City of Basketball Love

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
––

The biggest live period event in the Northeast rolls into its second weekend as Philly Live II returns to Jefferson University and the new Alan Horwitz “Sixth Man” Center, operated by Philadelphia Youth Basketball (PYB), from June 28-30. 

Some of Pa.’s best will make the trip from across the state and programs from N.J., Delaware, Virginia, D.C., Connecticut, Maryland, Ohio, and Massachusetts will descend on the City of Brotherly Love to play in front of hundreds of college coaches from various levels.

As three full days of basketball play out, here are some of the featured matchups for Day Three; Sunday’s full schedule is at the bottom.

~~~

Philly Live Session II Preview
Day 1 (June 28) | Day 2 (June 29) | Day 3 (June 30)

~~~

Friendship Tech (D.C.) vs. Rutgers Prep (N.J.)
9:40 AM, Jefferson Ct. 2

Sunday starts early with some terrific matchups in just the second set of the day. Rutgers Prep, under Matt Bloom, has become one of the new powerhouse programs in the Garden State, with several notable alumni and some real talent in the ranks. They have real size in the middle with 6-11 2026 Logan Franz, and lanky 6-6 2025 wing Myles Parker is a sharpshooter who can finish well above the rim in transition. Keep an eye out on high-flying 6-6 2027 Andrew Kretkowsi, who just picked up his first Division I offer last weekend, and talented 6-2 combo guard Jacob Canton, both in their second year on the varsity roster. Friendship Tech features the Bumpass twins, Daniel (6-4) and David (6-5), along with 6-7 2025 wing Aidan Askins and 2026s Nazaire Hinton (6-6) and Malik Shackleford (6-2). 

Roman Catholic vs. St. Rose (N.J.)
10:50 AM, PYB Ct. 4

Get to Court 4 at Philly Youth Basketball on Sunday and settle in for an exciting slate of games, all in a row. Roman Catholic and St. Rose get it started with what should be a fun matchup between Roman’s 2025 PF Shareef Jackson and St. Rose’s 2026 WF Jayden Hodge, who’s going to be tasked with trying to slow down the Cahillites’ physical, high-IQ forward in and out of the paint. Jackson’s brother, 2026 Sammy Jackson, is a developing Division I prospect, and the Roman lineup got a big addition this offseason with 2027 guard Tyler Sutton joining 2025 Sebastian Edwards in the backcourt. Hodge, who’s older brother Matthew is an incoming freshman at Villanova, is part of a Purple Roses lineup full of wings with good size, including 6-5 2027 Avery Lynch and 6-3 2025 Evan Romano. 

Archbishop Carroll vs. St. John’s (D.C.)
12:00 PM, PYB Ct. 3

St. John’s College, which captured the 2023 WCAC title, has talent in all classes, starting with a pair of 6-4 2024s in Jon Barton and Omari Witherspoon; 2026s Finley Billy (6-7) and Zyion Chase (6-6) provide size, with Billy a quality shooter and Chase an athletic post threat. And keep an eye on productive 2027 wing Oladeji Olorungbohunmi. Carroll’s talent is concentrated heavily in its 2026 class, with Drew Corrao (6-9), Luca Foster (6-6), Nasir Ralls (6-1), Christian Matos (6-2) and the currently-injured Ian Williams (5-10) forming the core for Francis Bowe. The highest-ceiling prospect in the group might be 2027 wing Munir Greig (6-6), a high-flyer with ball skills who can score from all three levels. 

Imhotep Charter vs. Gonzaga College (D.C.)
12:00 PM, PYB Ct. 4

This might just be the marquee matchup of the whole weekend, though that’s a designation impossible to prove. Imhotep is loaded always from top to bottom, whether that’s versatile 6-10 2027 Zion Green, 2026 wings Zaahir Muhammad-Gray (6-6) and Latief Lorenzano-White (6-5), fun-as-heck 2026 point guard RJ Smith, or promising 2028 guard Ian Smith and more. Gonzaga’s got no fewer than six or seven D-I prospects on the roster, including 6-3 Richmond committed rising senior William Harper, the Team Takeover trio of 2025s Derek Dixon (6-4), Nyk Lewis (6-0) and Christian Gurdak (6-8), 2025 forward Alex Touomou (6-6) and more.

St. Benedict’s Prep (N.J.) vs. Bonner-Prendergast
1:10 PM, PYB Ct. 4

Bonner’s taking a step up in competition this year, Billy Cassidy’s group of 2027s wanting to get battle-tested in preparation for the Catholic League slate this winter. Rising sophomore guard Korey Francis is the most well-known name of the group, starting to draw Division I attention, though Kenjai Gatling is a two-sport star and Kam Jackson is another slippery guard; 2025 G Devon Nelson is out to prove himself after missing his entire junior year. The Gray Bees, under the direction of head coach Mark Taylor, feature 6-7 2025 Khalid Ousmane, an athletic forward, plus 6-1 2025 guard Casper Pohto. 

