City of Basketball Love

By CoBL Staff (@hooplove215)
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ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — The Select Events circuit invaded the shore this weekend, as the Atlantic City Showcase brought several hundred grassroots teams from around the country down to the AC Convention Center. The event featured the Select Events P24 and S40 circuits, along with numerous Girls’ Under Armour, Hoop Group Showcase League and other teams in the mix. 

Here’s Pt. 1 of our recruiting coverage from the weekend:

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Select Events AC Showcase Coverage: Standouts | Notebook Pt. 1 | Notebook Pt. 2 | Notebook Pt. 3 

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Grace Nasr (2027 | Comets GUAA 16U)

Even before she played a high school game, Grace Nasr looked like a player college teams would be paying attention to.

The 6-foot-2 center didn’t dispel that through two seasons at Notre Dame and on the GUAA circuit with the Comets and that attention is starting to turn into offers. Nasr picked up her first two offers from Penn and Princeton after the April live period, then added her third earlier this week when Drexel added to that list. 

“The Ivies are a great group of schools that I’ve had my eye on,” Nasr said Saturday afternoon. “Academics are important to me and that’s obviously a top tier for that.”

Nasr, visited Drexel prior to the live period then announced her offer from Amy Mallon and her staff on Monday, also said she’s been in contact with St. Joe’s, Davidson and Lafayette.

Nasr said she felt a lot more confident on the floor this past high school season, one where she earned First Team All Inter-Ac honors and helped Notre Dame to an undefeated Inter-Ac title. She showed a bit more of her game this season, something she’s continuing to work on this summer and which also caught the attention of Penn and Princeton’s staffs in their early conversations.

“They liked my versatility on the floor, the way I can run the floor in transition,” Nasr said. “I’ve been trying to develop my outside and perimeter defense, that’s something they like to see.”

Nasr also credited Notre Dame’s leaders the past two seasons – Lizzie Halligan her freshman year and Catie Kelly and Sophia Hall this year – for setting a strong example to follow. The forward knows more of that role will fall on her and classmate Riley Davis this coming year with the Irish bringing back a lot of pieces from their back-to-back Inter-Ac title team.

“In addition to the physical part of basketball, communication and wanting to be a leader is very important,” Nasr said. “After losing Catie and Soph, there will be more opportunities to do that and I want to be ready for it.”

Aside from continuing to work on her defense and mobility, Nasr said she’s looking to take more perimeter shots this summer and show she doesn’t just need to be rooted in the paint to be an effective scorer. Her Comets roster has plenty of teammates also coming off strong high schools seasons of their own and they’re giving each other plenty of motivation.

“We’re returning almost everybody from last year and knowing we all had great high school seasons definitely brings an excitement to our games,” Nasr said. “I think playing together, we’re all excited to see how this season goes.”  — Andrew Robinson

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Laila Jones (2026 | Lady Runnin Rebels HGSL 17U)

Nine months.

It had been nine long months since the last time Laila Jones had stepped on a basketball court in a competitive game. Last July at the Run 4 Roses Classic, the 5-foot-8 guard went down with a right knee injury that ultimately ended up as a torn ACL and cost her the entirety of her junior season at Wilson.

This weekend was Jones’ first time back on the floor and she was eager to show any rust wasn’t going to take long to shake off.

“I’m just trying to get into my groove, stick to a team game and me personally, I’ll come back,” Jones said after the Rebels’ win Saturday morning. “I’m nine months post-op now, so I’m trying to get back to the flow of things.”

Jones, who played with K-Low Elite last summer, had surgery last August to repair her knee and was only just fully cleared to return a few weeks back so she’s a little ahead of schedule in her recovery. It didn’t curtail any of her aggressiveness, the guard getting in the mix for a loose ball then dishing to Bailey Balkir for a three after coming up with it.

“Mentally, in the beginning it was really hard for me but having the community I do around me allowed me to keep pushing to be where I wanted to be today,” Jones said. “Being able to take a coaching role and still helping my teammates get better this season was a pleasure.”

As a sophomore, Jones had firmly established herself as an up-and-coming player in Berks County, earning First Team All BCIAA honors while helping her team to the BCIAA title game and District 3 Class 6A semifinals. While she was going to be sidelined as a junior, Wilson still had a lot of players back so Jones took on a new role.

