Basketball

This wasn’t your typical summer league basketball game. Wilson (Marrella Financial) and Berks Catholic (Berks Packing) needed overtime to decide the West Reading League championship on Thursday. Nothing came easy in this matchup of two of the top high school programs in District 3. Berks Catholic emerged with a hard-fought …

The West Reading Summer Basketball League wraps up this week. The championship and All-Star Game will take place on Thursday. Ed Kuhn started the league in 1965. Berks Catholic and Oley Valley each have three all-star selections this summer. Here’s a look at the all-star rosters: Division 1 JayJay Jordan-Berks …

Jim Gano still remembers the first time he saw Stu Jackson play basketball. Gano’s junior varsity team was scrimmaging the varsity squad which included a 14-year-old sophomore who would become one of the legendary players in Reading High history. “He was a holy terror! He was really, really good,” said …

Two legendary Reading High School basketball players were on the same stage for the first time on Monday. Lonnie Walker and Stu Jackson got together with former Reading coaches and players, as well as numerous fans, at the Miller Center for the Arts. The special event was presented by the …

The West Reading-Sacramento Basketball Cultural Exchange is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Ken Manfredi has been able to experience this unique program as both a player and coach. He was on the Sacramento All-Star team that came to Berks County in 1990. They ran into a star-studded West Reading …

The West Reading All-Star team was assembled just a few days ago, but they looked like they had been playing together for years. They faced Franklin High School from Sacramento on Saturday morning at Berks Catholic. The game was part of the West Reading-Sacramento Cultural Exchange program which is celebrating …

When Ed Kuhn started the West Reading Summer Basketball League, The Sound of Music was the highest-grossing movie, the Beatles released “Help!”, and the average price of gasoline in the United States was 30 cents/gallon. Since its inception in 1965, the league has continued to grow while giving countless players …

Ruben Rodriguez and Edwin Suarez were the top two scorers in the Berks Conference last season. Their basketball skills have taken them to Mexico this week. Rodriguez and Suarez are competing in the FIBA U18 Americas Championship. The tournament got underway on Monday and continues until Sunday, June 12th. Rodriguez, …

If you had the opportunity to watch the PIAA basketball playoffs, you know that there is a tremendous amount of talent in Pennsylvania. The Philadelphia area, District 12, produces several Division I players each year. Consequently, being recognized as an all-state player in our commonwealth is a great achievement. Three …

I was honored to receive the Community Service Award from the Berks County Basketball Officials Association on May 4th. The local chapter of the International Association of Approved Basketball Officials held its annual banquet at Mimmo’s restaurant. It was great to be surrounded by so many good people. We shared …