Westtown 7-footer Derek Lively II highlights Non-PIAA All-State team
By Mike Gross — LNP Media Group
It was late in a quarterfinal game of the Pennsylvania Independent Schools Athletic Association playoffs, and tournament favorite Westtown was in trouble.
Trouble from which seniors Dereck Lively, Jameel Brown and Quin Berger – all of whom have been chosen to the Pennsylvania Sports Writers Non-PIAA All-State team – were about to lead an escape.
(The Non-PIAA All-State team includes players from independent schools not affiliated with the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association.)
| FIRST TEAM | ||
| Derek Lively II | Sr. | Westtown |
| Kachi Nzeh | Jr. | George |
| Elmarko Jackson | Jr. | Academy of the New Church |
| Jameel Brown | Sr. | Westtown |
| Muhsin Muhammad | Jr. | Germantown Friends |
Malvern Prep led Westtown 48-43, with the ball, with 2:43 left. Berger scored eight straight points for the Chargers, who went into the final half-minute trailing by two.
Berger found Brown on a baseline inbounds play to tie it. Lively, who’s 7-1, blocked a shot at the other end, and the ball found Berger, who rushed to the other end and got it to Lively on a pick-and-pop for a 3-pointer.
Swish. Westtown 54, Malvern Prep 51.
The Moose went on to their fourth PISAA title.
“I told our kids how lucky we were,’’ Westtown coach Seth Berger said, “to have three seniors who only cared about winning. Especially when one of them is going to be a (college) one-and-done going to the NBA, one is a high major recruit and the other one was looking for his first D1 offer.’’
The one-and-done, Lively, is the No. 1-ranked senior in the country, and the Non-PIAA Player of the Year, an honor that goes to the highest vote-getter in voting by a media panel from throughout the state.
Lively, who grew up in Bellefonte, arrived at Westtown, a boarding school near West Chester, as a 6-9 freshman. He will attend Duke and likely join Westtown alums Mo Bamba and Cam Reddish in the NBA.
Lively, whom Berger calls a “modern-day center’’ scores and defends inside and out. He averaged 14 points, 14 rebounds and 4.5 blocked shots per game.
Brown, a 6-4 guard, joined Lively on the first team for the second straight year. A Penn State recruit, he transferred from Haverford for his senior season and averaged 15 points, seven rebounds and one steal.
Berger, the coach’s son, made the third team this year, and the second team in 2021. He led the team in scoring at 16 points per game, and averaged five assists and four rebounds. He will attend St. Joseph’s.
An emerging star on the first team is Kachi Nzeh, a 6-8 junior from the George School in Newtown, who averaged 19.5 points, 12 rebounds and two blocks. His scholarship offers include Maryland, Illinois, Iowa, Penn State, Miami and Virginia Commonwealth.
Also jumping from the first team a year ago: Muhsin Muhammad, a 6-3 junior from Germantown Friends who averaged 21.5 points and 6.5 rebounds.
Also on the first team is Elmarko Jackson, a 6-3 junior from Academy of the New Church. Jackson fills out a box score, averaging 17.9 points, 5.7 rebounds, 5.4 assists and two steals. His offers include Syracuse, Penn State, LaSalle, California, Maryland, Minnesota, Seton Hall, Mississippi, Rider, Virginia Commonwealth, Drake, Siena, and Bryant.
Second-team selection Xavian Lee led Perkiomen School to the PISAA championship game and a berth in the National Prep Championship tournament. He averaged 17 points and 4.5 assists, and will attend Princeton.
The lone sophomore on the second team, 6-4 Christian Bliss of the George School, has already scored 916 career points. He averaged 19 points, five rebounds and 4.5 assists for a 15-5 team that reached the PISAA semifinals.
Bliss has offers from St. Peter’s, Drexel, Siena, Loyola Chicago, Bryant and other Division 1 schools.
Seth Berger, whose team was 31-7 and won the Friends Schools League championship for the eighth straight year, shared Coach of the Year with Ben Luber, a former Penn State guard who has built a power in three seasons at the George School.
All-State teams for each of the six PIAA classifications will be
announced over the next week, starting with the Class 1A team on Tuesday.
Pennsylvania Sportswriters’ Non-PIAA All-State Team
Player of the Year: Derek Lively II, Westtown
Coach of the Year: Seth Berger, Westtown
Coach of the Year: Ben Luber, George
FIRST TEAM
Derek Lively II, 7′ 1″, senior, Westtown
Kachi Nzeh, 6′ 8″, junior, George
Elmarko Jackson, 6′ 3″, junior, Academy of the New Church
Jameel Brown, 6′ 4″, senior, Westtown
Muhsin Muhammad, 6′ 3″, junior, Germantown Friends
SECOND TEAM
Christian Bliss, 6′ 4″, sophomore, George
Christian Kirkland, 6′ 6″, junior, Friends Select
Anthony McCall, 6′ 4″, senior, Academy of the New Church
Xavian Lee, 6′ 2″, senior, Perkiomen
Chris Moncrief, 6′ 4″, senior, Kiski
THIRD TEAM
Quin Berger, 6′ 2″, senior, Westtown
Augie Gerhart, 6′ 9″, junior, Hill
Kevin McCarthy, 6′ 2″, sophomore, Episcopal Academy
Mark Butler, 6′, junior, Penn Charter
Ryan Williams, 6′ 2″, sophomore, Malvern Prep