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Trinity Classic Preview (Jan. 28)

01/27/2017, 1:30pm EST
By Josh Verlin & Michael Bullock

Mohamed Bamba (above) and Westtown highlight the five-game Trinity Classic on Saturday. (Photo: Mark Jordan/CoBL)

Josh Verlin (@jmverlin) &
Michael Bullock (@thebullp_n)
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Trinity High School plays host to the final Pennsylvania event of the 2016-17 Scholastic Play-by-Play on Saturday: the Trinity Classic, a five-game affair featuring several CoBL-area programs.
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Full Schedule

Central Dauphin East vs. Bartram (1:00 PM)
Germantown Academy vs. Teaneck (N.J.) (2:45 PM)
Westtown School vs. Timber Creek (N.J.) (4:30 PM)
Trinity vs. Plymouth-Whitemarsh (6:15 PM)
Frederick Douglas (N.Y.) vs. Martin Luther King (8:00 PM)

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The main draw is undoubtedly Westtown (22-2, 6-0), one of the top prep teams not just in the state but the entire country. The Moose are led by top-five senior Mohamed Bamba, a 6-11 presence who will be playing next year at Duke, Kentucky, Michigan or Texas and could very well be in the NBA in 2018.

Right behind Bamba is 6-8 junior point guard Cameron Reddish, a top-10 prospect in his own class who’s got the choice of any school he wants; Duke, Kentucky, Villanova and many other elite-level programs are in the mix. Throw in Arizona commit Brandon Randolph (6-5 SG), Stony Brook commit Anthony Ochefu (6-9 PF) and junior Jake Forrester (6-8 F) and it’s a scary, scary group indeed for Seth Berger.

Host Trinity (14-2) heads into Friday night’s game against Mid-Penn Capital Division playmate West Perry riding a three-game winning streak, thanks to wins over Helen Thackston Charter, East Pennsboro and Camp Hill.

Larry Kostelac Jr.’s Shamrocks are also sitting atop the Capital Division — Middletown and Milton Hershey were each a half-game back.

Seniors Timmy Edwards and Pace commit Austin Gilbertson are the only players averaging in double figures for Kostelac’s balanced outfit. The 6-4 Edwards began the weekend at 18.1 ppg, while the 6-3 Gilbertson came in at 15.0 ppg. Edwards also averages 6.1 boards per outing, while Gilbertson dishes out more than five assists per.

Big man Sean Good, a 6-11 junior, is averaging 9.3 ppg, 10.3 rpg and 5.4 blocks per. The rest of the Shamrocks’ starting lineup typically features 6-3 senior defensive stopper Marcus Hall (6.6 ppg/6.2 rpg) and 6-5 junior Jack Bucher (5.2 ppg/4.6 rpg).

Junior guards Tresjon Ruiz (1.3 ppg) and Mike Scarpelli (4.0 ppg/3.1 apg) are dependable reserves, as are sophomore guard Matt Long (4.4 ppg) and 6-6 Kalen Veres (4.7 ppg/4.0 rpg), who transferred from Red Land during the season.

Taking on Trinity will be one of the top teams in the powerful District 1 6A classification, Plymouth-Whitemarsh. The Colonials, 15-2 overall (10-0 Suburban One League) heading into a Friday night game at Hatboro-Horsham, are led by junior twins Ahmad Williams and Ahmin Williams, with seniors Matt Walker and Cheo Houston capable scorers as well.

In the middle, Jim Donofrio boasts a true 7-footer in sophomore Naheem McLeod, a lanky prospect with a super-high upside who's been steadily improving over the course of the season and could be one of the biggest sleepers in the entire region.

As for Central Dauphin East, the other of two central PA schools in the event, Don Ross’ Panthers (11-5) seem to have righted things by winning four of five heading into Friday night’s Mid-Penn Commonwealth Division scrap at Carlisle. East opened with seven straight wins, but promptly lost four straight.

Brennen Jackson collected 12 points in Tuesday night’s 50-44 conquest of sister school Central Dauphin — he was the lone East player to reach double figures — but pocketed a double-double (16 points/12 rebounds) in Saturday’s 85-68 win over McCaskey.

Fellow starters Justin Henry, Evan Chandler, Jaylen Hawthorne and D.J. Cooper combined for 25 points in Tuesday night’s victory, while active 6-5 junior Terry Danner, Jordan Gillis and Na’Seen Thomas accounted for 13 more points.

Gillis, a 6-0 senior, is just rounding into form after breaking his leg in late summer. Another player to keep an eye on is 5-11 sophomore Jordan McCraw, a slasher who spent his freshman year at nearby Susquehanna Twp.

Henry, a 5-5 backcourt dynamo, is East’s top 3-point shooting threat.

The other two Philadelphia-area programs, Germantown Academy and Martin Luther King, both play out-of-area teams.

Jim Fenerty's Patriots, who beat Haverford School 100-98 in 5OT on Tuesday, are the four-time defending Inter-Ac champions. GA is led by a pair of high-scoring seniors who have started on the last three Inter-Ac title teams in Evan-Eric Longino (23.6 ppg) and Villanova football recruit Kyle McCloskey (19.2 ppg).

King, under the direction of Sean Colson, has started to put things together over the second half of the season. They've got a big frontcourt in 6-9 junior Will McNair and 6-7 senior Elijah Kiah-El, plus 6-2 senior Qadir Burgess and 6-2 junior Denelle Holly who can both really score the ball.


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