City of Basketball Love

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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(Ed. Note: This article is part of our 2025-26 season coverage, which will run for the six weeks preceding the first official games of the year on Nov. 4. To access all of our high school and college preview content for this season, click here.)

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Philly hoops are represented throughout the country on Division I programs from coast to coast.

Each year, well over 100 Philly-area ballplayers are spread around Division I rosters, from East Coast to West Coast, North to South, low-major to high-major and everywhere in between. Each fall, CoBL rounds up all of those local prospects to update you on how their careers are going and what’s expected of them in the year to come.

We’ve split the area’s D-I alumni into a four-part list, with all the representation being too big to run at once. Here’s Part 2 of our 2025-26 CoBL alumni roundup, featuring more than 20 players who are on scholarship on a Division I roster this season.

(If we’re missing someone, let us know: cityofbasketballlove@gmail.com)

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2025-26 Men's Alumni Roundup: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4

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Jordan Ellerbee (Fr. | Florida Gulf Coast)
The Catholic League MVP joins a loaded Philly group at FGCU, where the St. Joe’s Prep grad will be reconnected with former Hawks teammate Tristan Guillouette, a sophomore on the Eagles’ roster. A bouncy 6-3 combo guard, Ellerbee averaged 16.9 ppg, 6.5 rpg and 5.4 apg as a senior and included a triple-double amongst his impressive accomplishments. 

Houston Emory (Sr. | Delaware)
In three years at Delaware, the older Emory brother has played in 43 games with one start; his averages of 1.3 ppg and 1.4 rpg in 19 games as a junior were the best yet of his career. The 6-9 forward, who started at Conestoga before going to Blue Ridge (Va.), played double-digit minutes three times last year, topping out with 16 minutes against UNC-Wilmington.

Macon Emory (Soph. | Delaware)
The younger Emory brother had a quality debut season at Delaware, averaging 3.7 ppg and 2.7 rpg in 34 appearances (six starts). The 6-8 combo forward, who graduated from the Perkiomen School, had his best games around the mid-point of the season, including back-to-back games where he went for 11 points and 8 rebounds and then 12 points and 6 rebounds in early January; he also hit 34.3% of his 3-pointers (24-of-70), a good sign moving forward.

Khalil Farmer (R-Jr. | UMass-Lowell)
A 6-4 shooting guard from Roman Catholic, Farmer spent his first two years at Hofstra before entering the transfer portal this past offseason. After playing single-digit minutes in 24 games as a freshman, he became a bigger part of the Pride rotation as a sophomore, averaging 4.3 ppg and 1.4 rpg in 30 games (11 starts) while hitting 34.8% of his 3-pointers (24-of-69). Farmer scored in double figures five times, with career bests of 19 points and seven rebounds coming in a win over Delaware in February.

Anthony Finkley (Jr. | Saint Joseph’s)
Though he got a fair bit of experience as a freshman on Hawk Hill, Finkley really found his role as a sophomore. In 35 games (13 starts), the 6-6, 240-pound wing forward from Roman Catholic averaged 7.1 ppg and 3.8 rpg, hitting 39.6% from 3-point range (44-of-111), and moving into the starting lineup full-time in early February; it’s no coincidence that six of his nine double-digit scoring outings came during that close to the season, including a career-high 18-point outing against Rhode Island. 

Jayden Forsythe (Fr. | West Virginia)
A Brooklyn native who spent his high school years at the Westtown School, Forsythe proved himself one of the best shooters on the Nike EYBL circuit during high school, a trait that the Mountaineers are hoping the 6-5, 190-pound combo guard brings down to Morgantown (W.Va.) this year. 

Augustus Gerhart (Jr. | Penn)
A Hill School grad and Central PA native, Gerhart has played in 52 games in his first two years at Penn, with all six of his career starts coming as a sophomore. He averaged 3.5 ppg and 3.5 rpg last year, playing about 15 minutes per contest, with a career-high 12 points coming against Harvard in an overtime loss in February. He’s now one of the program’s most experienced bigs under new head coach Fran McCaffery. 

Matt Gilhool (Fr. | LSU)
Another Central PA product who finished off his high school career in the Philadelphia area — in this case, Penn Charter — Gilhool arrives at LSU with a ton of promise in his 6-11 frame. Athletic and mobile and able to stretch the floor, Gilhool averaged 16.0 ppg, 8.8 rpg and 1.2 bpg as a senior after winning Inter-Ac MVP honors as a junior.

Tristen Guillouette (Soph. | Florida Gulf Coast)
The former St. Joe’s Prep and George School big man played in 33 games as a rookie at FGCU, starting four, though he only averaged 7.4 minutes per contest. A 6-10 post, Guillouette was productive in those minutes, averaging 2.4 ppg and 1.2 rpg (12.8 points and 11.0 rebounds per 40 minutes) on 60.8% from the floor; indeed, when he got big minutes, playing 28 against Cleveland State in the CBI, he scored 12 points and grabbed nine rebounds along with two blocks and two assists.

Cole Hargrove (Sr. | Providence)
Hargrove, a 6-8 forward from Methacton, spent his first two years at Drexel playing spare minutes across 34 games, then jumped right into a major role last year. Starting all 33 games, he averaged 9.9 ppg and 7.5 rpg as well as nearly two assists and blocks per game, earning CAA All-Defensive honors. He’ll spend his last college season at Providence, proving all the muscle he put on during his college years means he can hang at the high-major level.

