City of Basketball Love

By Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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We’re into the PIAA quarterfinals, only two rounds away from the championship games at Hershey’s GIANT Center (March 27-29). 

There’s still plenty of Philly-area talent left in the various brackets, including 15 teams who will play a quarterfinal game on Friday night: one in the girls’ 3A field, two in boys’ 4A, three in boys’ 1A, four in boys’ 5A and five in girls’ 6A, which has all four quarterfinals with at least one local squad in the mix. Only the girls’ 2A bracket doesn’t have any more area teams taking part.

Here’s a look at all 10 of Friday’s games involving local teams:

Boys 1A
The Christian Academy (1-2) vs. Lancaster Country Day (3-4)
Coatesville Area HS, 5:00 PM

Before this year, The Christian Academy — which only joined the PIAA in 2015-16 — had never had its boys’ basketball team win a game in a state tournament. Now the District 1 runner-up Crusaders are just two wins from Hershey, after pulling off a comeback win over High Point Baptist in the second round; TCA was down 23-8 early but used a 20-3 third quarter to flip the switch. Lancaster Country Day, the fourth seed out of District 3, beat North Penn-Liberty 57-46 and then Phil-Mont Christian 56-53 in overtime to make it back to the quarterfinals for the second year in a row.

TCA’s been powered this season by an impressive pair of senior guards. Cameron Harrop-Wilson (6-3) and Sir Guy Epps Jr. (6-1), who combined for 41 points against High Point, with Harrop-Wilson contributing 26 of those. After that, head coach RJ Walker gets contributions from junior wing Liam Foreman, sophomore guard Kylan Jones and the rest of a rotation that goes nine or 10 deep at times. LCDS has contributors from all four classes, including senior Chris Dukes, junior Jordan Ashby and sophomore Cam Harris, a trio of guards around six feet tall, who combined for 38 points against Phil-Mont.

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Sankofa Freedom (12-1) vs. Chester Charter (1-1)
West Philadelphia HS, 7:30 PM

One of five games on Friday night between two Delaware Valley teams features two small-school programs who are trying to get back to previous heights. Sankofa Freedom won the PIAA 1A title in 2019 and is making its fifth trip back to the state playoffs since then, but this is the first time since that title that Isaiah Thomas’ Warriors have made it past the second round; Sankofa beat York Country Day (67-36) and Bethlehem Christian (75-66). Chester Charter made the quarterfinals two years back before losing to Linville Hill, the young program’s best finish yet. The Sabres beat Ephrata Mennonite (64-40) in the first round and then Shalom Christian (69-55) in the second to get here .

But there’s more to this matchup — Chester Charter head coach Lonnie Diggs spent the last decade-plus in the Public League at Math, Civics & Sciences before MCS’ closing last year, and with several former Mighty Elephants on the roster, this is something of a Public League ‘rematch’ in the state playoffs. Sankofa, which lost in the Public League quarterfinals, features senior guard Asim Hardy, junior guard Nafis Dubose, junior wing Nasir Brown and sophomore guard Terrence Fortson. Chester Charter counters with senior guard Josiah Hutson and a strong group of sophomores including wings Nieem Gregory and Dom Miller plus forward Maurice Barnes.

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Girls 3A
Imhotep (12-1) vs. Pequea Valley (3-2)
Coatesville Area HS, 6:30 PM

Imhotep’s back in the state quarterfinals for the first time in three years, after a run to the semifinals in 2022, as the Panthers continue to hunt for their first-ever state championship trophy. Pequea Valley, located halfway between Lancaster and Downingtown, is making its first-ever state quarterfinal appearance, doing so after facing a 10-point deficit in the second half against Schuylkill Haven, needing multiple go-ahead buckets in the final two minutes to pull out the win. Imhotep beat Hughesville in the second round, after dispatching Executive Education in the opening round. 

‘Tep coach David Hargrove has been relying on his group’s length, athleticism and depth all year long, the Panthers going 10 deep or close to it with regularity. Junior wing Geren Hawthorne (5-11), senior center Anise Geiger (6-1) and senior wing Sabria Mann (5-9) give them a lot of length and presence inside, with senior guard Calista Gaymon and sophomores Ashee Boykin and McKenna Alston adding ball-handling and shot-making to the backcourt in a pick-your-poison attack. Pequea Valley’s led by junior guard Janae Patterson, one of the top scorers in the district, with senior wing Katie Soltzfus hitting some big 3-pointers in the win over Schuylkill Haven; Pequea Valley has only upperclassmen in its rotation, a lot of experience for head coach Jason McDonald.

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Boys 4A
Devon Prep (12-1) vs. Bishop Shanahan (1-1)
Coatesville Area HS, 8:00 PM

The finale of a tripleheader at Coatesville should be another good one, as two Philly-area Catholic programs — Shanahan’s not in the Philly Catholic League but is part of the archdiocese — go head-to-head. Bishop Shanahan already beat one PCL squad (Archbishop Carroll) in the first round before taking out Susquehanna Township in the second behind a career 38-point night from senior forward Sean Griffin. Devon Prep, the defending PIAA 3A champs and one of the favorites in 4A, beat Bishop McDevitt in the opening round before dispatching Eastern York by 20 in the second. 

