Around the Region: High School Scores of Note

While local schools are closed this week for Winter Break, gyms across the area are busy with a number of holiday tournaments. All scores and stats are from the Philly.com Rally page linked at the bottom of this article.

Princeton Day School won the championship game of the Delran Holiday Tournament yesterday. Sophomore guard Davon Reed scored 22 of Princeton's 44 points as PDS beat Northern Burlington 44-41. I watched Reed play on Tuesday and wrote about it here .

6'9 junior, and SJU recruiting target, Mike Zangari had 31 points to lead Red Land High School to a 65-59 win over Pocono Mountain East. Hawk head coach Phil Martelli watched as Zangari powered Red Land past Father Judge earlier this month.

Saint Joseph's Prep, still playing without injured sophomore guard Steve Vasturia, dropped a 59-47 contest to Shipley despite 15 points from sophomore guard, and son of former SJU assistant coach, Miles Overton.

Neumann-Goretti won in impressive fashion, beating Plymouth-Whitemarsh 69-57. Pitt-bound senior Jaylen Bond had 27 points in the losing effort for PW. Neumann was led by one of the many talented sophomores in the area, Johnny Davis. Davis, a strong guard with size, had 15 points and 11 rebounds for Neumann.

High School Scoreboard

Davon Reed Powers Princeton Day School Past Delran

A week or so before Christmas, Alex Kline of TheRecruitScoop reported that Saint Joseph's became the second school to offer Princeton Day School sophomore guard Davon Reed. SJU head coach Phil Martelli offered the 6'4 guard after watching him on December 18th. I got a chance to see Reed today, as his Princeton Day School team improved to 4-3.

The game was played at Delran High School in South Jersey, as part of the Delran Holiday Tournament. The game, which was originally scheduled to be played yesterday, pitted Princeton Day against the host, Delran, in the day's first game. The second game of the day showcased Penn Tech and Northern Burlington.

Although only a sophomore, Reed is clearly one of his team's leaders, alongside senior guard AJ Rubin and senior forward Nate Apgar. Although these totals are unofficial (very unofficial!), I had Reed finishing the game with 23 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks. The majority of Davon's points came from the free throw line. His athleticism allowed him to create shots for himself off the dribble and get to the free-throw line as a result. Davon also drilled a deep three before exiting the game with a few minutes left and a 20-point lead. The highlight of the game came on a dunk by Reed, the result of a steal near halfcourt. With a defender trailing, Reed elevated and sent the crowd into a frenzy. After missing his first four free-throws of the game, Reed found his rhythm and hit most of his shots during the remainder of the game.

After trailing early, Princeton Day School went into the half resting on a 4-point lead. That lead ballooned as the second half wore on, and Princeton Day School left Delran today with a comfortable 24-point win.

Davon Reed is a player that the Saint Joseph's coaches have already identified and made a priority. Based on his play so far this season, and his incredibly high upside, it's only a matter of time before Davon begins to pile on the scholarship offers. Don't think for a moment that Saint Joseph's and VCU are the only schools that will be showing serious interest in the talented guard.

Photo of Davon Reed Courtesy of TheRecruitScoop

David Bruce Getting Looks

David Bruce, one-time Saint Joseph's signee and current Harcum Junior College big man, is once again attracting the attention of Division 1 schools. In an article yesterday by Jay Gomes of NJHoops.com, Bruce cited Saint Joseph's, Temple, Seton Hall, Iowa State, and Utah State as the schools showing him the most interest. According to the article, which is linked here the 6'9 Bruce is averaging just under 13 points per game and just over 8 rebounds per game. David would be able to suit up next year and have three years of eligibility remaining at the college level.

12/21 Odds and Ends

Some quick hitters before the day starts:

The Hawks are up in Boston tonight to take on Boston University at 7 pm tonight. The 3-7 Hawks are looking to snap a 5-game losing streak in their first game after finals.

In an interview here with TheRecruitScoop's Alex Kline, Dallas Anglin lists Saint Joseph's as one of the schools he is considering. Anglin, a 6'2 guard from Seton Hall Prep (NJ) is off to a very strong start to the season. Worth noting is that Anglin was teammates with current SJU freshman Ronald Roberts at Saint Peter's Prep.

Friends' Central had a big win last night at Philadelphia University over Imhotep Charter. Friends' Central got another solid outing out of senior guard Devin Coleman, who had, according to Philly.com, 16 points and 9 rebounds. Amile Jefferson led the way with 17 points and 7 boards.

