City of Basketball Love

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin)
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Here are the area’s current top five Division II teams, consisting of squads from the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) South Division and the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) East Division.

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Others to Watch: Bloomsburg (6-5, 4-3 PSAC), East Stroudsburg (7-3, 4-3 PSAC), Shippensburg (7-5, 4-4 PSAC), University of the Sciences (7-4, 4-1 CACC)

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5. Lock Haven Bald Eagles (5)
Record: 9-3 (5-3 PSAC)
Last Two Weeks: vs. Kutztown (L, 77-76), vs. Millersville (W, 86-70)
Star Watch: Ra’eese Hunt (R-Soph./F)--8.8 ppg, 2.8 rpg

Update: There are quite a few teams in our power rankings with great balance among their rotation, but Lock Haven might take the cake. Six players average between 8.7 and 10.8 ppg, with senior Tracy Peal and junior Bootsie Walker both tied for the team lead. This week it was Hunt, the team’s sixth man, who provided the offensive boost with 19 points in the win over Millersville, adding 13 in the Kutztown loss as he’s reached double digits in three straight games. The only team without a holiday game, they’re in the middle of a 16-day break before PSAC play continues in earnest.

Next Two Weeks: vs. Edinboro (Jan. 3, 4 PM), @ Mercyhurst (Jan. 6, 7:30 pm), @ Cheyney (Jan. 9, 3 PM)

4. Philadelphia University Rams (4)
Record: 10-3 (4-2 CACC)
Last Two Weeks: vs. Saint Rose (@ Assumption; W, 72-69), @ Assumption (L, 83-73)
Star Watch: Peter Alexis (Sr./C)--19.0 ppg, 8.4 rpg

Update: The Rams traveled up to Worcester, Mass. for a pair of games against Northeast-10 opponents, and though they didn’t fair quite as well as their biggest rival (see below), splitting the pair isn’t a poor showing by any means. When Philly U isn’t hitting outside shots (3-of-17 against Assumption), they become much easier to defend, as good as the 6-11 Alexis is inside. Vermont transfer Brendan Kilpatrick has scored in double figures in eight straight but hasn’t made more than half of his field goals in any one of those games and is shooting just 38.4 percent overall; if he can become a more efficient scorer, Herb Magee’s squad certainly benefits.

Next Two Weeks: @ Saint Anselm (Dec. 31, Noon), vs. Concordia (Jan. 6, 7 PM), vs. Felician (Jan. 9, 4 PM)

3. Kutztown Golden Bears (2)
Record: 8-2 (6-2 PSAC)
Last Two Weeks: @ Lock Haven (W, 77-76), @ Shippensburg (L, 78-70)
Star Watch: Anthony Lee (R-Fr./G)--9.4 ppg, 4.6 rpg
Update: A tough two-game road trip ended in a 1-1 split for the Golden Bears, as a rough shooting performance against Ship (25-of-81, 30.9 percent) proved to be the downfall in their first loss in nearly a month. The win at Lock Haven featured remarkable balance: seven different Kutztown players scored seven-or-more, though no Golden Bear had more than 11. Since moving into the starting lineup five games ago, Lee--a 6-2 guard who helped Abington greatly during its run to the 2014 PIAA Class AAAA semifinals--is averaging 13.0 ppg and 6.0 rpg and has made 57.9 percent of his shots this season.

Next Two Weeks: vs. USciences (Dec. 30, 1 PM), vs. Gannon (Jan. 3, 3 PM), @ Clarioni (Jan. 6, 7:30 PM), vs. Bloomsburg (Jan. 9, 3 PM)

2. West Chester Rams (3)
Record: 9-1 (6-1 PSAC)
Last Two Weeks: vs. Bloomsburg (W, 81-76), vs. Bloomfield (W, 73-62)
Star Watch: Matt Wiseley (Sr./F)--11.7 ppg, 11.1 rpg

Update: West Chester bumps back up to the No. 2 slot thanks to Kutztown’s loss, though the Rams have certainly earned it with their play this year, made even more impressive by the play they’re getting out of their underclassmen in addition to a few key seniors like Wiseley. The last two games also saw sophomore wing Tyrell Long inserted into the starting lineup after a total of 24 minutes in the teams’ first eight games; the 6-4 Bishop McDevitt product scored 14 against Bloomsburg and nine against Bloomfield, shooting a combined 9-of-15 from the floor in the wins and grabbing seven rebounds as well.

Next Two Weeks: vs. Wilmington (Dec. 31, 1 PM), vs. Seton Hill (Jan. 3, 3 PM), @ California (Pa.) (Jan. 6, 7:30 PM), vs. East Stroudsburg (Jan. 9, 4 PM)

1. Holy Family Tigers (1)
Record: 10-2 (4-0 CACC)
Last Two Weeks: @ Assumption (W, 94-80), vs. Saint Rose (@ Assumption; W, 77-69)
Star Watch: Reggie Charles (Sr./G)--17.0 ppg, 5.3 apg, 3.8 rpg

Update: The Tigers’ winning streak is now seven games in a row after a nice pair of wins on the road in the same pairing as Philly U--and they’ll have to keep up that road momentum, with their next four games also coming away from the Northeast Philadelphia. Against Saint Rose, Charles compiled a triple-double with 25 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds, reaching the mark for the first time in his college career. It was the first triple-double for a Holy Family player in nearly five years (Tim Smith; Jan. 22, 2011), and won him the CACC Player of the Week award for the second time in a row

Next Two Weeks: @ American International (Dec. 30, 4 PM), @ Chestnut Hill (Jan. 3, 3 PM), @ Dominican (Jan. 6, 8 PM), @ Nyack (Jan. 9, 3 PM)