2023-24 6A Preview – Portland Interscholastic League
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The 2023-24 season is upon us and PrepHoops Oregon has you covered. We’re doing pre-season previews for all of the 6A leagues across the state, giving you some insight into the teams and players you should be watching this year.…
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Continue ReadingThe 2023-24 season is upon us and PrepHoops Oregon has you covered. We’re doing pre-season previews for all of the 6A leagues across the state, giving you some insight into the teams and players you should be watching this year. To be quite frank, the PIL is down compared to previous seasons but it still features at least one state title threat and the conference race is going to be extremely competitive. Here’s how we see it turning out.
League Predictions
- Roosevelt
- Grant
- Benson
- Jefferson
- Cleveland
- Lincoln
- Wells
- Franklin
- McDaniel
Player of the Year: Terrence Hill Jr Terrence Hill Jr 6'3" | PG Roosevelt | 2024 State #183 Nation OR , Roosevelt
All-League Predictions: Hill Jr; Jacey Canalin Jacey Canalin 5'7" | PG Wells | 2024 State OR , Wells; Dylan Douangphrachanh Dylan Douangphrachanh 6'3" | SG Benson | 2024 State OR , Benson; Adrian Montague Adrian Montague 6'1" | PG Jefferson | 2026 State OR , Jefferson; Jackson Owens Jackson Owens 6'3" | CG Cleveland | 2024 State OR , Cleveland
Top Sleeper/Newcomer: Quincy Scott Quincy Scott 6'5" | SG Grant | 2025 State OR , Grant
State Tournament Threats: Roosevelt
Other Post-Season Teams: Grant, Benson, Jefferson, Cleveland, Lincoln
Analysis
Looking over the field one school seems to stand out from the rest of the pack and that school is Roosevelt. New head coach Jamarr Lawson takes over the reins and he’s more than happy to welcome back star guard Terrence Hill Jr Terrence Hill Jr 6'3" | PG Roosevelt | 2024 State #183 Nation OR (19.8 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 3.7 apg in 2021-22), who returns from playing a year away at AZ Compass Prep. The Utah State signee basically returns as arguably the best player in the league and as a multi-faceted scoring threat, could also be one of 6A’s leaders in scoring. His presence will mean fellow senior Utrillo Morris Utrillo Morris 5'8" | PG Roosevelt | 2024 State OR (15.9 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 4.6 apg) will have even more opportunities to rack up assists as the jet-quick point guard will not only have Hill Jr to find but also the dangerous Chance White Chance White 6'0" | CG Roosevelt | 2024 State OR (22.3 ppg, 2.3 rpg), who’s set to have a big senior year as well – he’s already the school’s all-time leading career scorer. As if those three weren’t enough, do-it-all junior Owen Nathan Owen Nathan 6'2" | CG Roosevelt | 2025 State OR (11.4 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 3.2 apg, 1.6 bpg, 3.2 spg) will contribute on both sides of the floor and the Roughriders also have a number of emerging big guy transfers in 6-foot-6 senior Demir Johnson Demir Johnson 6'5" | PF Roosevelt | 2024 State OR from Jefferson and 6-foot-8 Matthew Beatty Matthew Beatty 6'9" | C Roosevelt | 2025 State OR to anchor the middle. 6-foot-6 sophomore Syrius Owens Syrius Owens 6'6" | SF Roosevelt | 2026 State OR is also someone to keep an eye on as the Roughriders seem to have the talent, depth, and experience above everyone else in the league.
