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2024 Philly Live II: Day 2 Jefferson Standouts (Sat., June 29)

06/30/2024, 9:15pm EDT

By CoBL Staff

CoBL Staff (@hooplove215)
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The second session of Philly Live 2024 has more than 220 high school teams playing over the course of three days, with hundreds of college coaches at all levels in town to watch.

Here’s who stood out to the CoBL staff in Saturday games at Jefferson University:

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Melo Alymer (2028 | Lansdale Catholic)
The 6-foot point guard looks plenty ready to make an immediate impact at the varsity level, as displayed in a 23-point outing against Norristown on Saturday. He was in complete control running the show for LC and found his teammates throughout the contest. Alymer is a smooth operator who can work his way into the paint or do damage from the perimeter, not letting the defense rush him at all. He was engaged and aware both on and off the ball on the defensive well.

Don Bosco Prep (N.J.) 2026 C Keiner Asprilla. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Keiner Asprilla (2026 | Don Bosco Prep, N.J.)
Don Bosco’s bruising big man had a slow first half, but got going in the second half of a loss to Roman Catholic. The 7-footer, who made his debut with Don Bosco a year ago at this event, is a powerful post who’s almost impossible to get moved off his spot, though Shareef Jackson did his best (and got the better of Asprilla on a few occasions). Asprilla finished with 11 points, 11 rebounds and four blocks, showing his rim-protecting and space-clearing abilities with good touch and increasing mobility around the hoop.

Jonathan Barton (2025 | St. John’s College, D.C.)
SJC got plenty of contributions in an impressive win over Father Judge, but Barton’s impact certainly stood out. The muscular 6-foot-4 guard/wing finished with a double-double of 13 points and 11 rebounds. He dominated on the glass, posted up and backed down smaller players but his game wasn’t all strength, also displaying a handle to break down defenders, including a nasty crossover.

R.J. Johnson (2025 | Salesianum, Del.)
Johnson was an unstoppable force for the Sallies in a two-point loss to Archbishop Ryann. The thick-bodied 6-5 wing forward, who’s going to play football at Rutgers, has the fantastic footwork of a lineman, and he’s not bothered at all by contact. Johnson’s got the ability to spin and finish with both hands, had a great Eurostep through traffic, and was 13-of-28 from the floor (6-8 from the foul line) as he poured in 32 points, while grabbing 14 rebounds, and dishing out four assists — including an alley-oop lob and a couple kickouts for 3’s — plus a steal and a block.

Kevair Kennedy (2025 | Father Judge)
After picking up his first Division I offer from Merrimack earlier in the day, Kennedy continued his strong play Saturday afternoon in a defeat against St. John’s College (D.C.). The 6-foot-2 point guard tallied up 17 points, four assists and five rebounds. He has a herky jerky style that helps him get into the paint and either dish or attack. That resulted in a number of trips to the foul line (11-for-12).

Griffin Linstra (2025 | Manasquan, N.J.)
Linstra is a strong 6-foot-5 guard/wing who ran the point frequently in Saturday’s OT loss to La Salle. He scored 16 points and distributed six assists while grabbing five rebounds. Linstra plays at a deliberate pace and uses his body well to create space for himself as he drove to the lane. After delivering a little bump he went to a turnaround in the lane or soft jumper off the glass. He collapsed the defense with his driving ability too, kicking out a few times to his team’s shooters.

Derrick Morton-Rivera (2026 | Father Judge)
Morton-Rivera, a 6-foot-3 guard, has shot the heck out of the ball during the live periods and that continued Saturday in a loss to St. John’s College (D.C.) when he drilled seven triples on the way to 23 points, adding five rebounds and a pair of assists. He doesn’t need a lot of space — even a hand in the face didn’t have much effect. He used his athleticism to break up a few plays on the defensive end as well.

Baba Oladotun (2027 | Blake High School, Md.)
The ESPN #1 ranked 2027, Oladotun had quite a showing against St. Peters. The 6-8 forward finished the game with 18 points and 7 rebounds. Oladotun had the ball on a string, using quick crossovers and hesitations to get to his shots. Using his length to his advantage, he picked the defense for steals, coming away with a couple. He shot an efficient 7-13 with a variety of shots like fadeaway 3s to high rising dunks.

La Salle College HS (Pa.) 2025 SG Nick Parisi. (Photo: Josh Verlin/CoBL)

Nick Parisi (2025 | La Salle College HS)
Parisi, a 6-foot-3 guard, caught fire late in the second half to lead a La Sallle comeback then continued that into OT. He finished with 25 points, including nine in the extra period. He can knock down shots from spots all over the floor, hitting three triples, pulling up inside the arc and using a turnaround in the lane. He’s a good athlete who is hard to stay in front of with some finishing ability once he gets into the lane.

Tyler Sutton (2027 | Roman Catholic)
Sutton’s dynamic scoring ability was on display for Roman in a win over Don Bosco Prep (N.J.) Saturday afternoon, the 6-2 guard contributed 17 points to the 56-47 victory. Sutton’s ability to change speeds and create separation with one long stride and a great leap on his jumper helped him make a few tough pull-ups in the mid-range; he wasn’t his most efficient, as he went 6-of-14 overall and 1-of-3 from 3-point range, but his ability to use his handle to get into the defense helped break things down and create open looks for others.

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