When national broadcasters discuss college and professional basketball, it is common to hear them mention the word “Philadelphia.”

   “From the playgrounds of Philadelphia . . . from the city of Philadelphia . . . honed his skills in the streets and gyms of Philadelphia . . .”

   Only three other cities – New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles – have spawned more NBA basketball players than Philadelphia. Villanova University has produced 39 NBA talents; Temple (35) and LaSalle (22) possess enough ammunition to brag, too.

   “Growing up with my dad (John Griffin) coaching hoops at St. Joseph’s University until I was six years old definitely helped me to learn about Philadelphia basketball,” said Roman Catholic first-year coach Matt Griffin, a former standout player and assistant coach at St. Joseph’s Prep under legendary – and current – coach Speedy Morris. “I have been in love with Philadelphia hoops and the history of the game in this city ever since.”

   While reaching the NBA, or even making a college roster, remains an anomaly, there are multiple hundreds of local high school athletes who have partaken in a game of hoops at arguably the most revered venue in America – the Palestra on 235 South 33rd Street.

   From 1942 through 1998 and from 2007 through the present, the Palestra has hosted the Catholic League basketball championship. Last year, both the boys and the girls entertained a packed house with battles that came down to the final seconds before Roman Catholic dispatched Neumann-Goretti, 72-65, in the boys’ game a few hours after Archbishop Wood edged Neumann-Goretti, 40-36, in the girls’ contest.

   Ultimately, all four of those teams seized PIAA state titles in Hershey – Roman the boys’ AAAA, Neumann-Goretti boys the AAA, Archbishop Wood girls the AAA, and Neumann-Goretti girls the AA.  

With the 2016-17 season nearing commencement, several players and coaches were asked to reflect on the aura of not only playing at the Palestra, but representing a city that is recognized by basketball experts past and present as synonymous with the term basketball excellence.

   “It’s unlike playing at any other gym,” said Archbishop Wood senior Cassie Sebold. “It's such a cool place to play at because of how intense the whole atmosphere is. It's so loud, but at the same time when you’re playing, you don't even hear the crowd, and the lights are so bright, so once you step on the court it's definitely intimidating.”

Sebold recalls warming up as a freshman, when she was one of the first players off the Wood bench.

   “I remember being so nervous and being scared I was going to miss a layup or shoot an air-ball because of how tense it made me feel,” said Sebold.

 Sebold said being a part of the Catholic League is “great because of the high level of competition. There's never just one team that's so much better than all of the others, so it's always interesting to see who's going to come back the next year and be good and who's going to be down.”

   Sebold said it will be a challenge to defend the Philadelphia Catholic League (PCL) title because the Vikings are the team for which every team will be gunning.

   “But it also gives us the motivation to work harder, because in the end we want to get back to the Palestra and win again,” said Sebold. “As a senior I've been a part of a team that has gone to the Palestra the past three years, which is crazy. Although we have only won one out of the three times, I think it still gives us an advantage because we've had so much experience playing there.”

   Sebold’s teammate, senior Shannon May, grew up watching her aunt, former Archbishop Wood and LaSalle University star Kelly Greenberg, coach at Penn.

   “I would be at the Palestra all the time, so actually being able to play on the court is so special to me,” said May. “Even when I am just on the court warming up, it is so intimidating. There are so many people, so many lights, and so much on the line.”

Neumann-Goretti junior Jabria Ingram admitted that she was nervous before last year’s champs.

   “It's a lot of jitters in the beginning, but you get the jitters out once you start playing and it's like any other game,” she said. “You want to play like it's your last game.”

She said that she and senior standout Chyna Nixon understand what is at stake.

    “We're looking forward to seeing (Archbishop Wood) again,” said Ingram. “The best teams lose the toughest games. It's all about how we bounce back.”

   Neumann-Goretti’s male counterparts face the same challenge, though the Saints have lost to Roman Catholic in the championship two straight seasons.