She played mentor to Khalani Hardy, the sophomore guard putting together her own breakout season this past year as Wilson advanced to the second round of the PIAA Class 6A tournament. With Hardy, Violet Houck, Lauren Crocona and Ryan Leaman all set to return for the Bulldogs this season, Jones is looking for big things in her senior year.

“We don’t give up on each other,” Jones said of her Wilson squad. “We just get better and better, push each other and want to play at the highest level possible.”

Jones, who is understandably playing with a knee brace, wants to use the rest of the summer to bridge the gap back to where she was late last summer. She’s a competitor, so being patient isn’t always the easiest thing to do but Jones is confident she’ll find her game again.

The guard didn’t have any major goals for her first weekend back, but she was focused on getting her feet back on the defensive end.

“Coming back from this kind of injury, it’s hard to be as quick as you were, so I’m just looking to focus on the little things,” Jones said. “Defensively, I’m trying to keep my person in front of me.”

Jones said she’s still got plenty to improve on but she is hoping to show any college coaches checking in on the Rebels that she’s on her way back. The soon to be senior definitely wants to play at the next level and she feels like she’s with the right group of teammates this summer to take steps in that direction.

“Of course there’s going to be nerves going into your first game but this team, they have faith in me and haven’t given up on me,” Jones said. “I was confident in myself because of that.” — Andrew Robinson

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Grace Maloney (2028 | Delco Goats 16U HGSL)

As a freshman, Maloney was the lone youngster in the Haverford High starting lineup, four seniors alongside her to show her the way. 

In the span of one offseason, she’s going from the least experienced member of the rotation to one of its most veteran presences, aiming to help the Fords continue the momentum of the last half-decade. And though the Haverford offseason hasn’t really yet begun, Maloney’s already preparing. 

“I know I have to be more of a leader, I have to talk more,” she said. “That’s what I’m working on, being more communicative on the court. Because that’ll help me and my teammates. Also shooting the ball more at Haverford; last year I had the four seniors who would score, I didn’t need to do much scoring, but this upcoming season I know I’ll have to do more.”

Maloney’s been doing that all spring for the Delco Goats, playing up as one of two 2028s on a group of mostly current sophomores, many of whom were varsity contributors this past season on (mostly) various District 1 programs. That’s not new for her; she said she’s been playing up a year since she was in third grade, growing up in a family full of ballplayers. 

A 5-3 point guard, Maloney is a skilled ball-handler and scorer, a one-girl press-breaker with the ball in her hands and a high basketball IQ which allows her to make up for usually being one of the shorter girls on the court. She was impressive on Saturday in a watch, scoring 13 points and dishing out four assists while grabbing five rebounds in a win over 717 Hoop Dreams; Maloney was 5-of-7 from the floor, hitting her only 3-pointer and both of her foul shots. 

The 2028 class is a strong one for the Fords, with fellow freshmen Keira Hanson and Taylor Gleason both playing well this offseason and looking ready to jump into big varsity roles in the fall. That group, along with 6-2 rising senior center Maura Gilroy, should keep Haverford plenty competitive in the Central League. 

“They’re two of my best friends, so we have classes together, we hang out a lot,” Maloney said of her two classmates. “I like to go to the gym with them and play. Just being with them and talking with them and knowing what we have to do to have a good season.” — Josh Verlin

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Gabby D’Agostino (2026 | United NJ P24 17U)

Asked what she was using her final summer of travel basketball to improve on, Gabby D’Agostino was direct.

“Everything,” the 5-foot-4 point guard said. “It’s my last chance to get recruited, so I’m trying to show I can do everything. Being an undersized guard, I need to show I can guard the post, guard people bigger than me and keep getting stronger in the weight room. At my size, you have to show you can do things better than anyone else.”

D’Agostino played her freshman season locally, helping New Hope-Solebury win a District 1 title and first round PIAA tournament game. She’s spent the last two seasons at The Hun School of Princeton, earning a spot on the All-MAPL first team this year.

The guard, who scored her 1,000th career point in December, really emphasized the weight room as the biggest reason for her success this past season. Offensively, she’s an ignitable player who can erupt for a huge game so adding an ability to handle physical defense while also holding her ground guarding on the other end was important.

“Being an undersized guard, you need to do everything so well, so it can be discouraging at times if you’re smaller and getting pushed around,” D’Agostino said.

