Father Judge is 14-5 overall and has a team as deep and talented as perhaps any ever to grace the Bill Fox Gym at Solly Ave. Head coach Chris Roantree has known winning during his time on the sideline, with Archbishop Wood under John Mosco and with Team Final on the AAU circuit. Collin Gillespie, Dereck Lively II, Rahsool Diggins, Daeshon Shepherd and Jalen Duren are just a few of the names Roantree has had a hand in developing, and now he’s leading his own program and showing what he can do overseeing a team.

The Crusaders dropped their league opener to Mosco and Archbishop Wood then rattled off wins against Lansdale Catholic, West Catholic, Cardinal O’Hara, and Conwell-Egan to find a nice groove before their matchup with Roman Catholic at home. Junior Kevair Kennedy was dynamic with 18 points, 12 rebounds and eight assists while senior Laquan Byrd went 7-11 from the field with 17 points and six boards in a 76-62 win over the Cahillites, marking their first win over Roman Catholic since 2011.  Upstart sophomore Derrick Morton-Rivera, son of former Neumann-Goretti standout D.J. Rivera, drilled four three-pointers on his way to 16 points and Nazir Tyler had a big game with three threes of his own and 16 points, six rebounds and four assists.

It was the Crusaders signature win of the season until four days later when it welcomed St. Joe’s Prep and absolutely routed the Hawks in a 75-57 victory. Morton-Rivera led the way going 7-11 from the floor with six three-pointers and a 21-point performance. Byrd had a double-double with 17 points and 11 rebounds and Kennedy had another impressive outing with 15 points on 10-12 shooting to go along with five assists and three steals. Tyler was huge again with 13 points, including three treys, five boards and five assists, and 6-6 senior big Anthony Lilley only had four points but controlled the glass with nine rebounds in a game that saw Father Judge score 23 points in a dominant fourth quarter.

Roantree’s group may realistically be the most talented and versatile team to ever play at Father Judge and the way they attack the rim in transition while finding open shooters for in-rhythm jumpers is something to watch.

Rucker, the 6-4 senior guard, was averaging 18.5 points per game heading into Friday’s contest with Cardinal O’Hara and had scored 20 or more points in seven games this season, with a season-high 34 against La Salle in the league opener. Ketner, the 6-7 senior wing, was avg. 18.4 ppg prior to the O’Hara game and had scored at least 20 points in five of the previous seven games. The way the two are playing off each other and using their unique skillsets as been a problem for Philadelphia Catholic League foes.

In a 68-56 win over Conwell-Egan, Rucker shot 10-15 from the floor with three three-pointers while finishing with 27 points and Ketner added a double-double with 20 points and 13 rebounds. While the Friars dropped a 75-66 loss to St. Joe’s Prep, it wasn’t without Ketner (25 points, 13 rebounds, two blocks) and Rucker (18 points, four rebounds, four steals) putting together solid nights then the two combined for 43 points in a 74-62 victory over Devon Prep with Ketner controlling the game at both ends on his way to 30 points on 11-15 shooting.

Bethea poured in 17 points in Archbishop Wood’s 62-51 win at Devon Prep and became the Vikings all-time leading scorer, surpassing former standout and two-time Philadelphia Catholic League MVP Rahsool Diggins (UMass) who had 1,513 during his career. Bethea, the 6-5 senior and Miami (Fla.) commit, currently stands at 1,517 career points, which he only scored in three seasons in Warminster. He played sparingly as a freshman and did not score a single point. He has the opportunity to distance himself from the rest of the pack with a few additional regular season games upcoming followed by the postseason.

The win over Devon Prep also marked John Mosco's 200th career victory as head coach of the Vikings.

Sorber scored 16 points in a 67-26 drubbing of Conwell-Egan and secured the Archbishop Ryan all-time mark, surpassing former standout Izaiah Brockington, who is now playing with the Birmingham Squadron - the NBA G-League affiliate of the New Orleans Pelicans. Brockington scored 1,292 over four seasons and, just like Bethea, Sorber passed the previous record holder in only three seasons with the Raiders. The 6-10 senior and Georgetown commit has scored 1,295 points in an Archbishop Ryan uniform.