City of Basketball Love

By Chad Graham (@CGraham_Sports)
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NORTH PHILADELPHIA — The inaugural Post & Pivot Countdown Classic took place on Sunday at Cristo Rey High School. West Catholic girls took down Cristo Rey’s 62-14 in the opener before Haverford School took down Dobbins (60-42) and Cristo Rey knocked off West Catholic (60-47) in boys action.

Here are the standouts from the event:

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Nigel Adamson (2026 | Cristo Rey)
Adamson only scored about 9 points in the marquee game of the day, but the work he did on the boards was monumental. With agility, power, and flexibility, the sophomore forward ripped down everything that came off of the glass. He was able to extend offensive possessions — featuring a couple putbacks by him — and put a halt to defensive ones. And for his 16 rebounds, he earned the MVP honors. 

Ciana Blake (2026 | West Catholic)
Taking down Cristo Rey in the first matchup of the day, Blake coordinated a balanced attack for the Burrs. As a passer, she showed that she can drive and kick, feed the post with entry passes to players like Ciani Scott, and distribute in the open floor. Blake led all scorers too, calling her own number on a couple drives to the basket and hitting two spot-up threes. She came away with 2 steals as well, to go along with 14 points, 7 rebounds, and 7 assists. 

Devin Booker (2025 | Cristo Rey)
Big time players show up in big time games: and Philly’s Devin Booker showed he is one of them. After missing his first two free throws, he was locked for the rest of the game. Down at the half, the 6-4 guard got a steal and punched it home to help the Blue Pride go on a 10-0 run to start the third. Then, he went on a spree that had the gym rocking. Contests didn't matter. Booker rose up and fired in three more treys before the period was over. Finally, with all eyes on him, he pulled up for the three-point dagger, totaling 24 points (6 triples) and 6 rebounds. 

Zach Campbell (2024 | Dobbins)
Campbell was effective getting downhill while mostly playing off-ball. He pressured the rim as a cutter, finding cracks in Haverford’s defense that allowed him clean looks at the hoop before finishing through contact. His slashing also produced good results. Regardless of how he attacked, Campbell usually got what he wanted — a bucket or a trip to the free throw line (4-of-7). He scored a game-high 19 points, plus 3 rebounds and 2 steals. 

KJ Carson (2025 | Haverford School)
Tying for a team-high 15 points, Carson earned MVP honors. He glided to the paint, swiftly scoring around or over defenders with touch around the basket. Carson's jumper was equally potent. He hit two from behind the arc, and when someone tried to run him off the line on one attempt, he simply got to his middy pull-up. He added in 3 rebounds, 3 assists and a steal. 

Saaid Lee (2025 | West Catholic)
In the heavy-weight versus Cristo Rey, “Slee” came to play for the Burrs. The 6-0 lead guard made a living getting into the lane. There, he repeatedly got to the cup for lays. He also helped set up Isaiah Muhammad with three long-range jumpers. With the leading slipping away in the quarter number three, Lee bounced back, taking two steals coast-to-coast for two. In the end, he had 14 points, 5 boards, 5 assists, and 2 steals. 

Billy Rayer (2024 | Haverford School)
Rayer was all over the place for the Fords. He knocked down three catch-and-shoot threes to pace his team early on. In the second quarter, after scoring on a layup, the heady senior guard intercepted the inbound pass and got another lay. His connective passing was essential too, finding teammates open for a couple threes in the third quarter to expand the lead to almost 20 points. Rayer tallied 15 points, 6 assists, and 2 steals in the win.

Ciani Scott (2026 | West Catholic)
In the big win on the road, Scott was a problem in the middle for West Catholic. She had her way in the post, coming away with 15 rebounds and a few second-chance baskets for 9 points. On top of that, the 6-0 post player made life hard for Cristo Rey offensively by contesting everything in the paint. 

Honorable Mention 

Makai Akridge (2026 | Dobbins), Jacob Becker (2025 | Haverford School), Jasmine Butler (2026 | West Catholic), Nyla Coleman (2025 | West Catholic), Haneef Davis (2026 | Dobbins), Amari Dow (2024 | Cristo Rey), Ny’Liah Hayes (202_ | Cristo Rey), Isaiah Muhammad (2025 | West Catholic), Amir Nelson (2025 | Cristo Rey), Connor Scanlon (202_ | Haverford School), Sam Thomas (2024 | Dobbins), Tyler Tolbert (2026 | Cristo Rey), Micah Waters (2025 | West Catholic), Kingston Wheatley (2026 | West Catholic)