   “When playing in the Palestra, compared to other games, it's a feeling like no other,” he said. “All eyes are on you and your team and the pressure is on. You get nervous and excited at the same time.”     

“When my name is in that conversation with being a part of great Philadelphia basketball, I feel unbelievably honored and take that and push it aside because I haven't accomplished everything I wanted to accomplish.” 

   If Roman Catholic is to eventually meet Neumann-Goretti deep into the playoffs, it will do so with a cast that graduated almost all of its offense. The Cahillites also have the aforementioned Matt Griffin as their new head coach. 

   Among the players, Roman will most rely on seniors Da’Kquan Davis and JP Sanders. Last year Davis scored 150 points while Sanders netted 53, but like many past Cahillites, both have had to wait their turn for plentiful playing time.

Sanders and Davis said that playing at the Palestra provides players extra motivation to play their best.

“Playing at the Palestra is a great feeling…one of the best environments in the country,” said Davis. “When you first get on the court you get butterflies, but then you realize all the people that are there for you and want you to do great, and then you start to settle in.”

   “It's extremely exciting,” said Sanders. “It's a great experience playing in front of thousands of people. There’s no feeling like it in the world. Last year, I was just grateful to be in that atmosphere.”  

So how can the Cahillites return there on February 27?

   “There is an unbelievable amount of pressure being the defending champs,” said Sanders. “Everyone is coming for you looking to prove why they’re the best team, and us being the champs, we have to enforce our will and show them why we are the champs.”

   As much as playing at the Palestra and defending their championship turf is exciting and memorable to the players, the coaches aren’t THAT old. They too bask in the historic atmosphere; they too feel a bit fidgety as the bus approaches the Greek-styled architecture a couple of hours before a championship game.

  Neumann-Goretti coach Carl Arrigale has coached in 14 of the past 18 Catholic League championship games and won 10 of them. While coaching at the Palestra might be different for him – his teams compete throughout the country at prestigious tournaments every winter, and in the eight years of the PCL being involved in the PIAA tournament, the Saints have reached the state final the past seven seasons and won six state championships – the Penn Charter graduate who played under the tutelage of the aforementioned Speedy Morris remains acutely aware of its traditional significance.

 “Coach Morris brought so much of that to our program at Penn Charter because of his experience coaching at Roman Catholic,” said Arrigale. “You couldn’t help but start to understand the Palestra’s reputation. You definitely got a better feeling for it.”    

 Arrigale already had an understanding about the Palestra by just sitting with his father and watching games there when he was young. 

   Roman Catholic’s new coach, Griffin, graduated from St. Joseph’s Prep in 2007 and never had the opportunity to play at the Palestra in high school or college.  

   Griffin would relish the chance to coach where so many former greats refined their craft.      

“The Palestra is a place where I grew up watching games,” said Griffin. “I watched all the Big 5 games, the Penn-Princeton games, and if there was a big high school game, I was there. It's a magical basketball environment, where anything can happen. 

“The fact that we have an opportunity to potentially play a game on that court annually is certainly motivating for our players and staff,” said Griffin, “not only because it's the road to the Catholic League Championship, but because of the history of the gym.”

   Neumann-Goretti girls’ coach Andrea Peterson, a graduate of Archbishop Carroll, marvels at the lifetime memories that await her players.

   “For these athletes, playing in front of a crowd of thousands of people speaks for itself,” said Peterson, referring to the Palestra, which can house as many as 8,725 fans. “I mean, what coach or athlete doesn't dream of being on the big stage and playing in front of a crowd that size?

   “To represent Neumann Goretti and be a part of the great Philadelphia basketball teams both past and present is an exciting feeling because there are some great high school teams among that group. Having the connection with that group is definitely an honor. Every day, we strive to work hard and are happy to say we represent not only Neumann-Goretti, but the city of Philadelphia.”

(John Knebels can be reached at jknebels@gmail.com or on Twitter @johnknebels.)