SEPA Mid-Season Top 10 “Private” School Teams

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With the 2024-25 high school basketball schedule deep into league play games, now seems like a suitable time to present the latest edition of the Top 10 southeastern Pennsylvania “private” school team rankings.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>1. Penn Charter:</strong> The Quakers (13-4) are 7-1 in their last eight games. Their only loss was to DMV powerhouse Georgetown Prep. During this recent stretch PC has collected wins over previously undefeated Haverford School as well as Inter-Ac contenders Malvern Prep and SCH Academy. As expected, [player_tooltip player_id='1136565' first='Jake' last='West'] (20 ppg.; Northwestern commit), [player_tooltip player_id='2235863' first='Matt' last='Gilhool'] (LSU commit) and [player_tooltip player_id='1271429' first='Kai' last='Shinholster'] (Minnesota commit) have been outstanding. Still, it is the stellar play of “glue guys” such as combo guard Jamal Hicks, Jr., 2028 phenom [player_tooltip player_id='2450669' first='Carter' last='Smith'] and wing [player_tooltip player_id='1486754' first='TJ' last='Bryson'] that have landed PC in our No. 1 slot. Over PC's last two contests, Hicks is averaging 13.5 ppg. and Smith has posted 10 ppg.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2. Westtown School: </strong>The Moose have raced out to a 10-4 start record thanks to major contributions from up and down their roster. Last week in a win over Academy of the New Church, [player_tooltip player_id='1484307' first='Jayden' last='Forsythe'] (Xavier commit) splashed 4 threes on his way to 16 points. In their recent defeat of Germantown Friends, Marshall Bailey knocked down 6 triples and finished with 22 points. Meanwhile superstar guard [player_tooltip player_id='1383005' first='Cameron' last='Wallace'] (Temple commit) and 6'7” wing [player_tooltip player_id='1369805' first='Jayden' last='Kelsey'] (Binghamton commit) have played fantastic ball too. Other prospects such as 3-level scoring point guard [player_tooltip player_id='2427312' first='Wilson' last='Udo'], combo-guard [player_tooltip player_id='2452096' first='Ajani' last='Stewart'] and 6'10” power forward [player_tooltip player_id='2492438' first='Adam' last='Walker'] have made major contributions too. A prospect on the rise for Westtown is 6'6” combo guard [player_tooltip player_id='2569807' first='Declan' last='Ehigie'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>3. St. Joe's Prep:</strong> SJP (11-4) has racked up eight straight victories, including impressive PCL wins over Roman Catholic, Archbishop Carroll, and a surging Devon Prep squad. SJP has found tremendous success with their four-guard line-up that plays an up-tempo, balanced attack style of ball. Dayton commit [player_tooltip player_id='1197607' first='Jaron' last='McKie'] is their leading scorer at 17 points per contest, but three other players average over 10 points per night. McKie is also shooting a ridiculous 56% from deep (36 of 64 3PA). Combo-guard [player_tooltip player_id='1460800' first='Jordan' last='Ellerbee'] (FGCU commit) is posting 16 points per game. Transfer Mehki Robertson (12 ppg.) has found his groove too. Swiss Army Knife prospect [player_tooltip player_id='1188621' first='Olin' last='Chamberlain'] is tossing in 10.3 ppg. 6'5” freshman [player_tooltip player_id='2563334' first='Julian' last='McKie'] has earned a spot in the rotation and has shown tremendous upside.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>4. Roman Catholic:</strong> This season Roman has gotten off to a 11-3 start against a brutal “national” schedule. They have been on fire of late, winning 8 of their last 9. That lone defeat was a two-point loss to St. Joe's Prep. Power forward [player_tooltip player_id='1188620' first='Shareef' last='Jackson'] (13 &amp; 9 per night; Lafayette commit) and wing prospect [player_tooltip player_id='1406768' first='Sammy' last='Jackson'] (15 ppg.; multiple DI offers) have been outstanding in January. Point guard [player_tooltip player_id='2195052' first='Tyler' last='Sutton'] (No. 1 ranked 2027 prospect) has found his scoring groove and is now registering 13 ppg. Seniors [player_tooltip player_id='2242447' first='CJ' last='Miller'] (8 ppg.) and Sebastain Edwards (7.5) are fantastic two-way guards. Class of 2027 guard prospect [player_tooltip player_id='2348975' first='Elijah' last='Guer'] (6'4”) has come on strong this month.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>5. Devon Prep (10-2): </strong>The defending 3A state champions have been rolling of late. DP has collected five straight wins in the Philly Catholic League. Included in that win streak are victories over ranked opponents Father Judge and Bonner. Devon Prep's rotation boasts four players who are contributing 10+ points per night. It is no secret that their No. 1 option is stretch-4 prospect [player_tooltip player_id='1230538' first='Zane' last='Conlon'] (Southeast University commit; 15.5 ppg.), but the Tide are getting outstanding efforts from a host of prospects. Hybrid forward [player_tooltip player_id='1874206' first='Reece' last='Craft'] (Swarthmore commit) is stuffing the stat book with 12 points and 5 rebounds a game. Combo guard [player_tooltip player_id='1865353' first='Mason' last='Thear'] has been good for 11 points and 5 assists each night. Three-point ace [player_tooltip player_id='2227000' first='Calvin' last='Smith'] (41% from deep) is supplying 11 ppg.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>6. Bonner &amp; Prendergast (12-3)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>7. Malvern Prep (11-5)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>8.</strong> <strong>Father Judge (10-5)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>9. Haverford School (13-2)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>10. Allentown Central Catholic (13-2) &nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->