On Sunday, Alex Kline reported that the Hawks had offered Princeton Day School sophomore Davon Reed over the weekend. Reed isn't the only player that Hawk head coach Phil Martelli watched over the weekend. He was also in attendance as Red Land (PA) beat Father Judge. An article linked here mentions that Martelli watched on as Mike Zangari had 24 points and 11 rebounds for Red Land. Zangari is a 6'9 junior who has been on the radar of the SJU coaching staff for quite some time.

Davon Reed Collects SJU Offer

Day in and day out, one of the very best people in the area at breaking news is TheRecruitScoop's Alex Kline. He broke news earlier today that is of note to Saint Joseph's fans. In the article linked below, Kline talks about the scholarship offer that Princeton Day School sophomore guard Davon Reed picked up last night. SJU head coach Phil Martelli was in attendance at the game, and offered the talented sophomore after. The article below has reaction from Reed about the offer.

In the coming day or so, I will have an article on Friends' Central up, with specific focus on senior Devin Coleman, junior Amile Jefferson, and sophomore Karon Davis.

Davon Reed Gets SJU Scholarship Offer

Local Coaches Watch on as Friends' Central Upends ANC

On Wednesday night, in the frigid cold, three of the area's most recognizable college coaches were seated in a high school gym in Bryn Athyn. What would drag Phil Martelli, Fran Dunphy, and Jay Wright to a suburban high school gym on a 25-degree December night? How about two of the most talented teams in the area. Academy of the New Church boasts a starting frontcourt with players committed to Pitt, Villanova, and Syracuse. On the other side of the ball, Friends' Central stars one of the best juniors in the nation, in 6'8 forward Amile Jefferson. They also feature one of the better unsigned seniors around: athletic combo guard Devin Coleman.

While I was unable to attend the game, Rick O'Brien of the Inquirer was on hand. His write-up of the game is below, and it's a good one.

Worth highlighting from the article are the college lists of both Amile Jefferson and Devin Coleman. Coleman, who had 19 points and 11 boards, said that he is hearing from "Saint Joseph's, La Salle, Rice, and Maryland." His teammate, Amile Jefferson, who went for 12 and 12, mentioned visits to Temple, Villanova, Maryland, Georgetown, and Duke. He also said that he is considering "Syracuse, North Carolina, and Saint Joseph's."

The article is linked here

12/14 Odds and Ends

Nothing here really warrants an article in and of itself, so here's just a collection of random bits of information. I'm in the process of trying to piece together some interviews and other articles.


This Sunday, Newark Eastside will be playing West Catholic at Villanova. Why is that worth mentioning? Newark Eastside stars some players that are getting looks from the SJU coaching staff, including junior Tariq Carey and sophomore Will Joyce. I posted an article at the end of November about Carey and Joyce. Newark Eastside got a visit from Hawk head coach Phil Martelli the day after his team beat Rutgers at the Palestra. Check out the article here .


On the high school front, another good game in the coming week is next Monday at Villanova University. Friends' Central will be taking on Imhotep Charter. Friends' Central stars junior forward Amile Jefferson, who is being recruited heavily by Duke, Villanova, Georgetown, and a plethora of others. They also have a terrific tandem of guards in unsigned senior Devin Coleman and sophomore Karon Davis. Imhotep is one of the best squads in Philadelphia. Period. They have a strong inside game with George Washington commit Erik Copes, who is a steal for the Colonials. Imhotep also has Ameen Tanksley and David Appolon, in addition to Brandon Austin, a sophomore who is going to be a star.

Two high school players from the PA/NJ area seem to no longer have the Hawks on their college lists. According to Alex Kline, Myles Davis has narrowed his list down to Villanova, Xavier, and Pitt. Read it here . Another 2012 guard, Life Center Academy's (NJ)Andre Horne, has also provided an update in his recruitment. On NJHoops, he mentioned Florida, Siena, Temple, Virginia Tech, Rider, Iona, Northeastern, and several others as the schools actively recruiting him.

Check back over the coming days for some (hopefully) new information.

Davon Reed Off to Strong Start

Although it's still extremely early in the recruiting process, there are a number of high school sophomores who are receiving interest from the Hawks. Over the past month or so, Hawk Hill Hardwood has reported on Newark Eastside's Will Joyce, and his visits to campus. I have also brought to light Rondae Jefferson's attendance at the Rutgers-SJU game. Another sophomore with interest from the Hawks is Princeton Day School (NJ) sophomore Davon Reed. Reed has been a target of the staff for quite some time, and was in attendance for the team's home opener against Western Kentucky.