The rest of the PIL appears to be a dogfight but Grant appears to be the squad inching out in front. New head coach Sean Brownhill got a super late start in the process after finally getting hired to replace previous coach Dondrale Campbell (who left to be an assistant at Northern Colorado), but he’s definitely got a deep squad of players to work with. Seniors Charles Kapranos Charles Kapranos 6'4" | SF Grant | 2024 State OR (13.0 ppg, 6.8 rpg, .591 fg%) and Vashon Hardges Vashon Hardges 6'2" | CG Grant | 2024 State OR (7.9 ppg, 3.2 rpg) will be counted upon for leadership both on the off the floor, and both are primed to have big seasons. The addition of 6-foot-5 junior transfer Quincy Scott Quincy Scott 6'5" | SG Grant | 2025 State OR from Central Catholic during the summer was a huge add as he’ll add plenty of energy on both ends of the floor. There are a whole host of other players who will be key guys as the Generals could be one of the deepest teams in the league, especially in the backcourt with junior Mekhi Muhammad Mekhi Muhammad 6'1" | CG Grant | 2025 State OR (2.9 ppg, 2.0 rpg), De La Salle North Catholic junior transfer Zhalei Van, sophomore point guard Keion James Adell Keion James Adell 6'0" | CG Grant | 2026 State OR (3.8 ppg, 2.3 rpg), and a couple of freshmen in Varryk Hardges Varryk Hardges 6'2" | CG Grant | 2027 State OR and Keon Gates. The future is certainly bright at Grant but they’re fully capable of winning games now.
Benson looks to continue trending upward in the league and while the Techmen have to replace a number of experienced seniors – notably an all-time recent great in Kavon Bradford – there’s enough back for head coach Earl Clark to head a nice run. It all starts with four-year starter Dylan Douangphrachanh Dylan Douangphrachanh 6'3" | SG Benson | 2024 State OR (18.2 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 2.3 apg, .427 3pt%) who should once again be one of the top shooters and scorers in the state. Making it to the Chiles Center would certainly be a nice send-off for the senior who will surpass 1000 career points this season. Junior Tre Kelly Tre Kelly 6'0" | SG Benson | 2025 State OR (3.9 ppg, .354 3pt%) and sophomore Dache Acelar Dache Acelar 6'0" | CG Benson | 2026 State OR (4.6 ppg, 1.4 apg, .325 3pt%) emerged as legitimate three-point threats and guard Sincere Powe Sincere Powe 5'10" | PG Benson Highschool | 2026 State OR also got valuable experience last season getting playing time as freshmen. A newcomer that should make a significant impact is Grant sophomore transfer Jemel Baker Jemel Baker 6'4" | SG Roosevelt | 2026 State OR , whose athleticism and ability to create shots adds another dimension to the squad.
One thing that’s extremely uncommon for Jefferson is to miss the post-season and for the second year in a row, the Demos were at home when the playoffs started. That shouldn’t be the case this year for head coach Pat Strickland as there’s enough top talent returning to get Jeff at least back into the playoffs. One thing that’s to their advantage is their top scorers are back and how the backcourt duo of senior TJ Latu TJ Latu 6'3" | CG Jefferson | 2024 State OR (14.5 ppg, 2.1 rpg) and Adrian Montague Adrian Montague 6'1" | PG Jefferson | 2026 State OR (12.1 ppg, 3.5 rpg) do will play a critical role in how far the Demos go. Physically Latu is one of the toughest matchups around and Montague – known best as “Fuzzy” – had an outstanding off-season developing into a devastating scorer. The pieces surrounding those two include transfer Charles Manigo Charles Manigo 6'1" | CG Jefferson | 2024 State OR (5.9 ppg, 3.7 rpg at Grant), high-energy post Carlos Rodriguez Carlos Rodriguez 6'3" | CG Jefferson | 2024 State OR , and athletic swingman D’Ryus Dent D’Ryus Dent 6'2" | SF Jefferson | 2025 State OR .
Cleveland had a good follow-up season to their state tournament appearance in 2002 and the graduation losses are big, some guys from that team are still around for head coach Sam Glasgow to have a team that will still be a tough out. One of those players coming back is senior Jackson Owens Jackson Owens 6'3" | CG Cleveland | 2024 State OR (14.3 ppg) who with his tough mid-range game has emerged as one of the top scorers in the PIL. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him top 20 points per game for the Warriors Point guard Will Susak Will Susak 6'0" | CG Cleveland | 2024 State OR will run the offense and returning big man Nate Crouser had a solid summer of development both physically and with his game. A couple of young guards in junior Finn Cooper Finn Cooper 5'8" | CG Cleveland | 2025 State OR and sophomore Jeremiah Pichon Jeremiah Pichon 6'0" | PG Cleveland | 2026 State OR will also be key contributors whether they are starting or coming off of the bench, otherwise, the rest of the team is new.