Griffin, a 6-8 forward who’s planning on doing a postgraduate year and has Division I teams looking at him as a 2026 prospect, is certainly a difference-maker for the Eagles, an inside-out scoring threat who rebounds and blocks shots. He’ll get matched up against Devon Prep’s frontcourt of 6-7 senior Reece Craft (Swarthmore) and 6-5 senior Zane Conlon (Nova Southeastern), Craft a quality post with length and Conlon a combo wing/forward and one of the area’s more unique two-way threats. Along with Griffin, Bishop Shanahan has 6-4 senior Ryan Kearney, 6-3 junior Andrew Corcoran, 6-1 junior Danny Keenan and 5-10 David Maddry-Rylander in the starting lineup, with 5-11 senior Anthony Aquila coming off the bench. Along with Craft and Conlon, seniors Mason Thear (6-0), Calvin Smith (6-2) and Shane Doyle (6-3) round out a starting lineup that plays the vast majority of the minutes for Jason Fisher. Both groups have a lot of shot-makers and great offensive chemistry, so 

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Boys 5A
Bonner-Prendergast (12-3) vs. Upper Moreland (1-4)
Norristown HS, 6:00 PM

Norristown plays host to an all-local doubleheader on Friday, with what should be two high-quality games in the 5A classification. Bonner-Prendergast (18-8) pulled off a big-time win in the second round, Billy Cassidy’s Friars beating District 1 champs Upper Dublin by 22 to reach the quarterfinals for the first time since a state runner-up finish in 2019. Upper Moreland (22-7) is in the state quarterfinals for the first time in program history, the Golden Bears coming back to beat York Suburban in overtime in the second round to continue what’s been a breakthrough season for Dan Heiland’s program. 

Heiland’s getting production from all over his roster. Senior guard Colson Campbell, a 1,000-point scorer, has been their leading scorer much of the season, but York Suburban held him in check — so junior wing/forward Larry Hughes (6-4), senior guard Jaden Cybok and others stepped up. Freshman Cannon Campbell, Colson’s younger brother, is a 6-4 wing with a bright future, and senior guards Nate Best (5-9) and Anthony Carson (6-2) bring more experience and moxie to the starting lineup. Bonner’s sophomore class is special, with Korey Francis a high-major prospect and classmate Kam Jackson a sparkplug point guard, while Jakeem Carroll stepped up against Upper Dublin ; senior Devon Nelson, a Millersville commit, is a big-time scorer as well.

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Penncrest (1-5) vs. Neumann-Goretti (12-1)
Norristown HS, 7:30 PM

There’s a neat storyline behind this game, going back 31 years — to the St. John Neumann bench, when Mike Doyle was in his first and only year as the Saints’ coach, with an assistant named Carl Arrigale by his side. Carl took over the Neumann-Goretti program in 1999, just a few years before Doyle got the Penncrest head coaching job, and now their paths meet in the state tournament for the first time, with a berth in the semifinals on the line. Penncrest got here by beating Pottsville Area in the opening round (46-43) and then Holy Ghost Prep in the second round (68-54); Neumann-Goretti took down Marple Newtown (79-67) and then Pottsgrove (63-56), and now the Saints get their third District 1 opponent in a row in the Lions.

State champions nine times over, Neumann-Goretti is aiming for its first state title since a win in the 4A classification in 2022. The Saints (15-11), who’ve won seven of their last nine overall, have only one senior in the rotation in Keon Long-Mtume (6-2) along with a strong junior class: Stephon Ashley-Wright (6-0), DeShawn Yates (5-9) and Alassane N’Diaye (6-6) have all had big performances this year, and freshman guard EJ Stanton has stepped up as the season’s gone on. The Lions (24-4) are also junior-laden, with 6-7 Mikey Mita going for 32 points and 13 rebounds against Holy Ghost Prep; guards Sean Benson, Will Stanton and Connor Cahill give Doyle four junior starters, along with 6-3 senior wing Theo Gladue, all strong shooters who play well within Doyle’s system. N-G will certainly look to push the ball in transition whenever possible; Penncrest will want to slow it down and run its offense in the half court. Whoever controls the tempo will go a long way towards determining the winner.

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Girls 6A
Perkiomen Valley (1-1) vs. Hazleton Area (2-1)
Liberty HS, 6:00 PM

We’ve had our eyes on this potential matchup since the brackets came out, and both teams have won their first two games to set up one heck of a quarterfinal. Perk Valley (27-3) comes in arguably the favorite of the whole bracket, the Vikings with as high-level of a starting five as you’ll see at a public school. Hazleton’s 28-0 record speaks for itself, the Cougars attempting to equal Plymouth Whitemarsh’s 2022 feat of capping off an unbeaten season with a state title in Hershey. PV’s had the more emphatic pair of wins thus fear, beating Central York by 30 and Lebanon by 41; Hazleton took down Cheltenham by 33 and then Liberty by 14 in the second round. 