Largo (Md.) vs. West Catholic
2:20 PM, Jefferson Ct. 2 

It’s a new era of West Catholic hoops, which is building around its 2027 class, though 2026 forward Kingston Wheatley (6-6) is a developing D-I prospect in his own right. But that backcourt of rising sophomores Rahmir Speaks, Jayvon Byrd, Eric Scott and more is a fun group to watch, all talented ball-handlers who can get downhill, while Byrd is a strong outside shooter who can get really hot from deep. Largo has some length of its own in 2025 wing Cam Ward (6-7), a high-major talent, with additional backcourt depth in 2026 Jalen Johnson (6-2) and 2027 Ayden Ashe (5-10). 

~~~

Sunday, June 30
8:30 AM
Jefferson 1: Piscataway (N.J.) vs. Wilkes-Barre
Jefferson 2: Appoquinimink (Del.) vs. Upper Dublin
Jefferson 3: Bishop Shanahan vs. Woodbury (N.J.)

PYB 3: Jefferson vs. Chester Charter
PYB 4: Dobbins Tech vs. St. Joseph’s-Hammonton (N.J.)

9:40 AM
Jefferson 1: Mechanicsburg vs. Moorestown (N.J.)
Jefferson 2: Friendship Tech (D.C.) vs. Rutgers Prep (N.J.)
Jefferson 3: Coatesville vs. Bishop Guilfoyle

PYB 1: Boys’ Latin vs. Spring-Ford
PYB 2: KIPP Cooper Norcross (N.J.) vs. Sankofa Freedom
PYB 3: St. John’s College (D.C.) vs. St. Joseph’s Prep
PYB 4: Gonzaga College (D.C.) vs. St. Benedict’s Prep (N.J.)
PYB 5: Andrews Osborne (Ohio) vs. Imhotep Charter
PYB 6: Cardinal O’Hara vs. Trenton Catholic (N.J.)

10:50 AM
Jefferson 1: Constitution vs. Newark Tech (N.J.)
Jefferson 2: WT Woodson (Va.) vs. Neumann-Goretti
Jefferson 3: Abington vs. Piscataway (N.J.)
Jefferson Aux.: Camden Eastside (N.J.) vs. Pennsbury

PYB 1: Atlantic City (N.J.) vs. Fels
PYB 2: St. Joseph’s-Hammonton (N.J.) vs. Pope Francis (Mass.)
PYB 3: Union Catholic (N.J.) vs. James Hubert Blake (Md.)
PYB 4: Roman Catholic vs. St. Rose (N.J.)
PYB 5: Downingtown West vs. Chester Charter
PYB 6: Pottstown vs. Lower Moreland 

12:00 PM
Jefferson 1:  Appoquinimink (Del.) vs. Wilkes-Barre
Jefferson 2: KIPP Cooper Norcross (N.J.) vs. Upper Dublin
Jefferson 3: Largo (Md.) vs. Rutgers Prep (N.J.)
Jefferson Aux.: Bishop Shanahan vs. Walt Whitman (Md.)

PYB 1: Boys’ Latin vs. Unionville
PYB 2: Dieruff vs. St. George’s (Del.)
PYB 3: Archbishop Carroll vs. St. John’s (D.C.)
PYB 4: Imhotep Charter vs. Gonzaga College (D.C.)
PYB 5: Central Bucks East vs. Susquehanna Twp.
PYB 6: Eastern (N.J.) vs. Spring-Ford

1:10 PM
Jefferson 1: Cherokee (N.J.) vs. La Salle College
Jefferson 2: College Achieve (N.J.) vs. WT Woodson (Va.)
Jefferson 3: Camden Eastside (N.J.) vs. Penn Wood
Jefferson Aux.: Howard (Del.) vs. Paul VI (N.J.)

PYB 1: Atlantic City (N.J.) vs. Audenried Charter
PYB 2: State College vs. Pope Francis (Mass.)
PYB 3: Roman Catholic vs. Bishop Guilfoyle
PYB 4: St. Benedict’s Prep (N.J.) vs. Bonner-Prendergast
PYB 5: Lower Merion vs. Montgomery (N.J.)
PYB 6: Kensington vs. Pottstown

2:20 PM
Jefferson 1: Overbrook vs. Newark Tech (N.J.)
Jefferson 2: Largo (Md.) vs. West Catholic
Jefferson 3: Lenape (N.J.) vs. Dobbins Tech
Jefferson Aux.: Mastery North vs. Mechanicsburg

PYB 1: Garnet Valley vs. Mt. Pleasant (Del.)
PYB 2: Dieruff vs. Unionville
PYB 3: The Christian Academy vs. Odessa (Del.)
PYB 4: Eastern (N.J.) vs. Hazleton Area
PYB 5: Reading vs. Susquehanna Twp.
PYB 6: Middle Twp. (N.J.) vs. Neshaminy

3:30 PM
Jefferson 1: Howard (Del.) vs. Bishop Eustace (N.J.)
Jefferson 3: Collegium Charter vs. Walt Whitman (Md.)

PYB 3: Middletown (Del.) vs. State College
PYB 4: Central Regional (N.J.) vs. Upper Moreland
PYB 5: Cherry Hill West (N.J.) vs. Radnor

4:40 PM
Jefferson 2: Cherokee (N.J.) vs. St. George’s (Del.)
Jefferson 3: Garnet Valley vs. Lenape (N.J.)

PYB 1: Haddonfield Memorial (N.J.) vs. Odessa (Del.)
PYB 2: Conwell-Egan vs. Middle Twp. (N.J.)
PYB 3: Central Regional (N.J.) vs. Conestoga
PYB 4: Holy Ghost vs. Montgomery (N.J.)
PYB 5: Hazleton Area vs. Penn Wood
PYB 6: Reading vs. Neshaminy