Skyland Conference Continued To Watch

<p>The Sykland Conference has a plethora of talent returning at its small school division this coming year. Today we look at several who had good high school seasons and are players to watch this summer and into next season as prospects. There will be some good talent in the Mountain Division, which is comprised of what are some of the few rural school districts left in NJ, as well as Manville and Pingry.</p> <p>It is also worth noting that while they were 8-17 last year, South Hunterdon, a normally tough small school, brings back about 90% of their scoring and could make noise behind their players listed when winter comes and they’ll likely get a good look from our staff during the season at some point if they’re firing on all pistons. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="1216351" first="Francis" last="Denvir"]</strong> | 5’8” | G | Delaware Valley 2024</p> <p>Good ballhandler who can drive the lane and finish through contact. He’s a solid shooter from the outside who has a crafty follow through that can draw defenders in to committing fouls. With two years to go he could develop into a prospect that D3s throughout the region are looking at. His top games as a sophomore were vs South River(21), Hillside(25) and RFH(12). He also added nearly 70 assists on the season. He plays for United AAU on the summer circuit.</p> <p><strong>Justin Kolpan</strong> | 5’10” | G | Delaware Valley</p> <p>Denvir’s backcourt colleague. He’s a tough defender and a good distributor who can also hit shots when called upon, including from beyond the arc. He had 10 assists vs South Hunterdon and Warren Hills. From a scoring perspective, he went for 23 in a blowout win over Kittatinny and 17 in a loss to Hunterdon Central.</p> <p><strong>Shawn Purcell</strong> | 5’11” | G |  Manville</p> <p>The multi sport athlete is a slasher who gets to the rim quickly and forcefully. He’s got good leaping ability and can throw it down, even with defenders closing him down. He can hit from beyond the arc and moves the ball well. A guard who cleans up the glass with authority against the small school opponents Manville plays. He also plays football. He had 22 vs Brearley, 16 vs Academy for Urban Leadership. He had 5 double-doubles, including against Pingry, North Plainfield and went over 10 pts almost every night. Type of player that some regional D3 schools could take look at.</p> <p><strong>Tyler Kesolitz</strong> | 6’0” | G | Manville 2024</p> <p>Kesolitz is a good ballhandler and a hot handed shooter. Runs the fast break well and can facilitate in half court sets.  He hit over 50 threes as a sophomore. His best performances came in the state tournament, scoring 20 vs South Hunterdon and 11 vs Keyport. He also went for 21 vs Perth Amboy Tech. With two more years to develop, he could be a player that D3s get very interested in because of his shooting ability.</p> <p>Others To Watch:</p> <p><strong>Trey Maultsby</strong>(2024), <strong>Josh Woodford</strong>(2024), <strong>Jake Abdi</strong>(2023); Pingry School</p> <p><strong>Stefhan Ross</strong>(2023); Manville</p> <p><strong>Pete Discafani</strong>(2023); Belvedere</p> <p><strong>Tanner McCaffery</strong>(2023), <strong>Brayden Hinman</strong>(2023); South Hunterdon</p>