City of Basketball Love

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)

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Lots going on this weekend in the city’s hoops scene, including a pair of great boys’ doubleheaders at West Chester University, while many of the area’s top girls’ teams are down at the She Got Game Classic in Washington D.C./Virginia. 

Here’s a closer look at the sextet at WCU this weekend as well as links to the full boys’ and girls’ schedules and other games of note (high school and City 6) in the area this weekend:

Friday, December 9

West Chester East vs. Collegium Charter (4:30 PM)
Friday’s games are all District 1 matchups, pitting some of the best suburban squads against one another. This one lost a little bit of its luster when Collegium senior guard Dinero Washington was denied an extra year of eligibility by the PIAA, which along with a few transfers leaves the Cougars a little shorthanded from the team that went 26-3 and won the District 1 4A title before losing to Trinity in the opening round of the state tournament. They still have versatile 6-6 forward Duce Jackson and 6-8 post Travon Mack, while senior Aaron Pitt Jr. (5-9) and junior Evan Schnitzius (5-10) will have to step up. West Chester East features one of the district’s best sophomores, 6-2 combo guard KJ Cochran, who picked up a St. Joe’s offer in October, plus plenty more back from a team that went 22-8 and captured the Ches-Mont championship. Senior wing Jack Kushner is a versatile four-year starter, 6-2 junior guard Ryan Price is a strong outside shooter; 6-5 Josh Sherlock, 6-2 Bryce Cox, 5-11 Jose Ramos and more are all back. 

Lower Merion vs. Coatesville (6:30 PM)
This one certainly could be an early preview of a District 1 6A playoff game, as both of these squads are highly likely to be playing in the postseason a few months from now. It’s going to be a contrast in styles, Coatesville’s uptempo, full-court press attack against Lower Merion’s more measured, patient offense, not to mention a dichotomy in 33-year LM head coach Gregg Downer against Coatesville’s first-year boss, John Allen. But LM, the two-time defending District 1 champ, has the best player on the floor in senior guard Sam Brown, a Penn commit, plus experienced guards around him in Sam Wright, Teddy Pendergrass III and Justin Poles, all seniors. Coatesville benefited greatly from the addition of junior guard Zuri Harris (Cardinal O’Hara), who has complemented junior Dior Kennedy and senior Jeremiah Marshall quite well early on.

Chester vs. Downingtown West (8:30 PM)
Speaking of programs that plan on playing deep into the District 1 6A playoffs, Chester and Downingtown West both have high hopes for the season ahead. D-West, under the direction of Stu Ross, features West Point commit Dylan Blair at point, the 5-11 senior a strong two-way guard and tone-setter, joined by classmates Joey Suarez and Kelly Bell in the starting lineup. Sophomore Donovan Fromhartz is expected to have a breakout year, the 6-5 wing coming off a great summer, and seems ready to be their No. 2 scorer and a borderline No. 1. Chester, guided by Keith Taylor, returns three starters in seniors Breilynd White and Terrence Cobb plus junior Kyree Womack, last year’s hero in the District 1 5A championship game, with 6-6 junior Dominic Toy a potential star-in-the-making. If Downingtown West can handle Chester’s aggressiveness, the Whippets are in good shape; if Chester can dominate the glass and control tempo, the Clippers will be in control.

Saturday, December 10

Archbishop Carroll vs. Germantown Academy (3 PM)
All three games on Saturday are Inter-Ac vs. Catholic League squads, starting with this matchup of Patriots. Carroll comes in at 2-0, Francis Bowe’s group young but versatile and intriguing, whether that’s the senior duo of Dean Coleman-Newsome and Blake Deegan to 6-4 wing Su’Meer Alleyne, or sophomore guard Jake West and a whole group of freshmen, including starting point guard Ian Williams. The three-headed backcourt of West, Williams Coleman-Newsome can really do some damage. Germantown Academy is also young, led by sophomore guard and team captain Bryce Rollerson, who’s certainly going to be the focal point of the Carroll defense; senior A.J. Topley and sophomores Ellis Johnson and Tyler Nolan will have to step up and help out.

Penn Charter vs. Archbishop Wood (5 PM)
This one’s a matchup of some fantastic guards, though to be fair that is a bit of a theme throughout the entire day. Penn Charter is senior-laden, led by Lafayette commit Mark Butler at point guard, with Trey Shinholster and Isaiah Grimes on the wings. Sophomore Kai Shinholster, Trey’s younger brother, is a 6-5 wing who’s really coming into his own after picking up a couple D-I offers this summer. Wood, which has become one of the modern-day PCL powerhouses, is built around its junior and sophomore classes; junior guard Jalil Bethea, with a handful of high-major offers, is one of the preseason frontrunners for PCL MVP, and classmate Josh Reed is another D-I recruit; sophomores Milan Dean and Deuce Maxey are ready to break out. In the middle is 6-8 senior Carson Howard, an East Stroudsburg recruit who has size Penn Charter might not be able to match.