Thomas Haugh (Jr. | Florida)
Haugh had a sophomore year to remember, playing a key role off the bench as the Gators won the 2025 NCAA Division I championship. Playing in all 40 games and starting five, the bouncy 6-9 forward out of the Perkiomen School averaged 9.8 ppg, 6.1 rpg and 2.2 apg, hitting 48.5% from the floor and 34% from 3-point range. Haugh compiled four double-doubles and a pair of 20-point contributions, including a 20-point, eight-rebound game in the Elite 8 win over Texas Tech. 

Jackson Hicke (Jr. | Princeton)
A 6-5 wing out of Radnor, Hicke showed significant growth during his second year at Princeton. In the first 12 games of the season, he averaged 2.8 ppg and 2.0 rpg, playing around 11 mpg; from a productive game against Rutgers on Dec. 21 through the end of the year (18 games), he averaged 7.3 ppg and 3.2 rpg on .467/.375/.875 splits, getting into the starting lineup for the final five games of the year. With Princeton losing a bit due to graduation and transfer, he’s in line for a big step up in responsibility as a junior.

Anquan Hill (R-Sr. | Sacred Heart)
Hill got his college career back on track last year, bouncing back after he followed a strong freshman year at FDU (7.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg) with a disappointing sophomore one at St. Bonaventure (1.9 ppg, 2.3 rpg). As a junior, he played in 26 games for SHU with 21 starts, averaging career-bests of 12.8 ppg and 5.7 rpg while leading the whole MAAC in two-point percentage (.626); his overall shooting splits (.554/.451/.691) include a 41-of-91 showing from the 3-point arc, a nifty trait from the 6-9 forward and Archbishop Carroll product. 

Jacen Holloway (Soph. | Army West Point)
It’s not easy to break into the Black Knights’ roster as a freshman, with more than 20 players on the roster. Holloway saw action in 33 games (9.5 mpg) with three starts, averaging 2.6 ppg and 1.2 rpg and hitting 43.4% from the floor. The 6-4 wing/forward out of Devon Prep hit double figures once, scoring 10 points against Lafayette in February.

Justin Houser (Fr. | Penn State)
A 7-foot left-handed forward who can play inside and pop outside to knock down jumpers, Houser made great strides during his three years at the Phelps School, helping them to the 2025 PAISAA state championships while averaging 14.9 ppg and 9.3 rpg, including a 24-point, 11-rebound, three-block outing in the state title game. (His older brother, Tyler Houser, is a senior at Delaware, but Tyler didn’t play his high school basketball in the Philadelphia area.)

Shareef Jackson (Fr. | Lafayette)
Roman Catholic’s standout big man of the last four years heads up to the Lehigh Valley, where he’ll team with fellow area product Luke Bevilacqua to form a talented young frontcourt duo for head coach Mike McGarvey. As a senior at Roman, the 6-7 forward averaged 14.1 ppg, 11.2 rpg, 3.7 apg and 1.6 spg, as the Cahillites finished as the runner-ups in both the PIAA Class 6A and Catholic League tournaments. 

Chas Kelley III (Sr. | Georgia Tech)
A Texas native who played at the Phelps School, graduating from the Malvern prep school in 2022, Kelley III is finishing up his college career at GT after spending the last three seasons at Boston College. In 88 career games with BC (22 starts), the 6-5 guard averaged 3.7 ppg and 1.6 apg, including 4.4 ppg and 2.0 apg as a junior, though he does have a fair bit of on-court experience with over 1,400 minutes played (16.4/game).

Jayden Kelsey (Fr. | Binghamton)
Binghamton added a big point guard in Kelsey, a 6-7 Norristown native and Westtown School grad who was a major part of the Moose rotation for several seasons. He’s one of just two freshmen on the Bearcats’ roster, though the majority of the group has turned over from last year.

Kevair Kennedy (Fr. | Merrimack)
The top guard in the city last year, Kennedy put together a dominant senior campaign at Judge as the Crusaders won the Catholic League and PIAA 6A titles. Kennedy averaged 16.1 ppg, 7.3 apg and 6.7 rpg plus a couple steals, and now goes up to Merrimack hoping to fill in the role left by former PCL standout Budd Clark, who left for Seton Hall. An athletic 6-2 combo guard, Kennedy has the size, competitiveness and ability to step right into a big role at the D-I level.

Bahsil Laster (Soph. | UT-Arlington)
A clear Division I talent in his years at Academy New Church, Laster put up strong numbers in his one year at Harcum College, averaging 14.7 ppg, 6.4 rpg and 4.1 apg while hitting 38.4% of his 3-point attempts. That landed him a spot at UT-Arlington, which went 13-18 (6-10 WAC) last season; a 6-5 point guard with a long, bouncy frame, Laster’s ability to play-make at his size and score from all three levels could make him an impact player right away.

Gestin Liberis (Sr. | St. Francis)
This is St. Francis’ last year as a Division I basketball program, and Liberis is one of several Red Flash players who stuck around to help them stay competitive before making the move down to Division III. Liberis missed all of last season due to injury; as a sophomore in 2023-24, the 6-9 forward from the George School made three starts amongst 26 overall appearances, averaging 5.8 ppg and 3.7 rpg in just under 15 minutes per contest. That included two double-doubles.

Demetrius Lilley (Sr. | Binghamton)
Speaking of all the new names at Binghamton, Lilley should certainly be a major part of the BU plans after his most productive college season yet. The 6-10 forward out of Lower Merion played in 25 games over two years at Penn State, but it wasn’t until last year, at La Salle, that he really got significant time, averaging 7.7 ppg and 5.8 rpg in 26 games (18 starts). He had some flashes of real dominance, like an 18-point, 11-rebound effort against Drexel early in the year, but trailed off a little at the end of the season.