2021-22 Catholic League Midseason Notes

One of the most talented leagues on the East coast, Philadelphia Catholic League teams consistently show that individual talent and national publicity don’t matter once league-play begins. You have to prove yourself on every night. And in the process of testing their metal against one another, some unexpected players have emerged onto the scene, while others put on some surprising performances. Pleasant Surprises Samuel Brown IV | La Salle 6’2 G ‘22 After his sophomore season, the two-sport star and his family decided that his off-seasons would be more dedicated to football. Yet, after an 11th grade season and a commitment to play running back at Rutgers later, Brown IV is displaying that he’s one of the best on the hardwood too. Sam is averaging 16.6 points and 5.2 rebounds 10 games into his senior campaign. His explosiveness and contact-balance are evident every time he drives to the basket. These moments usually lead to and-1 opportunities which he converts because he shoots53% on two-pointers and 83.2% from the charity stripe. [player_tooltip player_id="1116055" first="Lucas" last="Orchard"] | Devon Prep 6’4 W ‘23 Orchard popped on the radar as a sophomore and the consensus was that he would be a good complement to Pettit in the backcourt as a junior. But the only people who knew he was going to go off like this are inside Devon’s program. The two-way wing leads the PCL in points (19.6) and steals (3.9), and he leads his team in assists (3.9). In many ways, he’s their star player and an important role player. Lucas creates for his teammates and makes the hustle plays, but he also gets buckets for them when they need it down the stretch. With him at the helm, no one in this league can afford to sleep on the Tide. [player_tooltip player_id="1185964" first="Niame" last="Scott"] | Conwell-Egan 6’1 G ‘23 The win-loss column may not show it, but Scott is a positive addition to the Eagles program this season. In 12 games, the former Boys Latin guard averages 16.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.5 steals, and 3.2 deflections - leading them in four of those five categories. Niame is shifty coming in and out of his crossovers and attacks the rim with urgency. He makes other players better because he’s willing to pass up a good shot for a better one on offense and pressures the ball on defense. Ernest Shelton | Father Judge 6’3 G ‘23 One of a few transfers from the now-closed Bishop McDevitt, Ernest has seemingly come out of nowhere. Under new Head Coach Chris Roantree, Shelton made one 3 coming off the bench in their first game, then proceeded to make almost 4 per game, starting every contest since. He’s by far the league’s best shooter, averaging 48.3% on 87 total attempts in 11 games. It’s not just on spot ups either. A large portion of his treys are from him running off of screens. The biggest individual surprise of the PCL season, Ernest leads the team with 15.6 points/game and grabs 3.9 rebounds/game. Rising Stars [player_tooltip player_id="1121735" first="Adam" last=""Budd" Clark"] | West Catholic 5’9 G ‘23 In the Fall and preseason, the Burrs were a deepcut pick for the 2022 PCL champion because of their length, skill, and style of play under Coach Boc. And from game 1 of the regular season, it’s been clear that Adam Clark is an integral part of that. “Budd” contributes 9.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, 4.9 assists (second in the league), and 3.2 steals per game. He gets wherever he wants on the floor and makes crisp passes. But most importantly, it’s his gritty intangibles - illustrating the best of what it means to be a Philly guard. Don’t be surprised if a few D1 programs come sniffing around this Summer. [player_tooltip player_id="991425" first="Moses" last="Hipps"] | Archbishop Carroll 6’2 G ‘24 Moses has refined his game a ton since last season. The freshman who almost exclusively spaced the floor - NBA range making threes - is a lethal shooter and the leading scorer on his team as a sophomore (16.9 points/game). He still gets up 7 threes a game where he shoots 30%. What happens when he doesn’t have a shoot he likes from deep is where he’s sharpened his craft. Hipps is expanding his game closer to the rim via the mid-range. He actively looks for spots to get to pull up twos on drives when defenders play him tight. The improvement shows up at the free throw line too (81.6%) [player_tooltip player_id="1013075" first="Carson" last="Howard"] | Archbishop Wood 6’7 F/C ‘23 Biased toward Philly basketball, fans were curious to see if Carson could translate his success from the Shore Conference (NJ) across the bridge into PA, and he has more than proven himself 11 games in. First and foremost, his work on the glass has been impressive. Howard grabs 9.9 rebounds/game, limiting the opposing team’s second-chance points and increasing the number of opportunities for Wood on offense. The Vikings big man was mainly scoring on put-backs in non-conference play. However, he’s now up to 9.9 points/game and has scored 17 & 20 their last two outings, showing some vertical pop from the dunker spot and on lobs. [player_tooltip player_id="1192641" first="Darren" last="Williams"] | Archbishop Ryan 6’4 G ‘24 D-Will went from not seeing any action during his freshman season to a key starter during his junior campaign. He’s averaging 13.1 points (3rd on the team), 4.7 rebounds, and 34% on threes. The offensive he provides is a nice balance between Boyd’s shooting from behind the arc and Sorber’s low-post scoring with his slashing and spot-up threes. Equally crucial for them, Williams takes players on the wing, defensively. Coach Zeglinski is able to throw Darren on bigger perimeter players with success because of his toughness and active hands at the point of attack (1.2 steals & 3.4 deflections). Other Impact Players [player_tooltip player_id="991335" first="Dean" last="Coleman-Newsome"] | Archbishop Carroll 6’2 G ‘23 [player_tooltip player_id="1213553" first="Thomas" last="Sorber"] | Archbishop Ryan 6’9 C ‘24 [player_tooltip player_id="991202" first="Justin" last="Moore"] | Archbishop Wood 6’2 G ‘22 [player_tooltip player_id="991275" first="Shakur" last="Smith"] | Bonner-Prendie 6’4 W ‘22 [player_tooltip player_id="1281811" first="Izaiah" last="Pasha"] | Cardinal O’Hara 6’5 W ‘23 Jordan Garrison | Conwell-Egan 6’6 F ‘22 [player_tooltip player_id="1178095" first="Jacen" last="Holloway"] | Devon Prep 6’4 F ‘23 Nix Varano | La Salle 6’1 G ‘22 [player_tooltip player_id="1116063" first="Robert" last="Wright III"] | Neumann-Goretti 6’0 G ‘24 [player_tooltip player_id="991316" first="Masud" last="Stewart"] | Neumann-Goretti 6’1 G ‘22 Shemar Wilbanks-Acqui | West Catholic 6’3 G ‘23   For more hoops coverage, follow me on IG & Twitter @CGraham_Sports.