City of Basketball Love

CoBL Staff (@hooplove215)
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The District 1 5A boys basketball tournament starts on Friday night with four first-round elimination games, the No. 5 through No. 12 seeds determining who will advance into Tuesday’s quarterfinals. The four first-round losers will see their seasons end; the quarterfinal winners will all advance directly into the state tournament while those who lose next Tuesday will enter the playback rounds to still earn a way into states.

Here’s a look at the four first-round matchups:

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District 1 5A First Round (Boys)
Fri., Feb. 16

8) Upper Moreland (13-9) vs. 9) Holy Ghost (12-10), 5 PM
Winner gets 1) Unionville (20-3)

There’s a doubleheader at Upper Moreland, the girls playing Bishop Shanahan afterwards, so the boys get the early tipoff on Friday evening. Holy Ghost Prep, under new management for the first time in decades in Tom Heston, comes in playing its best hoops of the season down the stretch, shaking off a 3-8 start to the season with a 9-2 close, including wins in five of six entering the playoffs; the Firebirds’ only loss was a six-point defeat to No. 3 Radnor. Upper Moreland hasn’t really gone hot or cold for long stretches this season, Dan Heiland’s Golden Bears picking up a few good wins along the way against the likes of William Tennent, Wissahickon, and others.

The Golden Bears have a unique weapon in the 5A field this year in 6-10 senior post Sean Murphy, a lanky big man with a good post game and rim protecting abilities as well as the ability to face up and knock down jumpers. He’s got a good group of guards around him led by junior Colson Campbell and brothers Alex Best and Nate Best; Alex, a senior, is one of the team’s go-to scoring options along with Campbell while Nate, a sophomore, is a strong defender and rebounder. Holy Ghost Prep relies on its junior class, led by Adrien Varella, who’s averaging around 20 ppg, along with classmates Zak Sharlin and Robbie Segarich (plus senior Gavin McLaughlin) in the backcourt, junior forward Tommy Nahill gives them size to match up against Murphy at 6-7.

5) Pottstown (17-6) vs. 12) West Chester East (11-11), 7 PM
Winner gets 4) Phoenixville (17-6)

Pottstown was upset by division rival Upper Merion in the first round last year. The Trojans came back this season eyeing a deep postseason run and they have generally been strong all year, winning six in a row in December and then going 9-2 down the stretch before a loss to Phoenixville in the PAC semifinals. Head coach Ken Ivory starts five seniors, though it’s twins Abdul and Sadeeq Jackson who are the stars, a pair of athletic 6-3/6-4 wings who can both score at the bucket and the 3-point arc as well as play in Ivory’s aggressive defensive style. Dillon Mayes, Jurell Young and forward Nahzier Booker round out the starting lineup.

West Chester East has had an up-and-down season. The Vikings won eight of their first 11 games, but a six-game losing streak in January knocked them down the 5A rankings, before winning three of their final five going into the postseason. Tom Durant has had a good amount of success with East, winning a district title in 2020, but he’s still trying to find the right combination with a deep group this year. Senior guard Ryan Price has been giving them a consistent effort all year, while seniors Josh Sherlock, Bryce Cox and Becker Al-Tikriti have all had their moments. 

6) Sun Valley (15-9) vs. 11) Marple Newtown (13-11), 7 PM
Winner gets 3) Radnor (19-3)

This is a matchup between two programs that have been playing with a little something special this season, even if their records don’t quite indicate it. Sun Valley has turned it around after a slow start to the season to win eight of nine games before running into Coatesville in the Ches-Mont semifinals, including an impressive 21-point comeback against Downingtown West. Marple Newtown had its own miracle finish, Matt Gardler hitting buzzer-beating shots in both the regular-season finale to get the Tigers into the district postseason and then against Garnet Valley in the opening round of the Central League playoffs.

Sun Valley head coach Steve Maloney has been getting terrific play all season from senior Blaize Aldridge, a 6-3 wing/forward with a smooth shooting touch and a tough post game. Senior Noah Griffin, who led Delco in rushing last fall on the football field, is an athletic point guard who can get to the rim, and junior guard Kaiden Robinson can hit from deep and get to the rim. Marple head coach Sean Spratt has his own standout in Gardler, the 6-1 junior who’s become one of the top scorers in District 1 this season, forcing defenses to throw all sorts of creative coverage at him. But while he’s the star, it’s been the timely shot-making and defense from seniors Steven Tansey and PJ Esposito plus the emergence of 6-6 junior Ryan Keating up front that has them dangerous in the postseason.

7) West Chester Rustin (14-9) vs. 10) Penncrest (13-9), 7 PM
Winner gets 2) Upper Dublin (21-3)

If there was a word to describe Penncrest’s season thus far, it would be ‘close.’ The Lions have taken six of their nine losses by five points or fear, and five of those have been by three or less. That includes being on the wrong end of one of Marple’s buzzer-beaters. Penncrest coach Mike Doyle does have a young core he’s building around, led by a pair of sophomores in guard Connor Cahill and wing forward Mikey Mita, who’s 6-6 and has the ability to be a problem for defenses in all sorts of ways. Junior guard Theo Gladue and others give them some shooting ability from the outside.

Rustin, on the other hand, is a much older group, as Vince Mostardi starts three seniors and two juniors, with three more seniors in his first four off the bench, which he’s not afraid to use with frequency and depth. Junior guard Ben Malley has been an offensive creator for the Golden Knights with his speed and ability to knock down tough pull-up jumpers, while senior Ryan Jaross has been enjoying some big games as well. Forward Chaz Davis is 6-7, long and athletic and has the ability to be a game-changer defensively, and 6-2 junior Chase Hatton is a playmaking wing.

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Quarterfinals
Wed., Feb. 21

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Semifinals
Sat.., Feb. 24

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Championship
Thurs., Feb. 29
At West Chester University