By Sean Savage
@SeanSav13
During day three of the Hoophall Classic, Jalil Bethea, Archbishop Wood’s lethal, 6-foot-4 shooting guard, dazzled in a joust against Corona Centennial.
With 3.8 seconds left until the final buzzer, Bethea went to the line.
At the stripe, Bethea connected on both free throws, extending the lead to 73-71 and putting the icing on the cake. Tacking on two also gave Bethea 40 points on the night, and a feeling of satisfaction.
“I was just so happy we won,” Bethea said. “Hearing that final sound was one of the best feelings.”
However, from the opening tip Bethea established himself as the floor general – dictating the speed of the game.
His tenacious pace and pure form allowed him to cook anyone who tried containing him. In the first quarter, Bethea sized up Zack Medenhall with confidence, and connected from downtown followed by a 3-point celebration.
His confidence poured into the rest of the game. Countless times Bethea let the ball fly and celebrated before the ball connected with the net.
“He is very offensive,” Archbishop Wood head coach John Mosco said. “He has so much ability to score: He can handle the ball, shoot and make plays for other people.”
Bethea has a slim build but counteracts it with quick-twitch movement – he has sneaky athleticism. His explosive step with the ball allows him to change direction on a dime to get up his shot.
This was put on display when Bethea grabbed a tough rebound with 1:30 left in the last quarter of play before driving to the hole on the other end and converting – while hanging sideways in the air.
Another addition to Bethea’s repertoire is that he is always squared up and ready to shoot through his quick release. He does not waste extra motion in his shots and can spark on the move. The ball travels with a perfect arc, and his makes hit the bottom of the net coupled with the soothing sound of a swish.
Considering he had eight 3-point bombs, this makes sense.
Bethea maneuvered and shifted the Huskies defense in tight spaces with ease throughout the game, which also freed up his teammates. He finished the night with four assists and eight rebounds.
A year ago, Bethea would not have imagined this happening. He was ranked No. 80 in 247Sports 2024 rankings.
“His sophomore year, second game against Pope Francis, he went 0-11 from three. I tell him this all the time,” Mosco said. “But, he kept showing up. Most people would quit and leave.”
Thanks to a fruitful junior season – during which he won Philadelphia Catholic League MVP honors and was named a third-team MaxPreps Junior All-American – Bethea jumped all the way to No. 7 in ESPN’s Class of 2024 Top 100. Bethea averaged 24.8 points, 7.2 rebounds and 4.2 assists in conference play to help the Vikings (19-9) reach the PIAA Class 6A state semifinals.
Additionally, during the summer, Bethea finished 10th in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League in scoring, averaging 18.6 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game on 49.8 shooting from the field, 42.6 percent beyond the arc and 84.2 percent from the free throw line, to lead his AAU program, Team Final, to first place in the regular-season standings with a record of 16-1.
Bethea’s style of play earned him 24 Division I offers from the likes of Alabama, Georgetown, Kansas, LSU, Miami, Seton Hall, Syracuse, Villanova, Virginia Tech and West Virginia.
On Sept. 20, 2023, Bethea committed to Miami, which sparked surprise from multiple media outlets. Miami is fresh off a Final Four run, and the Hurricanes are reaping the benefits on the recruiting trail with the top commitment in program history. It is a massive win for coach Jim Larrañaga.
A five-star shooting guard, Bethea, became Miami’s highest-ranked commitment, according to 247Sports. Adding the historic top-10 prospect boosted the Hurricanes to No. 3 in the 2024 team rankings, up 10 spots.
For perspective, Lonnie Walker IV was the last five-star recruit to choose Miami, in 2017.
Another factor in the decision was the Philly-Miami connection. The relationship Bethea had built through the years with Miami assistant coach DJ Irving, the former Archbishop Carroll High School star who went on to play for Boston University, and a Philadelphia native.
The Hurricanes’ assistant coach worked with Bethea and Team Final, whose alums include former UM standouts Ja’Quan Newton, Davon Reed and Lonnie Walker IV. Bethea averaged 18.9 points for Team Final.
“Ever since Team Final we have just built that connection,” Bethea said. “It only grew as the application process came around, and everything fell into place.”
The Hoophall Classic is a glimpse of what lies ahead in Bethea’s basketball career.
“Next year, when he is with five new players, he is going to have a lot more freedom,” Mosco said. “He will not have the pressure of having to do everything.”
As for now, Mosco is reminiscing in his last year with Bethea:
“I know every coach says this about their players, but he is a great kid,” Mosco said. “He is a great player and student. If we were going home tonight, he would be in school tomorrow, he does not miss school. He loves being a high school kid.”
Photo Courtesy of Patrick Fergus/The Student