PIAA Class 5A boys basketball championship preview: Franklin Regional vs. Imhotep Charter

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Thursday, March 21, 2024 | 11:01 AM

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PIAA Class 5A boys basketball championship

Franklin Regional (27-3) vs. Imhotep Charter (28-3)

8 p.m. Friday at Giant Center, Hershey

District seeds: Franklin Regional 7-2; Imhotep Charter 12-1

Coaches: Jesse Reed, Franklin Regional; Andre Noble, Imhotep Charter

State titles: Franklin Regional 0; Imhotep Charter 9

Players to watch: Cam Rowell, Franklin Regional; Ahmad Nowell, Imhotep Charter

Probable starting lineup: Franklin Regional: 1 Colin Masten (Sr., G), 2 Cam Rowell (Sr., G), 3 Cooper Rankin (Sr., G), 10 Connor Crossey (Jr., G), 11 Fin Hutchison (Sr., G). Imhotep Charter: 0 Ahmad Nowell (Sr., PG), 2 RJ Smith (So. G), 4 Latief Lorenzano-White (So., G), 10 Zaahir Muhammad-Gray (So., F), 13 Ma’Kye Taylor (Sr., F)

How they got here: Franklin Regional defeated Warwick, 68-53; Selinsgrove, 56-45; Shaler, 63-51; and Moon, 60-43; Imhotep Charter defeated Pottstown, 64-46; Exeter Township, 83-40; Abington Heights, 56-46; and Archbishop Ryan, 52-48.

Layup lines: Not since 1997 has Franklin Regional made it this far in the PIAA boys basketball postseason. … The Panthers continued their march through the state bracket with a 60-43 win over Moon, the team they lost to in the WPIAL final 53-48. Rowell scored a game-high 17 points, Cooper Rankin added 12 and Fin Hutchison and Colin Masten had 11 apiece in the semifinal victory. … The Panthers have lost once since Jan. 12. That is 16 wins in 17 games. … Franklin Regional’s last three state-playoff opponents have had at least the same amount of wins as the Panthers. … Reed was a senior at Greensburg Central Catholic in 2011 when the Centurions lost to Imhotep, 67-34, in the Class 2A state championship at Penn State. … Franklin Regional made the 4A state final in 1997 and lost to District 1’s Plymouth Whitemarsh, 50-45, at the old Hersheypark Arena. The Panthers also were the WPIAL runner-up that year. … Two-time defending state champion Imhotep Charter, the champion of District 1 (Philadelphia), edged past Archbishop Ryan, 52-48, in the semifinals to give longtime coach Andre Noble his 500th win. … Imhotep Charter has nine state titles (2009, ’11, ’12, ’13, ’17, ’18, ’19, ’22, and ’23). It is 9-0 all-time in the state finals. Imhotep Charter, ranked No. 21 in the nation by USA Today, won three titles in 2A, one in 3A, three in 4A and two in 5A. … Talented guard Ahmad Nowell, who had a 26-point game in the quarterfinals, is a Connecticut commit. Senior 6-foot-7 forward Ma’Kye Taylor is an Albany recruit. They have an athletic supporting cast that features goggles-clad 6-4 sophomore Latief Lorenzano White, along with shifty guard RJ Smith. Muhammad-Gray is 6-6. Freshman Kevin Benson is a key reserve. … The Panthers’ last five state titles have been won by double figures. They beat Exeter last year 78-40. … The schools are 300 miles apart.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

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