Meer Alleyne (2024 | Archbishop Carroll), Kyrone Alexander (2023 | South Shore, N.Y.), A.J. Altobelli (2025 | Union Catholic, N.J.), Ikenna Alonzie (2026 | The Patrick School, N.J.) London Carson (2024 | Elizabeth, N.J.), Blake Deegan (2023 | Archbishop Carroll), Jorjan Flores (2024 | Commonwealth, Mass.), Jayden Hodge (2025 | St. Rose, N.J.), Donovan Hunter (2023 | SPIRE Institute), Tariq Jennings (2024 | West Catholic), Nayeem Johnson (2023 | MCS) FK Muntari (2025 | Union Catholic, N.J.), Soloman Mustafa-Reid (2023 | Bishop Walsh, M.D.), William Patterson (2023 | The Patrick School, N.J.), Jalen Pichardo (2023 | St. Thomas Aquinas, N.J.), Josh Reed (2024 | Archbishop Wood), Anthony Reyes (2025 | Commonwealth Academy, Mass.), TJ Robinson (Immaculate Conception, N.J.), KJ Satterfield (The Patrick School, N.J.), Eltramon Smith Jr. (2024 | SPIRE Institute), Savon Sutton (Bishop Walsh, M.D.), Moustapha Sanoh (2023 | Executive Education), Tyler Tejada (2023 | Teaneck, N.J.), Amyr Walker (2023 | West Catholic), Nasir Washington (2023 | West Philadelphia), Ian Williams (2026 | Archbishop Carroll), Mike Williams (Bishop Walsh, M.D.), Raheem Williams (2023 | Union Catholic, N.J.), Nasseem Wright (2024 | MCS), Declan Wucherpfenning (2025 | Bergen Catholic)