City of Basketball Love

Joseph Santoliquito (@JSantoliquito) + Josh Verlin

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(Ed. Note: This story is part of CoBL’s “Prepping for Preps” series, which will take a look at many of the top high school programs in the region as part of our 2025-26 season preview coverage. The complete list of schools previewed thus far can be found here.)

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Dobbins Tech coach Derrick Stanton remembers the times, not that long ago, when he would nervously pace in a hallway before a Philadelphia Public League playoff game, wondering if his team would get blown out or not. Those were the occasions that helped brace him for moments like last season, when the Mustangs started 1-10 and looked like they would not play much longer beyond January.

It’s why as the final seconds were draining away in the Mustangs’ 2025 season, reduced to only six players, Stanton sat with stoic satisfaction leading an undersized, skeleton crew into the state playoffs in March. 

He’s created a winning culture. It’s why Stanton enters his fifth season beaming with confidence.

Academic eligibility thinned his young, rising lineup last season, though the Mustangs managed to finish 14-12 overall (6-4 Public League), going on a 13-game winning streak from early-January to mid-February and reached the Philadelphia Public League semifinals, where they fell to four-time defending Public League champion Imhotep Charter.

Dobbins returns three starters, led by 6-foot senior guard Haneef Davis, 6-3 senior wing Hasan Laws and 6-5 senior forward Khaleef Agbemehia. They will be joined by 6-2 junior forward Malakhi Baldwin, 5-11 freshman guard Stylez Gaskins and transfers 5-8 sophomore point guard Kyyir Roberts-Moore and 5-11 sophomore guard Zahmir Green. Dobbins lost 6-3 senior guard Makaii Akridge, who transferred to Fels.

The Mustangs ran into a postseason buzzsaw, first facing Imhotep in the Public League semifinals, then losing to eventual state champion Devon Prep in the District 12 Class 4A championship, and District 11 No. 3-seed Saucon Valley, 53-50, in the first round of the state playoffs.

Stanton, a former West Point fitness instructor who has been both Dean of Students and now Dobbins’ Athletic Director, could have one of the smaller teams in the Public League this season. He plans on compensating for that with a frenetic, uptempo style, pressing to create offense off transition turnovers.

Davis returns with a command of Stanton’s offense, and this past offseason, he has taken his game out and developed into a knockdown shooter. Stanton will be relying heavily on Davis’ on-court leadership and poise.

Laws, who is really a wing, will be Stanton’s shutdown defender. Although Laws is undersized by today’s high school standards for bigs, Stanton feels confident Laws will be able to handle the nasty inside work the Mustangs will need to win. Division II Wilmington and Arcadia have picked up interest in Laws, who will rebound, can stretch a defense with his ability hit the three, and can play above the rim.

Green comes over from Freire Charter. He can score on all three levels, he can guard, and Stanton will give him more than ample minutes to prove himself. He also can fit anywhere playing from the one through three.

The Mustangs will live on die this season on harassing opponents. 

“We are small, we have to,” Stanton said. “We are going to beat teams with speed and quickness. What we will need to do is build depth. That’s what we are hoping to do.”

Stanton is very high on Roberts-Moore, who the coach questions whether anyone in the city can stay in front of him. A transfer from Ben Franklin, Roberts-Moore has lightning-fast hands, a high basketball IQ, maturity that belies his age, and Stanton’s confidence that he could emerge as the Mustangs’ go-to scorer as the season progresses.

“My expectations for us is to win as a team, and make it to where we reached last year,” Roberts-Moore said. “I think we can sneak up on teams, and I know Coach Stanton will run us. If we stay disciplined, play pressure defense and constantly look up after rebounds, we will score in transition. I liked the way we played this summer. I have known Coach Stanton around five years. I know his system. I want to be a leader, and I want to be an all-around point guard. I want to be a more consistent shooter and play through contact to finish around the rim. Another area is dribbling with my head up. I worked hard to get where I am.”

Laws, whose former teammate Jarrell Little (Salem CC) convinced him to drop more than 50 pounds between his sophomore and junior seasons, wants to graduate with something. He played in the Public League semifinals, District 12 championship and state playoffs without winning a game.

It was frustrating, he admitted, but he also stressed it has motivated him to become a better all-around player.

“We’re looking to be a top three team in the ‘Pub’ again this year,” he said. “We need to play as a team. We have new players that have to fit together. We only had six players at the end of the season. I’m going to be counted on rebound, and I know I’ll be going up against big guys, but I am used to getting down there and getting dirty. It’s the toughness I play with.

“We’ll share the ball. We’ll run. When we’re working together, no one can keep up with us. Everyone on this team can score. What I do not like about this team is that we tend to be selfish. When the games get tight, everyone thinks they have to take over. If we play as a team, and share the ball, trust each other, no one will be able to stop us.”

Laws said communication will need to be addressed especially in the Mustangs’ half-court defense.     

Agbemehia could be the X factor. Stanton said that he has become "a monster" on the boards this summer, though in fairness to him, Stanton said, Agbemehia would grow frustrated by not getting more touches. Agbemehia has developed into a good passer, especially in the high post.

“We had eligibility problems late in the season, and that hurt us, since Dobbins holds its students to a higher academic standard than the PIAA,” Stanton said. “We beat a lot of good teams last year and had six players by the time we reached states. Our goal is to reach the top four in the Philadelphia Public League A Division (with Imhotep, Samuel Fels, Audenried, Constitution and Sankofa). We came in third last year, but a lot of our games were close. I hope we are in that same mix among the top teams again.”

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Joseph Santoliquito is an award-winning sportswriter based in the Philadelphia area who began writing for CoBL in 2021 and is the president of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be followed on BlueSky here.