Reed, a 6'3 combo guard, is off to a terrific start to the 2010-2011 season. In a win yesterday against the George School (PA), Reed netted 31 points, grabbed 10 boards, and had 4 steals. According to the NJ.com article linked below, Reed is averaging 26 points per game through his team's first three games this season. They play again tonight against Pennington. Reed is just one of many area players that the coaching staff is tracking this year.


NJ.com Article on Princeton Day School

Hawks Fall to Golden Gophers

After three consecutive losses, the Hawks faced a tough task tonight: breaking a losing streak against Tubby Smith-coached, 20th-ranked Minnesota. In the end, the Hawks fell 83-73, despite brilliant performances from sophomore guard Tay Jones and freshman guard Langston Galloway. In the losing effort, Jones had 29 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists, while Galloway contributed 21 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists, and 7 steals.

Coming into the game, Minnesota had a significant advantage in the frontcourt, and they took advantage of it tonight. Forward Trevor Mbakwe had 12 points and 16 boards for the Golden Gophers. Ralph Sampson III was also a factor, scoring 10 points and grabbing 5 rebounds. While he is not the most famous player in his family, guard Devoe Joseph was a huge factor for Minnesota, hitting 4 3's en route to a 19 point performance. Devoe's brother, Corey, is a freshman at Texas this year and was a McDonald's All-American last year.

The officiating in the game came into question on a number of occasions, including one specific instance in the second half. Hawk freshman Ronald Roberts, who had a solid night with 6 points and 6 boards in 20 minutes, was hammered while going up strong at the rim. When the whistles remained silent, the Hagan went wild, with one person in particular vehemently disagreeing with the call. Saint Joseph's head coach Phil Martelli ripped his suit coat off while arguing the call, and hurled the coat down his bench.

As mentioned above, the Hawks were led by Jones and Galloway, but also got solid performances from a number of other players. Daryus Quarles had 6 points and 5 assists and CJ Aiken led the team with 7 rebounds.

There were a few familiar faces in the building tonight. First, foremost, and tallest was Ralph Sampson II, who stood head and shoulder above everyone else in the Hagan. Current Philadelphia 76er Jodie Meeks was also in attendance, behind the Minnesota bench. Meeks was recruited by and played for Tubby Smith while he was at Kentucky.

Hawks Still Recruiting NMH's Cummins

In early August, I profiled Northfield Mount Hermon's 2012 big man Evan Cummins, with some insight into his game and recruitment from NMH head coach John Carroll. At the time, the Hawks were one of the many teams tracking the 6'8 forward. It seems that Evan is still a recruiting target of the SJU coaches, as assistant coach Dave Duda was on hand as NMH beat Hun School (NJ) 66-49 on Saturday.

According to Coach John Carroll, who I caught up with earlier today, Evan had 4 points on 2-5 shooting to go along with 15 rebounds in the victory Saturday, with Dave Duda on hand. In a Sunday win against Blair Academy (NJ), Evan had 8 points, 8 rebounds, and 2 blocks. On Sunday, coaches from Stanford, Penn, Davidson, Bucknell, Boston University, and La Salle were in the house watching the talented junior. In addition to the interest of all these schools, Evan also has offers from the University of Virginia, Notre Dame, and Northwestern, according to his coach.

Photo of Evan courtesy of New England Recruiting Report

SJU Looks to Rebound at Princeton

At 5 o'clock today, the Hawks look to snap a two-game losing streak, when they play their third consecutive road game of the week at Princeton. On Wednesday, the Hawks were bullied on the boards in a 62-50 loss at Drexel. Drexel big man Daryl McCoy had a career day, scoring 15 points and collecting 18 rebounds. Saint Joseph's was outrebounded 41-19 for the game. Another key stat was Drexel shooting 25 free throws compared to 11 for the Hawks.

With less than 48 hours to catch their breath, the Hawks traveled to the Main Line for a Friday night Holy War date with Villanova. In the 71-60 loss, Saint Joseph's was outrebounded 45-32. SJU was led on Friday by Carl Jones' 19 points and 5 rebounds. Freshman Daryus Quarles had one of his best games in his young career, scoring 12 points on 3-3 shooting from beyond the arc.

Seven games into the season, the 3-4 Hawks have shown glimpses of great promise, while also making mistakes and mental lapses typical of such a young team. Rebounding has been a concern so far this season, with the team averaging just under 34 boards a game. This ranks them 254th nationally in rebounds per game. Princeton isn't nearly as strong on the glass as Drexel, Villanova, or Western Kentucky. The glass could be a deciding factor in today's game, with the Hawks looking for a win before facing nationally ranked Minnesota at home on Wednesday.