Malvern Prep vs. Archbishop Ryan (7 PM)
This will certainly be a good test of how tough Malvern Prep is, as Archbishop Ryan brings no shortage of physicality, and they’re playing this whole season pretty P.O.’d after losing in the Catholic League championship game last year. The Raiders are led by their junior class, including skilled 6-9 bruiser Thomas Sorber, who hit the game-winning 3-pointer in their season-opening win over Patrick School (N.J.), plus 6-2 point guard Darren Williams, 6-6 Jaden Murray and 6-3 guard Rocco Morabito, with 5-11 senior Michael Paris rounding out the starting five. The Friars (1-1) feature 6-3 junior guard Ryan Williams, who counts Temple and Penn amongst a half-dozen offers, plus 6-4 senior wing Andrew Phillips, the two of whom can (and do) both go for 20+ with regularity. Whether Malvern’s role players, like brothers Hayden Pegg (senior) and Ryan Pegg (junior), or future collegiate baseball players Charlie Oschell and Tague Davis, who stand 6-5 and 6-4.

Complete Boys Schedules

Complete Girls Schedules

Fri., December 9

Boys @ West Chester
West Chester East vs. Collegium Charter (4:30 PM) 
Lower Merion vs. Coatesville (6:30 PM) 
Chester vs. Downingtown West (8:30 PM) 

Boys @ Frankford
Olney vs. The City School (N.Y.) (3:30 PM)
Abington Friends vs. South Bronx Community (N.Y.) (5 PM)
Sankofa Freedom vs. Pharos Acad. (N.Y.) (6:30 PM)

Boys @ Reading
Muhlenberg vs. Bonner-Prendergast (6 PM)
Cardinal O’Hara vs. Reading (7:40 PM)

Girls @ She Got Game Classic
Archbishop Ryan vs. KIPP Collegiate (D.C.) (3:55 PM)
Audenried vs. Gwynn Park (Md.) (4:00 PM)
West Catholic vs. Colonial Forge (Va.) (5:40 PM)
Conwell-Egan vs. Georgetown Day (D.C.) (6:40 PM)

Girls: George School vs. Germantown Academy (4:30 PM)
Boys: Plymouth Whitemarsh vs. Abington (7 PM)
Girls/Boys: CB East vs. CB West (5:30 PM/7 PM)
Girls: Bensalem vs. Council Rock South (7 PM)
Boys: Upper Moreland vs. Lower Moreland (7 PM)

Sat., December 10
Girls: Garnet Valley vs. Plymouth Whitemarsh (12:30 PM)
Boys: West Chester Henderson vs. Octorara (2:30 PM)
Boys: Neumann-Goretti vs. Constitution (7:00 PM)

Boys @ West Chester
Archbishop Carroll vs. Germantown Academy (3 PM)
Penn Charter vs. Archbishop Wood (5 PM
Malvern Prep vs. Archbishop Ryan (7 PM)

Boys @ Frankford
MaST Charter vs. The City School (N.Y.) (10:30 AM)
Abington Friends vs. Olney (Noon)
Frankford vs. Pharos Academy (N.Y.) (1:30 PM)
Sankofa Freedom vs. South Bronx Community (N.Y.) (3 PM)

Girls @ She Got Game Classic
West Catholic vs. Forest Park (Va.) (9:00 AM)
Audenried vs. Cape Henlopen (Del.) (10:40 AM)
Friends’ Central vs. Long Island Prep (N.Y.) (12:20 PM)
Archbishop Carroll vs. Clovis West (Cali.) (12:20 PM)
Cardinal O’Hara vs. Cannon School (N.C.) (2:00 PM)
Notre Dame vs. Bishop O’Connell (Va.) (2:15 PM)
Lansdale Catholic vs. Maret (D.C.) (2:15 PM)
Shipley School vs. Gerstell Academy (Md.) (2:20 PM)
Spring-Ford vs. Potomac (Va.) (2:35 PM)
Neshaminy vs. Spotswood (Va.) (3:30 PM)
Penn Charter vs. WInston-Salem Christian (N.C.) (3:40 PM)
Neumann-Goretti vs. St. Anne’s (Va.) (3:40 PM)
Archbishop Ryan vs. KIPP Collegiate (D.C.) (3:55 PM)
Pennsbury vs. Gwynn Park (Md.) (5:30 PM)
Abington Friends vs. St. Andrew’s (R.I.) (7:15 PM)

Sun., December 11

Boys @ Ben Franklin
Ben Franklin vs. Franklin Learning Center (3:15 PM)
St. Joe’s Prep vs. West Philadelphia (4:30 PM)
Math, Civics & Sciences vs. Bonner-Prendergast (6 PM) 

Girls @ She Got Game Classic
Cardinal O’Hara vs. Good Counsel (D.C.) (9:00 AM)
Audenried vs. Ridge View (S.C.) (9:15 AM)
Neshaminy vs. Ursuline Academy (Del.) (9:15 AM)
Abington Friends vs. Mercy (Md.) (10:40 AM)
Friends’ Central vs. DME Academy (Fl.) (10:40 AM)
Shipley School vs. National Christian (Md.) (10:40 AM)
Pennsbury vs. Bishop Loughlin (N.Y.) (10:55 AM)
Neumann-Goretti vs. St. Frances (Ga.) (12:20 PM)
Archbishop Carroll vs. Dalton School (N.Y.) (12:20 PM)
Lansdale Catholic vs. Springfield Central (Mass.) (12:35 PM)
Archbishop Ryan vs. Longwood Prep (N.Y.) (3:40 PM)