City of Basketball Love

By Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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We’re down to eight teams in the running for the 2025 District 1 6A boys crown, with all but one of the top eight seeds still in the mix. 

Each of those eight has already punched their ticket to the PIAA tournament, so even Friday’s losers still have at least three more games after that: two to determine seeding and a first-round state playoff game. The eight teams in playbacks all have to win their next two games to qualify for the PIAA bracket, with the losers of those games done for the year.

Here’s a look at the four Friday quarterfinals (and a brief peek at the four playbacks below):

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1) Lower Merion vs. 8) Central Bucks East (7:00 PM)

The Aces only seem to be gaining steam as the season goes on — nothing opponents want to see under a Gregg Downer-coached team. Lower Merion absolutely smacked Pennsbury 70-30 in the second round after winning the Central League title with an impressive showing against Penncrest, and Downer’s all-senior starting lineup is really clicking down the stretch. Central Bucks East (15-9) has shrugged off a 2-6 stretch that consumed most of January with winnings in three of their last four, including taking out a tough Phoenixville squad in double OT in the second round to qualify for states for the third straight year. 

Erik Henrysen’s Patriots have been getting one big scoring performance after another from senior wing Nolan Behm. Behm’s future might be on the diamond, as he’s an Pitt baseball commit, but he’s lighting up the nets, scoring 30 points in East’s win over Phoenixville. Senior guard Shane O’Hara-Jamison has been a quality second option, with Connor Mekanik and Anthony Molnar also hitting double figures against Phoenixville. 

Lower Merion senior Carson Kasmer has gone from unknown two years ago to a valuable reserve last season and now into a starting — and starring — role as a senior, the 5-foot-11 lefthander and Gettysburg College commit one of the area’s top shooters and scorers. He’s got plenty of support from four other seniors in the starting lineup: Rashyne Patterson (6-3), Sam’i Singletary (6-2), Gus Wright (5-11) and Lamont Grier (5-10), who are all playing with sidelined classmate Tate Perkins (ACL) as motivator. With quality contributions from sophomore Kyle Parrish and Will Yard, Downer has a group playing like its ready to defend its 2024 crown.

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4) Garnet Valley vs. 5) Plymouth Whitemarsh (7:00 PM)

Another Central League vs. Suburban One matchup, and it should be a good one down in Glen Mills between two programs that had strong regular seasons but took a few bumps near the end. Garnet Valley (18-6) is going to the PIAA state tournament for the fourth year in a row, making it harder and harder to remember the program is less than 15 years removed from back-to-back-to-back one-win seasons. Plymouth Whitemarsh, which won the state tournament in 2010 under Jim Donofrio, comes into the quarterfinals with an 18-7 record, the Colonials hoping to be the first PW boys team since 2018 to make it past the opening round of the state tournament.

Donofrio has at his disposal one of the best inside-out combos in the district in juniors Mani Sajid and Michael Pereira, who combined for 59 of PW’s 78 points in a crushing second-round win over Neshaminy. Sajid, a 6-4 wing, is a knockdown outside shooter with length and athleticism, and Pereira is a quickly-developing 6-9 post whose 23-point, 13-double-double against Neshaminy was a sign of the steps he’s taken. Junior point guard Jack Hayes has been strong on the ball all year long, and then a deep supporting cast has taken turns stepping up, from senior Caleb Bridgeman (6-4) to junior Terron Davis (6-0) and sophomore Buddy Denard (6-0).

Battling Pereira down low will be the Jaguars’ own intriguing young forward, sophomore Grayson Golek. Though Golek gives up a few inches to Periera at 6-5, he can play inside and out on his own, which he showed in a career-best 30-point outing against Bensalem in the second round. His growth has helped take some of the scoring pressure off Wilkes-bound senior Jake Sniras, Garnet’s all-time scoring leader, while senior wing Brady Krautzel is a versatile 6-1 ‘3’ man in his own right, scoring 22 against Bensalem. 

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2) Coatesville vs. 10) Spring-Ford (7:00 PM)

The Ches-Mont champions take on the Pioneer Athletic runner-ups as Coatesville hosts Spring-Ford, one of the district’s traditional powerhouses taking on a program that’s certainly been on the rise over the last few decades. Spring-Ford actually has the more recent district semifinal appearance, making it to the championship game two years ago but losing to Plymouth Whitemarsh; Coatesville last made it all the way to the title game in 2019, Jig Brickus and Co. losing to Eric Dixon and Abington.

