All-Delco Boys Basketball: All-senior first team a mix of experience, leadership and talent
In addition to Player of the Year Jackson Hicke of Radnor, the All-Delco team includes:
Nasir Washington, Penn Wood: The senior guard transferred from West Philadelphia with a reputation as an electric scorer in the Public League, and that carried over to the Del Val League just fine. Washington led all Delaware County scorers at 25.5 points per game this season, helping the Patriots win 16 games and qualify for the District 1 Class 6A tournament. No team held Washington to fewer than 14 points; he had as many games in the 30s as in the teens (six). His introduction to Del Val basketball was emphatic, with 33 points in a win at Chester on Jan. 5, then he scored 39 in the return game as the Patriots swept their Del Val rivals. That latter victory started a string of three straight 30-point games, with 30 at Interboro and 32 against Holy Ghost Prep. He also scored 37 points in the first round of the District 1 tournament to beat Norristown and added 23 and 21 in losses to Plymouth Whitemarsh and Coatesville. Washington, who is receiving Division I interest, finished his career with 1,133 points.
Izaiah Pasha, Cardinal O’Hara: Before the senior guard’s transfer from Central Dauphin, O’Hara had never qualified for the PIAA tournament. They’ve now been there in back-to-back years, winning a game each time. The former Iona commit – who asked to be released from a letter of intent in late March after Iona coach Rick Pitino took the St. John’s job – is a major reason why. Last year’s Daily Times Player of the Year was just about as good this year, averaging 17.6 points per game for the 18-win Lions. He added a team-high 7.7 rebounds per game, plus 4.3 assists, 1.9 steals and 1.4 blocks, the lanky guard an utter handful on both sides of the court. The All-Catholic selection was more willing to defer this season, with a balanced supporting cast – four Lions averaged in double-figures, and each member of the starting five averaged at least 7.4 ppg. Pasha picked his moments to step up – 24 points in a win over Malvern Prep during the holiday season, 25 in a tight win over Father Judge, 22 to beat St. Joseph’s Prep. He added 34 in the District 12 third-place game, then 23 to beat Fleetwood in the first round of states and a team-high 18 in falling to Allentown Central Catholic in the second round. Pasha finished with 1,044 career points. He’s just the fourth O’Hara player to tally 1,000 points.
Nadir Myers, Upper Darby: The senior point guard navigated the Royals to a 21-win season and the second round of the PIAA Class 6A tournament before falling to eventual champion Reading. Myers led the Royals at 19.4 points per game. He hit a team-high 73 3-pointers and led the squad at 3.3 assists per game. His scoring average and 3-pointers-made each ranked fourth in Delco this season. Myers had 17 games of 20 or more points. That included 20 in a win over Garnet Valley during the regular season, 24 in a dismissal of Conestoga and 25 in a loss to Lower Merion in the Central League semifinals. He scored a team-high 20 points in the states win over Bethlehem Liberty and 31 in the loss to Reading. Myers scored 995 points in two years at Upper Darby; with his freshman year at People for People Charter in Philadelphia and his sophomore season at Martin Luther King High, he tallied 1,400 points. He and teammate Yassir Joyner (1,261 points at South Philadelphia, Phelps School and Upper Darby) are members two and three of the Royals’ 1,000-point club.
Googie Seidman, Haverford: Seidman finished a stellar career at Haverford by leading the Fords to the state tournament for the second consecutive season, the road ending with a loss to Class 6A champ Reading in the first round. Seidman was a primary reason why they got there, averaging 20.6 points on a team that scored 51.0 per game, a share of 40.3 percent of the team’s points. He finished second in Delco in scoring average and eighth in 3-pointers with 63, all for a point guard who led the team with 3.2 assists per game. He put up big numbers in the regular season – 32 in a win at West Chester Henderson, 32 in a 50-35 win over Conestoga. But he turned it up to keep the Fords’ season alive. He scored 29 points in the first-round districts win at William Tennent, 36 in the states-clinching victory at Abington in playbacks, then 27 in the first round of states. Seidman finished his career with 1,138 points, just the sixth Fords player to cross 1,000 points, while joining his brother John Seidman, who scored 1,080. Googie finished third in school history, one spot up on his brother. He’ll continue his career at Catholic University.
Charlie Thornton, Radnor: If Hicke was the engine that drove Radnor’s historic senior, Thornton may have been the heart and soul. The scoring balance on the team means Thornton’s numbers don’t leap off the page – 10.7 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.8 assists per game – but his efficiency and ability to step up at big moments fueled the Raptors, who won their first 29 games of the season, all but two by double figures. Thornton shot 53 percent from the field, including 36.7 from 3-point range with a team-high 37 makes, and regularly drew difficult defensive assignments. He scored 12 points in the Raptors’ overtime win over Garnet Valley in January and 26 in a win at PIAA Class 6A qualifier Downingtown West. He added 15 points in the regular-season win over Lower Merion, which led to his capstone performance, a 26-point outing in the Central League final to help Radnor celebrate its first championship in the league. Thornton recently committed to Division II powerhouse Randolph-Macon.