D’Agostino has been with United NJ the entirety of her high school career and playing on an extremely talented roster has been beneficial as well. She doesn’t need to be the high-volume scorer she is for Hun on a game-to-game basis with her AAU squad which allows her to demonstrate other facets of her game.

“It’s very different from high school, the role changes so much,” D’Agostino said. “In high school, I’m more of a scorer but now, I have so many people on my team who can score. Especially if you’re playing basketball now, everyone wants to get recruited, so I’m making sure I’m getting everyone involved and I can show everything else.”

Right now, D’Agostino said she’s just waiting for the right opportunity to find her. She’s had contact with programs at the D-II and D-III level and has been aggressive in putting herself on the radar with as many programs as possible.

“I think people get wrapped up in the thought of ‘I want to go D-I,’ I just want to go somewhere I can play,” D’Agostino said. “I don’t want to give this up yet, I want to go as far as it will take me.”

Coaches she’s talked with all seem to come back to her energy and competitiveness. She has continued to put up some notable scoring performances while also balancing being more of a facilitator depending on what each given game calls for.

She’s excited about the incoming players the Hun School has coming in and knows as a senior, she’ll be one they’re looking to on and off the court. D’Agostino said she wants to finish the summer strong and hopefully find that right opportunity by late fall before her senior season begins. 

“Making every tournament count but also making these last memories with my teammates,” D’Agostino said. “Every opportunity I get, I’m trying to show out.” — Andrew Robinson

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Penny Wolf (2028 | Lady Runnin Rebels HGSL 15U)

Penny Wolf was looking for a chance to work on her shot, instead she helped her teammates work on theirs.

The Methacton freshman figured out pretty quickly in her first shift in Saturday morning’s win over Sideline Cancer that she could best impact the game with her passing. Wolf dished out eight assists in what became a comfortable win for the Rebels, the high-energy guard bringing plenty of that.

“I really want to work on my shot because this season at Methacton, I was shooting threes and they weren’t falling, I wasn’t jumping a lot when I shot, so I wanted to work on that then in this game, I didn’t need to,” Wolf said. “We were just running it in transition, that’s what our coach wants us to do.

“We’re the Lady Runnin’ Rebels, we want to run them out of the gym.”

Wolf, who is playing this summer alongside Methacton classmate Ava Wolf (no, they aren’t related), began the season as a starter for the Warriors. However, the Methacton coaches felt she could best help the team as a spark off the bench and the 5-foot-5 guard embraced it.

The freshman can seemingly hit every pass. On Saturday, she was dropping outlet passes in stride to teammates running the floor, Wolf dropped a couple bounce passes for assists and she got into the lane then found an open shooter several times as well.

While she feels like her floor vision has always been pretty solid, Wolf said she’s worked to fine-tune her passing to go with it.

“It’s definitely developed in the last two years because I have so many great teammates who get open,” Wolf said. “I think the timing on my overhead passes on fast-breaks has gotten a lot better, in the past I might have thrown it overpowered but now it feels like they’re getting there just right.”

Methacton, which returned to the PAC and District 1 playoffs this past season after a year's absence, will have to replace two starters in Abby Arnold and Jenna Kaufman. Wolf said whatever role the Warriors coaches have for her, whether it’s a starter or super-sub again, is fine.

Plus, it’s not always about who starts but who is part of the five on the floor to end a game.

“I’m looking forward to helping myself and getting better every day to eventually become a starter,” Wolf said. “Either way, I definitely would rather finish a game.”

Getting to play plenty of varsity minutes as a freshman, especially in a PAC Liberty division that included PIAA champion Perk Valley and a senior-laden Spring-Ford team, was beneficial. As a smaller guard, Wolf said she had to get used to how big and long some of the older players she went up against were and the ways that affected getting her passes or shots off.

“It gave me a lot more confidence because now, everybody’s the same age as me,” Wolf said. “When I was playing with older kids, it was very intimidating but now I can work on myself and focus on doing what’s best for me and my team.”

Wolf also plays soccer, but gave up club soccer to focus on basketball with an ultimate goal of playing in college. 

She and her Rebels teammates are off to a strong start this travel season and just as importantly, they’re having a lot of fun playing together.

“There’s a saying from school basketball that carried over, don’t listen to the tone, listen to the message,” Wolf said. “I know our team definitely does that well. We’re all really flexible and compatible playing with each other.” — Andrew Robinson

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