JAN. 15

Amauroaustin@gmail.com

Twitter: @AA215

The Hoops season started in our region about 6 weeks ago which meant about 3 times a week AA appeared in a gym near you, something I’ve consistently done for the past 23 years.. I didn’t have much time to do previews and predictions this year due to some other commitments but I’m now here to summarize some of the early season happenings that I laid eyes on..

In the vaunted Philadelphia Catholic League, there were many rumblings of the likes of this being a Ryan/Wood/Prep kinda year this offseason.. All three programs have National level talent and looked to jump ahead of the incumbents Roman & Neumann-Goretti.. Ryan & Wood have but started slow out of the gate while surprisingly Prep is where they were initially projected despite losing their star big man 6-9 sr Tristen Guillouette (transferred to George School) to an eligibility issue. Playing without the big guy has left Prep playing exclusively 5-out in a fun and gun all guard lineup. Outside of that things have been status quo. Everyone counted out Roman & NG and well they shouldn’t have cause both currently sit undefeated at the top of the standings while also being undefeated in Non-League play with both owning strong wins over National Competition.. And just like that, both Roman & NG are on the doorstep of National Top 25 rankings.. More things change they stay the same.. 🤷🏾‍♂️

Roman & NG are doing their things a little different. The Saints from South Philly is still running the same plays with their staple… GOOD GUARDS.. While Coach Chris McNesby has put together a deep group of Cahillites, no stars but 8-9 good basketball players that’ll all play at some level in college. For the Saints, “Da Man” is St Joseph’s Commit Khaafiq Myers, the latest of the Royal South Philly Myers family. “Fiq” also is one of the main culprits for another big title, best point guard in Philadelphia. Sr. F Lorenzo Jerkins (avg: 16p & 12r) has played like a man possessed with some monster performances, making up for the time he lost last season after his transfer from Chester HS was revoked by District 1/12.. He’s one of the better available seniors in the Region.. Roman’s jr Post player Shareef Jackson has been their go-to guy. Jackson has been the picture of consistency which was rewarded recently by On3.com, one of the premier National scouting services. On3 ranks Shareef as its #142 player in the Nation. His jr classmate 6-4 PG Sebastian Edwards came from nowhere (JV player as a sophomore) to have a huge start to the season..

In other Catholic League news, I witnessed a serious shootout between Devon Prep & La Salle.. Devon starts 5 juniors all of which could be scholarship level college basketball players.. And La Salle lost 3 potential starters to the transfer portal after a coaching change.. The Explorers have one of the better juniors in the league in 6-3 2G Nick Parisi (19.3ppg, 28 3pt baskets (41%) in 11 games).. Parisi is a shooter’s shooter burying 5 from deep in this game only to be out done by DP jr 2G Calvin Smith who nailed his first 8 treys (8-for-9) en route to 24 points and a 74-70 road win.. La Salle has a two-sport athlete to watch in 6-8 Soph big man Grayson McKeough. Grayson is having a solid season manning the middle for the Explorers after having a strong season on the Football field as a hulking defensive end. He checks in at a rock-solid 235lbs. In Basketball he’s still a bit raw but moves well, has a good touch around the rim and even knocked down a pick and pop treyball, his 4th made Trey of the season in 8 games.

The Pub favorite is the usual suspect, National Power Imhotep Charter. We’ll obviously cover them some later down the line. Today we’re gonna name who’s who amongst the other contenders.. So far this season I’ve seen Dobbins, West Philly, Sankofa & MCS all live. Others in the mix are Overbrook, Northeast, Carver E&S, Fels and Constitution. The Generals have the best chance to emerge from this group in the city and states. They already played Tep tough AT Tep in a loss and own a win over District 1 power, Coatesville.. Coach Rob Moore’s Generals start 5 seniors headed by backcourt tandem 6-3 Kyree Latimer (19ppg) & 6-1 Perry Fields (17ppg), a transfer from Boys Latin. A long state run in Class 2A is to be expected like always..

Last weekend I saw what was likely the biggest game of the Regular season in Delaware as Wilmington Catholic School powers: Salesianum & St Elizabeth’s did battle at sold out St E’s. Going in these two were ranked as the best two teams in the state. I’d seen the Salles earlier this season at a showcase event but this was my first in-season look at St E’s. Both are senior laden teams with a bunch of guys that’ll play college hoops. The best of the bunch and clear cut top player in the state of DE is 6-5 (Maybe 6-6, seems to grow every time I see him) sr G Aiden Tobiason, a Temple signee. Aiden has it all, strong work ethic to go along with size, skill and athleticism. In my opinion, Temple got a steal as this young man has potential to be the face of the Owl Program down the line. The Viking star has as athletic a jump shot as you’ll see and there’s no shot at any level of the floor he can’t comfortably take or make. I wasn’t the only hoop head impressed as Former Temple great Mardy Collins (Simon Gratz/NBA) was in the building spying on young Aiden. I’m old enough to vividly remember Mardy’s rise from 12th man as a junior at Gratz to becoming a star as a senior in 2002, legendary coach Bill Ellerbee’s final season. HOF Coach John Chaney then quickly turned Mardy from a Small Forward to a big point guard almost instantly at Temple and the rest is history.. Aiden & Mardy’s rise up the ranks are quite similar and could have the same ending.. “AT” finished here with 30 points (5 treys) en route to a wire to wire 84-77 W.. His main running mate 6-2 sr 2G Julius Wright finished with 28 big ones of his own as he attacked the defense from opening tap to final buzzer in a statement performance.. Salles is the defending State Champion with 4 starters back. 5 out of their top 6 are seniors so they won’t go away quietly come March but for now St Es is not only #1 in the City of Wilmington but #1 in the state too.. Salles has played a killer Schedule in December that should have them prepared for any and everything come State Tourney time: Neumann, Wood, College Achieve Charter, DeMatha & Malvern Prep.. 6-5 Sr F Justin Hinds (20pts) led the way today. By all accounts he’s a fine young man, a true gentleman & scholar (4.2gpa at an Elite Private School). Hinds is playing for a scholarship but he’s doing it in an honorable manner and that’s commendable. Over time I’ve seen guys get antsy when recruitment is an issue their senior year and you can hardly blame them. Hinds is playing winning basketball.. Salute young man!!! I also loved the effort of two other seniors in gritty PG Zack Swartout & 6-8 stretch-4 Luke Brown. Both young men played with their hair on fire in a white hot environment…

