City of Basketball Love

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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(Ed. Note: This story is part of CoBL’s “Prepping for Preps” series, which will take a look at many of the top high school programs in the region as part of our 2023-24 season preview coverage. The complete list of schools previewed thus far can be found here.)

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Earl Wise got home in a good mood.

The new boys coach at Pope John Paul II had just gone through his third open gym workout with the Panthers. They were still feeling him out. He was still getting to know his roster. 

Wise had seen PJP play a little bit over the summer, knew a little bit about the team. He got the job at the end of September, just two months before the start of the season. It didn’t take long for him to feel good about the situation he’d just walked into.

“I came home to my wife, and said we’re going to be competitive,” he recalled. “And we’re going to surprise some people.”

The 2020 and 2021 District 1 4A champs, PJP finished 10-11 last year, losing to Bishop Shanahan in the district semifinals of a district that only has four 4A squads. They finished tied atop the Pioneer Athletic Conference Frontier standings with Upper Merion and Pottstown, all 7-3, but UM and Pottstown got the tiebreakers into the league tournament. 

Brendan Stanton, head coach for the last five years, stepped aside in August, taking a spot on the Arcadia men’s bench as an assistant coach. After a six-week search, the Golden Panthers job went to Wise, a 44-year-old coming off his second year as the head coach at Alliance Christian, a union of two small Berks County schools (Berks Christian and West-Mont Christian).

The South Jersey product jumped in headfirst, moving his family down from Exeter Township to Royersford to be closer to the school. He’ll still keep his day job as a pastor at a church he opened in Fleetwood, a job which allows him to stay very much involved with the hoops team — and the PJP community in general.

“Oh yeah, I’ve seen him at plenty of football games,” senior guard Chase Mondillo said. “He’s making it really known that he wants to be here.”

“I went to practices, was on the sideline when they beat Spring-Ford for the PAC championship,” Wise said. “I wanted to be around, I wanted to let them know I’m not just a basketball-only guy, I’m a PJP coach.”

Mondillo and classmate Dom DeMito had nothing but positive things to say about Wise and the energy of the program since he’s taken over. A good bit of that has to do with the coaching staff Wise assembled. Assistant Kevin Moratelli is staying over; PJP alum and Gwynedd Mercy product Rich Dunham has returned to his alma mater; new to the program is Abington and Alvernia grad Rob Young, who was just on the bench at his college alma mater.

Wise wants a lot of energy and excitement within his program, and so far the players think he’s delivering. 

“I love him and the coaches that he brought to the system,” said DeMito, a 5-11 guard committed to Misericordia. “I think it’s kind of like perfect timing that it was this year to have that culture change and energy, style of play. I think the guys have really liked it recently.”

Wise has quite a bit to work with in his first Panthers squad. Mondillo and DeMito are two of four returning starters along with 6-6 senior forward Caleb Zvertnik and 6-2 junior wing Bradey Bass. Junior guard Braden Reed, a 1,000-yard receiver for the Panthers’ PAC and district champion football team, and junior wing Denny Owens were the top two bench pieces a year ago, and the two multi-sport standouts should once again make a big impact. 

That group of guards will come in handy. Wise plans on pushing the tempo, taking advantage of a group that can spread the floor and knock down shots. The X-factor is going to be Zvertnik in the middle, the wing forward having improved on his post game to go along with his shooting ability. 

“Caleb’s going to impact inside and out,” Wise said. “He’s got great footwork and we’re going to figure out a way to utilize that. [...] We’re going to get him the ball early and often.”

New to the program is sophomore Ayden Wise, Earl’s youngest son; his oldest, Anthony Wise, was a two-sport standout at Hill School and is now playing football at Amherst College (Mass.). Ayden Wise averaged 15.7 ppg last year as a freshman at Alliance Christian, though he’s not going to have to shoulder nearly as heavy an offensive load on his new squad. 

Coming in as not just a new kid but the new coach’s son can be a tough spot. Wise and his seniors both agreed the transition has been smooth. 

“He’s a really good kid, he meshed and gelled with us pretty easily,” DeMito said. 

The Panthers have their work cut out for them in the Pioneer Athletic Conference, with last year’s District 1 6A runner-up, Spring-Ford, returning quite a bit of talent under a terrific coach in Joe Dempsey. Phoenixville looks like one of the strongest teams in District 1 5A, while Methacton, Pottstown and others have quality squads. 

The district field is a little less crowded, with only three other 4A schools in District 1. That’s certainly an attainable title, but not the one this group is focused on.

“Our goal is to win the PAC chip, that’s been our goal forever, and we want to secure that,” Mondillo said. “Especially my senior year, I want that PAC chip.”