Five Takeaways: Collegiate vs. Steward
It was an epic and entertaining battle between two schools that are very similar, but two teams that are very different. For years the Collegiate School and Steward School have been two of the best academic private institutions in the Richmond area, and now both are starting to build solid basketball programs. Collegiate, who starts two seniors and three juniors, came in at 13-1 on the season and look to be one of the top teams in the Richmond area in Head Coach Del Harris’ second year, and Steward, who doesn’t have a single senior in their rotation, is undergoing a transition with new Head Coach Curt Kassab.
Collegiate’s experience showed early, as they jumped out to a quick lead and led 26-9 by the end of the first quarter. They continued to put on the pressure, despite their offense puttering in the second quarter, and they went into half ahead 35-19.
Collegiate come out of halftime and went on a quick 5-1 run, but then things changed. Steward started packing in their zone, forcing deep shots and holding them to only one shot, and they started to make shots and play with energy. They ended the third quarter on a 15-0 run, heading into the fourth quarter down just 40-35. The fourth quarter was a stalemate for a little bit, but Collegiate was able to hold on, and they pulled away for a 55-44 win to move to 14-1 on the season. Here’s a look at some of the takeaways from the game.
Collegiate is a Legitimate Contender in Richmond
Sitting at 14-1, their best start in 40 years, Collegiate not only has a great record, but they’ve dominated the competition early this year. They have won 13 of 14 games by double digits, including wins over traditional powers Cape Henry and St. Chris, and their only win that wasn’t by double digits was a two point win against a very good STAB team, and their only loss came to the #2 team in the state in Trinity Episcopal. After a solid season with Harris in his first season as Head Coach, Collegiate’s culture has seemed to change already and they are legitimate contenders in just Harris’ second season. We’ll look at some of the reasons why moving forward.
Steward Needs Nothing but Experience Moving Forward
Steward Head Coach Curt Kassab has had a history of rebuilding programs into contenders, his last one being the Deep Run program, and now that he’s at a private school it’s only a matter of time before he can get more talent, but it’s plausible that he could get it done without bringing in new pieces. Kassab starts two juniors, a sophomore and two freshmen, all who are learning on the job and getting better every day. One of his best players is hurt in sophomore point guard Jabari Atkinson, who will be back next year from a knee injury, and his two freshmen have been his most productive players so far. It will be interesting to see how they develop moving forward.
Collegiate Front Court as Versatile as They Come
The Collegiate front court of 2018 Jack Wyatt and 2019 Robbie Beran is the biggest reason that they have a made such a jump already, and it’s how tough they are to match up. Wyatt, who was Collegiate’s top player last year, is a Hampden-Sydney commit who has been putting up big numbers throughout the year. He had a huge 46 point, 15 rebound game against Amelia Academy earlier this year, has been the leader both in production and communication so far this year. He finished with 13 points and 6 rebounds last night.
Junior Robbie Beran has been the big addition for Collegiate this season, as the 6’7” forward brings length, shooting and production to the team. Beran has division one offers from double digit schools, picking up his most recent from American University yesterday. His mix of production, skill set and high IQ makes him extremely hard to matchup with, and he’s provided another dimension that they were missing last year. He finished with 11 points and 8 rebounds last night.
There’s a third member of this group as well, and it’s 2019 Ayinde Budd. The athletic, high-motor 6’5” forward plays well in transition, is a lock down defender and he can make energy plays above the rim where he thrives and is strong enough to finish through contact. Budd was the most productive player last night for Collegiate, as he finished with 17 points, four assists and four steals.
Efton Reid Up Next Up in Richmond
There have been a number of big time, big men prospects out of Richmond the last few years, the main ones are 2019 Armando Bacot of Trinity Episcopal and 2020 Isaiah Todd of John Marshall. The next one to keep an eye on is freshman big man Efton Reid of Steward School. The 6’10” big man has a soft touch with both hands, tremendous footwork and a skill set that is beyond his years as a 15 year old. He seals well on posts, can pass and run the offense at the high post, has a soft touch out to about 18 feet and he pursues the basketball well as a rebounder on both ends. He still has to tone his body and get more athletic so he can run the floor better, but he has been productive and shown a lot of upside with his ability to make shots and hold down the middle at such a young age. He finished with 17 points, 11 rebounds and three blocks last night against one of the top front courts in the city.
Culture is Big and These Programs Show It
There aren’t many coaches who are more of “culture coaches”, as I call it, than Del Harris and Curt Kassab, and that’s why it’s understandable that these two programs are on the way up and will likely compete for a while. Traditionally, there are better programs to go to in Benedictine, Trinity Episcopal and St. Chris, but these coaches will get their programs to the level of these other ones. Expect to see these two programs to continue the up and up moving forward.