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The accolades continue to pile up for Archbishop Wood senior Jalil Bethea. In 2024, he was named the Philadelphia Catholic League co-MVP, a McDonald’s All-American, a Jordan Brand All Star, the Pa. Gatorade Player of the Year and the Pa. Sports Writers Class-6A Player of the Year.
And for a second straight season, Bethea is The Reporter/Times Herald/Montgomery Media Boys Basketball Player of the Year.
The University of Miami commit averaged 22.7 points per game – 636 total across 28 games – to go along with 7.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists for the Vikings, who reached the PIAA-6A state semifinals and finished the year with a 19-9 record.
The 6-foot-4 175-pound guard, who is ranked 10th in ESPN’s latest top 100 recruiting rankings, delivered when it matter most during Wood’s state playoff run.
To earn a spot in the state playoffs, Bethea posted 23 points, seven rebounds and three assists in the District 12-6A third-place game against Northeast.
Wood matched up with Methacton in the first round of states and trailed early in the fourth quarter. Bethea scored 14 of his 31 points in the final frame, including the go-ahead four-point play. He scored 12 of Wood’s final 17 points. He also contributed six rebounds and five assists to help the Vikings advance.
“Take over the game,” Bethea said of his fourth-quarter mindset that afternoon. “I feel like we were down, we were losing to a team that we weren’t supposed to be losing to. I felt like I had to take over the game. I feel like the whole game I had to let the game come to me. For the fourth quarter, that’s what I did.”
He totaled 13 points, nine rebounds and six assists in a second-round win over Lower Merion. He scored seven points in the fourth, including five straight with a long three-pointer and highlight-reel dunk to put the Vikings ahead, 48-41.
Bethea, Wood’s all-time leading scorer, had another 31-point performance in the quarterfinals against Spring-Ford. He scored 18 points in the fourth to help the Vikings rally to a 67-61 win.
“The fourth quarter is the last quarter, so I feel like that’s when I’ve got to play my hardest,” he said, following his performance in front of his future college coach Jim Larrañaga. “It was a slow first half for me, so at halftime I just thought to myself, ‘You got this.’ Just pumping my own head up, and everything came to me.”
Bethea has been showcasing his talent across the country since the high school season ended. In Houston, he won the Powerade JamFest Dunk Contest, jumping over a pair of 7-footers while throwing down a windmill slam. He earned a perfect 70 points from the judges in the final round. The next night, he started for the East team in the McDonald’s All-American game.
Bethea also competed in the Donofrio Classic in Conshohocken and the Jordan Brand Classic at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn.
The Uptown Philadelphia native is projected to be a first round pick in the 2025 NBA draft.
