City of Basketball Love

Kevin Troilo (@Kevin_Troilo)
--

(Ed. Note: This article is part of CoBL's "Prepping for Preps," our series of articles previewing area high school teams for the 2015-16 season. For the complete list of schools previewed so far, click here)

~~~

The past two seasons have been historic ones for the Cherry Hill East Cougars.

In 2013-2014, they won their first South Jersey Group 4 title in school history and played their way to a state semifinal game, eventually losing to state runner-up Trenton.

Last season they took things a step further. Led by Olympic Conference Player of the Year Jake Silpe, the Cougars marched their way to the Group 4 state championship game, where they lost to Paterson-Eastside 50-34.

Silpe dominated throughout the state tournament, never scoring fewer than 17 points in a game while showing off his versatility by putting up huge numbers on the glass and in the passing game. Unfortunately for the Cougars, Silpe has since graduated and is now playing his college ball at the University of Pennsylvania.

“Last season was a blast. We won a lot and don’t expect that to change at all,” said Olin McClendon, a 6-foot-tall senior guard who will be a leader on the floor this season. “Everybody expects us to be a weaker team but after our efforts in the summer at the Temple [University] and St. Joe’s tournaments, we know we can compete at a high level.”

Although the final outcome was not what they had hoped for, there’s no denying that these past two seasons have put their program on the map state-wide.

Exiting with Silpe is his close friend and running mate Josh Brown, a guard who started for Cherry Hill East throughout his senior season.

This leaves the door wide open for 6-9 center Timmy Perry to step in as the go-to player on this Cougars roster.

Perry is the son of former Temple standout and 1988 Atlantic 10 Player of the Year, Tim Perry. His father was selected 7th overall in 1988 by the Phoenix Suns and enjoyed an eight-year NBA career that included stints with the Nets and Sixers.  

Perry was named first team all American Division in the Olympic Conference as a junior last season. Allen hopes that Perry can emerge as a dominant force on both sides of the floor after working on his game extensively this summer.

“When Timmy started his sophomore year he was more of a defensive player and rebounder,” Allen said. “This past season, he really started to gain confidence in his offensive game. He worked hard in the last few months to stretch his game out on the perimeter a lot more. He’s able to catch the ball out of the high post and can pass out of the high post. He can work the pick and pop. He has added a lot to his game.”

“He gives us so much confidence on the boards and defensively,” McClendon said. He has improved so much offensively by gaining a nice mid-range jump shot. This year, definitely look for highlights of Tim receiving some disgusting alley-oops.”

Perry’s size is certainly his biggest advantage. Although there have been questions about his tenacity, Allen thinks he is ready to take that next step.

“I have a bar set for him. I want him to exceed that bar,” Allen said. “I know where he was last year and I know what he could become this year. I want him to go beyond that.”

“I want him to play on the perimeter and inside, to be able to key our offense from a formal position without turning the ball over. Can he play more like a forward than a back to the basket center? I think he can do it, but it’s going to be a challenge.”

The aforementioned McClendon started last season as a junior and has the experience of playing in high-pressure situations. He has the ability to score both at the rim and with his jump shot, making him very dangerous when playing with the ball.  

Besides the obvious chemistry adjustment after losing your best player, Allen cited controlling the pace of the game as something this Cougars team will have to discover early on.

“One of the best things about Siple was that he was the best player in south Jersey at controlling the pace of the game,” Allen said. “The game was played at whatever pace that we wanted to play. Now, we’re going to have to really get good at playing pace. Can we control the tempo? Can we push the tempo? Can we handle the ball without turning it over? Those were all luxuries for us that are suddenly a little bit different.”

“Silpe will be missed, but we as a unit have stepped up big time,” McClendon said. “We have a new point guard, Evan Campbell, who has matured well over the summer. He can handle pressure very well and can distribute the ball to the right people at the right time.”

“Wherever this season ends, I want it to end with a championship. We are all looking to defend the sectional championship once again in our gym.”

Cherry Hill East will begin their journey to another sectional title with a road contest at Paul VI on December 18.