After winning the league outright and finishing third at state, head coach Heather Seely-Roberts has to replace the majority of that senior-dominated squad – including her twin sons Moroni and Malachi, both of whom were 6A All-State honorees. With those losses that means senior big man Evan Heisler Evan Heisler 6'9" | C Lincoln | 2024 State OR (6.3 ppg, 3.1 rpg, .620 fg%) will be elevated into a major role and he’s got the size and talent to get things done. He won’t be alone as senior forward Tanner Overby Tanner Overby 6'2" | PF Lincoln | 2024 State OR , who got some brief playing time last season, emerged as a legitimate scoring threat over the summer and Isaac Margolis Isaac Margolis 6'0" | PG Lincoln | 2024 State OR (1.2 ppg) returns as the projected starting point guard. The rest of the squad is totally new to the varsity level, but you can be assured that Seely-Roberts will have her team playing hard and pushing the pace on both ends in every single contest.
Wells certainly surprised some folks last year under head coach Jonny Canalin and the theme may remain the same again, especially after the unexpected departure of Diggy Griffin Diggy Griffin 6'5" | SF Rosemary Anderson Prep | 2025 State OR (15.8 ppg, 3.6 rpg) to Rosemary Anderson Prep. Back though is senior and four-year starter point guard Jacey Canalin Jacey Canalin 5'7" | PG Wells | 2024 State OR (17.4 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 5.0 apg, 2.6 spg) and the coach’s son will be counted on heavily for scoring, passing, and defensive pressure. After that, contributions will likely be made by committee. Lucas Devlin (3.4 ppg) and Cam Hammer (4.3 ppg) will knock down open shots and are experienced guards who play hard-nosed defense and Wilsonville transfer Grant Clemo Grant Clemo 6'5" | PF Wells | 2025 State OR will have a big role inside with his size and ability to rebound. Max Scherzer (2.4 ppg, 1.1 rpg) should also receive plenty of court time as will fellow junior Elliot Matthews.
There’s nowhere to go up for Franklin, who has the potential to really surprise some folks in 2023-24. The reason? Head coach Marc Grassman has a senior-dominated team that may be ready to convert their vast experience into wins. Dominic Papworth Dominic Papworth 6'2" | CG Franklin | 2024 State OR (14 ppg), Kwaje Laila Kwaje Laila 5'11" | SG Franklin | 2024 State OR (13 ppg), and Charles Grassman (6 ppg in 6 games) have been Lightning mainstays since their sophomore seasons and the trio should be primed to have big senior years. Fellow seniors Izrahiah Flechtner Izrahiah Flechtner 6'2" | SG Franklin | 2024 State OR (8 ppg) and Colby Christiansen Colby Christiansen 6'3" | SF Franklin | 2024 State OR are primed to be bigger contributors as well and both had solid off-seasons of development. Franklin doesn’t have a ton of size but 6-foot-7 junior Oliver Hensley may be one to keep an eye on.
Finally rounding up the list is McDaniel, who turns a new page with new head coach Arron Boone who comes over from Mollala. It’s been a tough couple of years for the Mountain Lions but Boone is hopeful the fresh start will lead to a positive outlook – and a few wins wouldn’t hurt either. Two seniors back who are ready to start righting the ship are Artimus Hebbe and Mekai Anderson, and a trio of juniors in Asson Gelly Asson Gelly 5'11" | PG McDaniel | 2025 State OR , Dylan Cheek Dylan Cheek 6'3" | SG McDaniel | 2025 State OR , and Justin Glover have the potential to blossom.