The Raiders (20-5) have only lost one game all season to a District 1 squad, to Upper Dublin on Dec. 21, but John Allen’s squad has otherwise been on a roll against local competition. They won the Ches-Mont tiel by 27 over Bishop Shanahan and then beat Downingtown West by 31 in their second-round district game, getting contributions from up and down the roster. The frontcourt of 6-7 juniors Larry Brown and Jonas Chester plus reserve 6-6 sophomore Max Hiller has become a real force, and the backcourt of seniors Nasir Williams and Amon Folkwes plus freshman sensation Colton Hiller on the wings gives them a lot of perimeter firepower. And the bench gives them quality minutes, in the form of senior guard Chris Allegra and senior wing Armon Shockley.

Spring-Ford doesn’t have as much in the size department, but the Rams are one of the area’s most well-coached groups under Joe Dempsey. Senior wing Tommy Kelly (6-5), senior guard Jacob Nguyen (6-3) and junior guard Syaire Barnes (5-11) drive them offensively, with Kelly and Nguyen both four-year varsity contributors and Barnes the breakout star of the season. Senior wing Jordan Marsilio, a football standout, brings some toughness to the perimeter, as do juniors Jack Kennedy and Blake Turner, both of whom will knock down open 3s.

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3) Conestoga vs. 11) Cheltenham (6:30 PM)

Conestoga (18-6) is back in the state bracket for the first time in eight years, having lost to Lincoln in the opening round of the 6A bracket in 2017, the first year of the six-classification system. Cheltenham (17-8) tied for the SOL Freedom title this year with Upper Moreland, Pat Fleury’s Panthers making it back to the state tournament for the first time since a quarterfinal appearance in 2022. Both teams have quality wins under their belts, too: Cheltenham’s taken out Upper Moreland and Central Bucks East, both state qualifiers, while Conestoga has taken out Lower Merion and Garnet Valley, among others. 

The Pioneers’ top target on the scouting report is junior guard Rowan Miller, a talented 5-10 combo guard who excels at playing downhill and getting to the rim, and he’s a strong playmaker with the ball in his hands. He shares the backcourt with senior guard Ben Robinson (6-1), junior wing Shane O’Brien (6-3) and senior wing Sam Gibbs (6-4), all of whom are quality outside shooters; O’Brien’s deep 3-pointer with 15 seconds left against Methacton proved to be the game-winner. Junior Cory Hogan, a tough 6-4 forward, gives head coach Sean Forcine an inside presence, and 6-3 sophomore Sunny Tummala has had some real flashes of potential.

Cheltenham has a deep group, with Fleury commonly going with five or six different reserves in any game along with his starting lineup, which has fluctuated somewhat over the course of the year. Senior Osai Johnson and sophomore Kamal Mason are the team’s best ball-handlers and shot-creators, while 6-4 senior Justin Ezeukwu and 6-6 Tyree Martin bring some size and scoring ability to the wings and up front. But after that, there’s a host of players who can chip in, from Xavier Willoughby to Mark Hill, Salim Kelly, and more. 

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Playbacks
9) Phoenixville vs. 17) Pennsbury (7:00 PM)
Phoenixville (18-8) features one of District 1’s top seniors in wing Deacon Baratta, a major piece of last year’s PAC champions, the 6-6 Tufts-bound wing an elite shooter with good bounce; he and sophomore guard Keron Booth are a strong 1-2 punch for the Phantoms. Pennsbury (13-11) is senior-led with guards Grayson Gozum and Michael Roccograndi in those roles; freshman Patrick Jajua has a bright future ahead. 

13) Bensalem vs. 21) Neshaminy (7:00 PM)
It’s a Suburban One Patriot showdown for the right to keep playing, which means there should be plenty of drama in eastern Bucks County. Bensalem (15-10) took both of the earlier meetings, but only by five and then one, so Neshaminy (11-13) knows it can pull this off. Both feature some talented guards, Bensalem’s Amir Drummond and Aidan Mayfield going up against Neshaminy’s Logan Gale and Jason Leiva, plus senior forward Max Currie.

7) Souderton vs. 18) Downingtown West (Feb. 22, 1:00 PM)
The best player in Downingtown School district history (East or West), Donovan Fromhartz leads a West group that just fell to 15-10 after losing to Coatesville for the fourth time this season. But the Whippets are talented, the 6-4 Fromhartz a matchup problem for most teams in the area, with junior wing guard Brady Moore a quality second option and some intriguing youth along as well. Souderton’s led by two junior guards, Chanse Salone and Nate Rusike, with senior forward Grady Kovach helping out inside.

6) CB South vs. 14) Methacton (7:00 PM)
CB South (18-7) has had a great season, ripping off 15 straight wins at one point, but the TItans have lost four of their last seven to find themselves in danger of not reaching March. It’s a senior-laden group with seniors Benjamin Harrison, Leo Medwid, Cole Diemidio, Brett Barrett and Danny Gies all at the top of the rotation. Methacton (17-8) has senior point guard Sal Iemmello leading the way but a strong junior class features wing Wes Robinson and guards Jason Conrad and Jahmir Carter.