Hazleton Area’s biggest issue it will have to overcome is a lack of size. Joe Gavio has a ton of experience and a great sophomore class, but nobody on the roster above 5-11. That could be a problem against a Perk Valley lineup that starts 6-3 Navy commit Quinn Boettinger and 6-1 Wake Forest commit Grace Galbavy, who can both overwhelm opponents with their ability to score inside and out. Hazleton’s all guards and wings, including talented sophomores Sophia Benyo (5-9), Maria Marolo (5-5), Kaitlyn Bindas (5-4) and more, a class which should have them playing this deep into the season for the next couple years. But that group will have to deal with some staunch defenders in PV senior wings Lena Stein and Grace Miley, both 5-9, plus 5-5 Jefferson-bound point guard Bella Bacani.

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Central Dauphin (3-4) vs. Archbishop Carroll (12-1)
Liberty HS, 7:30 PM

Carroll’s bounced back nicely from its loss to Neumann-Goretti in the Catholic League title game, beating Palumbo in the District 12 6A title game before dispatching Council Rock South (61-42) and Wilson (60-41) in the first two rounds. Central Dauphin’s been playing some staunch defense lately, holding Parkland to just 23 points in the second round after keeping Scranton to 30 in the first. The Rams don’t have a star, with senior Maya Dickerson, junior Olivia Green and sophomores Kayanah Taylor and Mikayla Matincheck all contributing between eight and 10 points per game. But the Patriots are a new challenge for the Rams, Renie Shield’s Carroll squad packing a significant punch from its senior class down through its freshmen. 

If you’ve read anything about Carroll (19-9) on this site, you’ve heard the names Alexis Eberz and Kayla Eberz over and over; the junior and freshman sister duo have been outstanding all year long, the 5-9 Alexis and 5-11 Kayla often serving as their own 1-2 punch from inside and out. Sophomore guard Abbie McFillin has been the unsung motor in the middle, racking up all sorts of secondary stats without needing to do a ton of scoring herself; seniors Olivia Nardi, Bridget Archbold and Brooke Olender contribute shooting and defense, and sophomore wing Cate Schumacher has been a super sub all season. 

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Cardinal O’Hara (12-3) vs. Garnet Valley (1-2)
Ridley HS, 6:00 PM

It’s an all-Delco battle as the Lions and Jaguars meet up for the first time since the 2016 state quarterfinals, a 46-44 O’Hara win in a year the Lions eventually lost to Cumberland Valley in the state championship game. Even though they haven’t matched up in nearly a decade, there’s plenty of familiarity between the teams thanks to grassroots competition and local connections. Both teams impressed in their second-round wins: O’Hara downed District 3 champs Dallastown 46-32 after taking a 17-point halftime lead; Garnet Valley scored the first 19 points against District 6 champs Altoona Area and led 32-6 at halftime en route to a 54-38 win.

The matchup to watch in this one is no doubt O’Hara’s Molly Rullo and Garnet Valley’s Haylie Adamski, the game’s two Division I-bound wings who are sure to find themselves eye-to-eye quite a bit, the 6-0 sharpshooting Adamski and 5-11 tough-as-nails Rullo getting their production in different ways but having a similarly large impact on the game. Adamski’s supporting cast includes fellow seniors Kylie Mulholland (Jefferson) and Savannah Saunders (SJU lacrosse) plus her twin sophomore sisters, Kylie and Addison Adamski; all five can shoot, with Haylie Adamski and Mulholland the two best shot-creators on the team. Rullo’s surrounded by sophomore guards in Brigidanne Donohue, Carly Wakefield and Leah Hudak, with senior Brigid MacGillivray and junior Natalie DiBlasi, two tough defenders who can also hit an outside shot, rounding out the top six. 

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Haverford (1-5) vs. Upper St. Clair (7-1)
McConnellsburg HS, 6:00 PM

Haverford High has no doubt the longest drive to make out of any of the local teams, heading out well beyond Harrisburg to meet their opponent from the other side of the state. The Fords (24-6) have advanced further each of the last few years, after a first-round exit in 2023 and a second-round loss a year ago, beating Downingtown East 44-24 on Tuesday night to get into the quarterfinals. Upper St. Clair wasn’t even in the state playoffs a year ago, but the Panthers have been impressive this year, opening their first-round game against Manheim Township on a 20-0 run and then beating Canon-McMillan in the second round. 

Both teams have a Division I bound senior at the center of everything. For Upper St. Clair it’s Rylee Kalocay, a 5-9 shooting guard headed for Kent State. Kalocay scored 20 points against Canon-McMillan and has been USC’s go-to scorer all year long, and will no doubt be the main focus of Haverford’s defensive plan. The Fords are built around 6-1 senior wing and St. Joe’s commit Rian Dotsey, an excellent inside scorer who can stretch the floor and who’s also a versatile defender. Both have veteran groups around them; USC has seniors Meredith Huzjak and Olivia Terlecki stepping up with big plays, while Haverford’s senior backcourt of Mya Foley and Megan Kelly plus 5-11 senior forward Natalie Wright give them plenty of experience.