Boys Basketball: Delco Super 7, Dec. 7

It’s that time of year again. No, not when you peruse rosters to figure out who transferred where on the high school basketball scene (I did that last week and will have more to say about it in the coming weeks). It’s time to actually play the games.

This weekend is a smorgasbord of tournaments and showcases where we’ll see the first efforts of the PIAA squads in the 2018-19 boys basketball season. If last year’s spread of Delco teams in three classes of PIAA tournaments is any indication, we could be in for a lot of postseason basketball again this year. With a slew of underclassmen on last year’s top three squads on the All-Delco team, there’s plenty of talent back, which makes this task of preseason rankings slightly evidence-based.

Here’s the Super 7 that ran in Friday’s paper alongside seven pages of previews and full season schedules, so definitely grab a copy today.

1. Bonner & Prendergast

The Friars are coming off the best season in the PIAA era of the program, and while they lose an All-Delco (Ajiri Johnson) and a coach (Jack Concannon), there’s reason to think the success can continue unabated. Miami commit and reigning Daily Times Player of the Year Isiah Wong is back, as is fellow senior and Division I prospect Tariq Ingraham. Depth will take time to cultivate, but consider that last year’s postseason run occurred without Tyreese Watson, who injured a knee. He’s a big piece in the rotation. Interestingly, both Bonner and Carroll drop into Class 4A this year, where Imhotep reigns (and four District 12 teams made states last year).

2. Haverford School 

The Fords are coping with some early-season bumps and bruises to Gavin Burke and Jameer Nelson Jr. But with those two joining All-Delco Christian Ray (La Salle) and Asim Richards (North Carolina football), the Fords have the best top four in the county. I don’t see a big drop-off in talent until you get around eight or nine in the rotation. Jameel Brown has the physical tools at a young age, and I think Tyler Seward is primed for a big year.

3. Chester

Beyond Wong, the best pure point guard back this year is unquestionably Michael Smith, an All-Delco as a junior. He’ll hope to lead the Clippers back to prominence in Class 6A after two 5A seasons that were just OK by Chester’s lofty standards. The backcourt will be a strength via Rahmee Gilbert and Rahmaad DeJarnette, the latter of whom missed most of last season. I’m intrigued to see how Karell Watkins, who tore it up in 11 games as a freshman, continues to develop.

4. Episcopal Academy

I’d rank the 1-2 punch of Matt Dade and Alex Capitano just a shade below Wong-Ingraham and Ray-Nelson. That puts EA in the Inter-Ac title conversation. There are a lot of ancillary pieces vying for larger roles around those two. The difference between EA being a good team and a really good team could be if one member of the supporting cast can become a reliable third scoring option to take the pressure (and focus of defenses) off of Dade and Capitano.

5. Archbishop Carroll

Graduation hit Carroll hard. Gone are Keyon Butler, Devon Ferrero and Justin Anderson. The transfer of two-time All-Delco AJ Hoggard to West Virginia powerhouse Huntington Prep didn’t help. And Paul Romanczuk, he of 15 stellar seasons and 10 straight states berths, stepped down as coach. Here comes the but … Luke House took big steps as a scorer last year. Shawn Johnson is coming off an impressive football season. Tairi Ketner and Kiyl Mack have varsity experience. And Francis Bowe has a track record of turning less heralded programs (Valley Forge Military Academy, Upper Merion) into title contenders. I expect him to do the same at Carroll, though it may look different than Romanczuk’s blue-chip heydays.

6. Upper Darby

Jalun Trent and Magd Abdelwahab, the point guard and leading scorer, respectively, of the Royals’ 17-win season have moved on. But the next four scorers are back. I’m intrigued with how the post rotation develops. Kymir Roper can control games at times. Erodnay Sawyer is a big body in the lane. The days of Floyd Wedderburn Jr., who plays taller than his frame suggests, being in the middle should be over. Putting Wedderburn on the wing gives the Royals serious height, and with the shot-making of Mamadou Toure and Diby Keita, it should be a powerful inside-out attack.

7. Sun Valley

Another team bringing back everything but a point guard from a states team. The Vanguards are here because they have Vinny DeAngelo, one of the top all-around players this side of Wong. He averaged 22.7 points per game last year and does so much more than just score. With Marvin Freeman and Isaac Kennon firing from the perimeter to open lanes for DeAngelo, the Vanguards could compete for a Ches-Mont division title, even if they still lack for height.

Honorable Mention: Penncrest (The Lions have made the District 1 playoffs 98 straight years – OK, it’s 10, but still. Replacing Tyler Norwood is a big task, but it’s doable with a stylistic pivot, namely toward veteran forwards Malcolm Williams and Matt Arbogast while a young backcourt takes shape); Academy Park (injuries and suspensions meant that only one Knight – freshman Tyriq Marrero – played every game last season. That tumult could pay dividends, with Naseim Harley back running the point, Marrero firing triples and Shermik Lofton in the post); Penn Wood (Shad Kyem, Desman Johnson and Zac-Chae’us Williams are the only returnees to have logged significant minutes last year, but then again, the Patriots always figure it out, right?); Haverford (I’m bullish on the Fords, in part because so many teams in the Central League – Strath Haven, Marple, Garnet Valley, Springfield – lost more than half of their starters. Keith Heinerichs played a lot of underclassmen, which will pay off in a system that always extracts a whole greater than the sum of its parts).