A little over a week ago I ventured into Chester County and walked into a mob scene at Henderson HS as the Red Raiders from Coatesville were in town for a Showdown for Ches-Mont League supremacy.. Many insiders believe Henderson has the most talent in 6A District 1. The Warriors have size, depth, shooting, grit and quality PG play.. On this night, Henderson put it all together in a wire to wire win over the gritty C-Villa club, 62-57. 6-4 sr 2G Nyle Ralph-Beyer put together a gem of a performance with 25pts & 7Rebs.. The Sacred Heart signee may be the Region’s best jump shooter and that was on display but he also showed great intangibles with a solid all around performance. 6-8 sr F Nelson Lamizana, one of the top unsigned seniors in the region, worked for a double double of 10pts & 12rebs. Sr PG Conner Fleet battled through a tough 1st half to have a strong 2nd half en route to 16pts & 3assts.. Sr Role players: 2G Jesse Smith & Post player Evan McFadden also had big impact on the outcome.. C-Ville got a big performance from unsigned Sr 2 Dior Kennedy with a big 23 points. He never let up despite being down the whole game. He’s one of those competitors that makes his presence felt no matter who is wearing the other teams jersey.. I also liked jr PG Amon Fowlkes (14 points). He seems to improve every time I see him. On this night he played his standout counterpart, Fleet to a standstill..

And Finally last week, I made my way over the blue bridge to the city of Camden to Eastside High (Formerly Woodrow Wilson) to see the Tigers take on Crosstown Rival, the fabled Camden High, the premier Public School Basketball program in the State of New Jersey.. This you to be a regular stop on my winter journey up until recently. Eastside is now coached by Kenny Avent, a hulking figure, who’s one of the best basketball coaches in the state on NJ in this scribe’s opinion. Many in NJ felt going in that the Tigers had a shot to beat the Panthers this year so there was intrigue going in. And then the whistle blew and Camden did what they’ve done in this rivalry for many years, dominate. Camden is coached by former HS All American & NBA pro in Maalik Wayns (Roman 09) and he looks like he has his club moving towards another state title come March. The ⭐️ is 6-6 wing Billy Richmond (16pts), a high end athlete with the motor of a Ferrari headed to Kentucky.. His best basketball is ahead cause as good as he is which is consensus Top 30 Nationally, the crafty lefty is still a bit raw offensively. He may well be the best defensively wing in the Nation.. The Panthers have an outstanding supporting cast starting with 6-4 jr wing Manny Joe-Samuel (14pts), a transfer from Paul VI, who already owns a big rep as a scoring savant. MJ-S is a mid range killer and a very good corner 3pt shooter. CMD also has 3 of the better unsigned seniors on the East Coast in 6-5 2G Teron Murray jr (15pts, 3 treys, 7rebs), 6-8 Str4 Alijah Curry (10pts, 7rebs & 4blks) & 6-3 Combo G Naszier Simmons (9assts, 2stls).. Simmons is an up-tempo lead guard with 4 sets of eyes and the size/strength to finish plays at the rim. Curry is the prototype for today’s 4-man. Very good passer and soft touch on his shooting while being a plus rim protector.. While Murray is a sniper from all around the 3pt arc who also makes winning plays on both ends. I was a huge fan of his father Teron Murray (Camden 05), a two-sport Panther star who chose to go to Iowa on a Football scholarship as a Wide Receiver. He was even more athletic (Not kidding) than Richmond.. And his grandfather. Camden legend Lou Banks was an All-American level high school player in his own right but I remember him when I was a kid as one of the lead cogs in Bobby Huggins very first teams At Cincinnati back in the early 90s.. So Teron jr is a pedigreed athlete to say the least as a 3rd Generation Panther star.. As for Eastside, their best days will come around March as they are playing a killer schedule to get them to that point. Today just wasn’t their day. 6-3 Sr F Will Love (8 & 8), a Monmouth Football commit always gives an honest effort..

And finally in conjunction with my good friend and colleague Randy Miller of the The Miller Report we will tag team City & Area Rankings during the high school season among some other things to be announced soon.. Pictured Below👇🏾was last week’s installment of the City Rankings through 1/7..

— AA