City of Basketball Love

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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The second weekend of Philly Live II consists of 158 matchups across three days, ranging from some solid local squads up through some major powerhouse matchups which are sure to draw in dozens upon dozens of Division I coaches.

CoBL’s Rich Flanagan took a look at some of the big-time games to see this weekend; here’s a look at some quality matchups featuring local programs that might be flying a little under-the-radar:

Cheltenham vs. Perkiomen Valley
12 PM Friday, Jefferson Ct. 3
This matchup of Suburban One vs. Pioneer Athletic Conference squads should be a good one, two quality programs that are used to making it deep in districts and into the state playoff bracket. Perk Valley features talented 2024 guard Julian Sadler plus 2024 wing Kyle Shawaluk and 2025 point guard Mason Thear leading the way; Cheltenham has a promising wing in 2026 Malik Hughes and 6-7 2026 Peyton McClendon, plus a deep group of junior and senior wings/guards, with a mixed bag in the experience category. 

Methacton vs. West Philly
5:50 PM Friday, Jefferson Ct. 2
Both of these programs have winning cultures, with Methacton almost always one of the top programs in the PAC and West Philly having a resurgence the last few years under head coach Adrian Burke. The Speedboys feature one of the city’s most intriguing talents in 2025 wing Makel Butts, a skilled 6-7 left-hander, plus a tough point guard in 5-7 2026 Jayden McKie, part of a small-but-speedy group of guards. Methacton’s older, led by 2024 guard Alex Hermann, while guards Sal Iemello and Mason Conrad will compliment him. 

Math, Civics & Sciences vs. Central York
5:50 PM Friday, Jefferson Ct. 3
Central York’s one of the top teams in District 3, led by a terrific trio of scholarship-level athletes in 2024 wing Greg Guidinger, 2025 post Ben Rill and 2025 guard Ben Natal. Guidinger (6-6+) and Rill (6-8) bring some real size and versatility to the table, while Natal is the tablesetter; 2027 guard Doug Layer Jr. is one to watch as well. MCS, always one of the top programs in the Public League, features 6-6 2024 wing Nasseem Wright, a matchup problem for just about everybody, plus 6-5 2024 Azeem Murphy and 6-6 2025 Alijah Hickman to give them additional size on the wings.

La Salle vs. Chester
8:10 PM Friday, Jefferson Ct. 3
Two proud programs coming off uncharacteristic down years are in the works to build back up. La Salle, under the direction of first-year head coach Will Ansel, has a deep roster full of 6-3 and 6-4 athletes, including 2024 Joe Shields, one of the few holdovers, while 6-8 2026 Grayson McKeogh brings some size to the frontcourt. Clippers coach Keith Taylor will build his attack around 6-5 forward Dominic Toy, a Division I football recruit, while two more 6-5 2024s, Jerry Price and Calvin Williams, give them length and athleticism on the wing. The key will be who steps up at point guard after Kyree Womack’s transfer to Bonner.

Springfield (Delco.) vs. Pocono Mt. West
11:20 AM Saturday, Jefferson Ct. 3
Look for a great battle in the post here between Pocono Mt. West’s 6-5 2025 Adrian Brito, who’s already garnering Division II interest, and Springfield (Delco.) 2024 Colin Treude, a skilled 6-5 post and one of the best returning players in the Central League. PMW head coach Rich Williams also has one of the best guards in Northeast PA in 2026 KJ Coles, who’s already on Division I radars. Springfield returns 2024s Jake Adams and Luke Biancaniello among others from a team that made it to the District 1 5A playoffs a year ago.

Downingtown West vs. Ramapo (N.J.)
1:40 PM Saturday, Jefferson Ct. 1
One of the best games on this list, no doubt. Ramapo features Princeton commit Peyton Seals, a 6-4 2024 wing, plus 6-10 2025 Alex Woodring and talented 6-3 2024 Wyatt Eglinton Manner as part of a deep roster with good size under head coach Nick Vier. That’s similar to DWest’s Stu Ross, who has 6-8 2025 Zeke Staz back and healthy after a hamstring injury cost him all of his sophomore season, and 6-4 2025 Donovan Fromhartz picked up his first Division I offer, from Albany, this month. 

Dock Mennonite vs. Sankofa Freedom
4:00 PM Saturday, Jefferson Ct. 3
Expect a high-scoring affair between these two small-school programs that have a lot of talent and success built in. Dock Mennonite, which has been the class of the Bicentennial Athletic League the last few seasons, features 6-3 2025 Tony Martin, 5-10 2024 Vaughn Martin and 6-4 2025 Robbie Sukaley, a North Penn transfer who gives them some real scoring and athleticism/pop on the wing. Sankofa’s led by 5-11 2025 Nasir Williams, a skilled combo, plus 5-10 2024 Asim Hardy; incoming 2027 Jasir Henderson, a muscular 6-2 wing, is one to track.

Upper Dublin vs. Trinity
5:10 PM Saturday, Jefferson Ct. 3
Coming out of Central PA, Trinity has one of the area’s best 2025 guards in Owen Schlager, a Division I recruit who plays his grassroots ball with Philly Pride; 2026 guard Reece Brown also has a bright future ahead of him. Upper Dublin has its own talented 2025 in Ryan Mulroy, who will suddenly be one of the leaders for a group that graduated a major 2024 class; 2024 Brady Fogle brings additional scoring presence to the perimeter, as does 2026 Kobe Bazemore, while 6-4 2025 Idris Rines aims to bring an interior presence.

Penn Wood vs. Central Bucks East
9:40 AM Sunday, Jefferson Ct. 1
Central Bucks East has had a strong offseason even as it battles a couple broken noses and other random injuries; Erik Henrysen has a terrific trio of 2024 guards to lean on in Tyler Dandrea, Justin DiRoberto and Jake Cumminsky, plus 6-7 2024 Miles Demby in the frontcourt; 6-3 2024 Dhruv Mukund and 6-6 2025 Caleb Lyzinski give them additional rebounding, defense, and scoring. Penn Wood has an unproven but talented senior class led by 6-5 Donald Hairston, an inside-out presence on the wing, with 6-6 Adriano Mclean and 6-5 Nafi Davis bringing more size to the roster; 5-10 2024 Chris Taylor will be one of the on-floor leaders, as will 5-10 2024 Kivaleon Clarke, a track-and-field standout.

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Other Games to See
Constitution vs. Bensalem (1:10 PM Friday, Jefferson Ct. 1)
Garnet Valley vs. Eng. & Sciences (2:20 PM Friday, Jefferson Ct. 1)
Pennsbury vs. Bound Brook (9:00 AM Saturday, St. Joe’s Prep Ct. 3)
Abington vs. Union Catholic (1:40 PM Saturday, St. Joe’s Prep Ct. 3)
Upper Dublin vs. Dobbins (7:30 PM Saturday, Jefferson Ct. 3)
Fels vs. Caravel Academy (8:40 PM Saturday, St. Joe’s Prep Ct. 1)
Lower Merion vs. Muhlenberg (9:40 AM Sunday, Jefferson Ct. 2)
North Penn vs. Executive Education (9:40 AM Sunday, Jefferson Ct. 3)
Downingtown West vs. Lenape (12:00 PM Sunday, St. Joe’s Prep Ct. 2)
William Tennent vs. Wildwood Catholic (1:10 PM Sunday, St. Joe’s Prep Ct. 2)
Phoenixville vs. Pemberton (2:20 PM Sunday, Jefferson Aux. Ct.)
Upper Moreland vs. Conestoga (3:30 PM Sunday, St. Joe’s Prep Ct. 2)