Exeter overwhelmed by nationally ranked Imhotep Charter in PIAA title game
HERSHEY — Imhotep Charter is as good as advertised. Maybe better.
The Exeter Eagles found that out quickly Friday in the PIAA Class 5A championship game as the Panthers forced six first-quarter turnovers and built an early double-digit lead en route to a 78-40 victory at Giant Center.
The District 3 champion Eagles (27-7), who had won eight straight postseason games, never had a chance against the nationally ranked Panthers (29-3).
Exeter won on the strength of its defense this season but it found no way to stop uber prospect Justin Edwards or his talented teammates, who made their way easily to basket in building early leads of 12-2 and 31-9. The Eagles hadn’t allowed more than 73 points in any game this season.
Edwards, playing in front of his future college coach, Kentucky’s John Calipari, lived up to the hype of being ranked the nation’s best high school player. He’s 6-7 with the wing span of a 7-footer, glides across the court smoothly and causes constant disruption at the point of Imhotep’s fullcourt zone trap.
He had several early steals and turned them into layups, and also blocked a couple shots. He had 11 first-half points and six rebounds in helping the Panthers to a 43-21 halftime lead.
The Eagles, who were down 22 midway through the second quarter, settled down after that and started hitting some shots. Aidan Dauble, an undaunted freshman, came off the bench and knocked down a 3-pointer on his first shot.
Kevin Saenz and Alex Kelsey were finally able to crack Imhotep’s press in the final minutes of the second half, leading to some transition baskets. Kelsey took it in against Edwards on one sequence.
Edwards finished with a game-high 19 points on 8-of-14 shooting. Kelsey and Anthony Caccese each scored 10 points for Exeter; Caceese had a game-high eight rebounds.
The run to the state championship game was just the second in program history and the first since the Eagles lot to Midland in 1974.
Afterward, all that was left was to wonder was, as some people suggested before the season, this the best in Imhotep team in history, which is saying a lot. The Panthers have won nine PIAA championships since 2009. They’ve never lost a state title game. They’ve won an incredible 27 straight state playoff games. They are a true dynasty.
After Friday’s performance the Panthers can make a claim as the best team in the PIAA, regardless of classification.
Imhotep hasn’t been beaten in a PIAA Tournament game since 2016, when it lost to eventual state champ Neumann-Goretti in a Class 3A semifinal. In 2020 the Panthers won their first two tournament games before play was suspended by the coronavirus outbreak. In 2021 they were 14-0 but were not allowed by their school to participate in the tournament, again because of COVID-19 concerns. They could’ve won another state title or two.
They won Class 4A titles in 2017, 2018 and 2019 and the Class 5A title last year, beating New Castle 54-39. The higher classification hasn’t slowed them one bit: They have won their first four state games by 52, 36, 27 and 22 points this year. The second win in that string came against Muhlenberg, 68-32. Their nine wins in Class 5A have come by an average of 26 points; just one was closer than 15.
The Panthers are ranked No. 11 in the nation. They’ve played a national schedule. And they feature Edwards, a Kentucky recruit ranked as the No. 1 player in the nation by ESPN.com.
Edwards is part of a Panthers team that includes 6-2 guard Ahmad Nowell, ranked among the top juniors in the nation, and 6-1 senior point guard Rahmir Barno, who’s committed to play at Florida Gulf Coast. Edwards and Barno were All-State first-team picks last year, Nowell was a second-team pick.
The SEC-bound 6-7 senior is one of three 1,000-point scorers.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Final | |
| Exeter | 6 | 15 | 14 | 5 | 40 |
| Imhotep Charter | 16 | 27 | 22 | 13 | 78 |
| Eagles (27-7) | FG | FT | 3’s | A | R | Points |
| Paschall | 2-4 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 2 | 4 | 4 |
| Kelsey | 3-5 | 2-5 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| Saenz | 3-9 | 4-4 | 0-2 | 3 | 1 | 10 |
| Snyder | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Garvin | 1-7 | 0-1 | 0-5 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| Caccese | 5-11 | 2-4 | 0-0 | 0 | 8 | 12 |
| Dauble | 1-3 | 0-0 | 1-3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Ware | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Turman | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sheerin | 0-0 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Bauer | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Nester | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Totals | 15-41 | 9-16 | 1-13 | 8 | 19-24 | 40 |
| Panthers (29-3) | FG | FT | 3’s | A | R | Points |
| Nowell | 4-6 | 4-5 | 0-1 | 4 | 3 | 12 |
| Barno | 5-10 | 2-2 | 0-2 | 3 | 4 | 12 |
| Edwards | 8-14 | 1-2 | 2-5 | 7 | 2 | 19 |
| Taylor | 3-4 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 3 | 6 |
| Satterfield | 3-4 | 1-2 | 2-3 | 0 | 3 | 9 |
| Smith | 1-2 | 3-4 | 1-2 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Muhammad-Gray | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| White | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Saunders | 1-3 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Hunter | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| M. Muhammad | 1-1 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Henderson | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
| Myatt | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Carter | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Totals | 30-52 | 11-15 | 7-20 | 10 | 30-33 | 78 |
Turnovers: Exeter 19, Imhotep Charter 10.
