Episcopal Academy boys ready to take a ‘leap forward’ in basketball conference

Episcopal Academy head basketball coach Taylor Wright has witnessed a buy-in from his team this offseason that they are ready to win.

“The level of commitment to basketball has been more than it has been in a few years,” said Wright, son of former Villanova coach Jay Wright. “The kids feel it. They’re excited about it, and when you’re going into a year with excitement, guys can’t wait to get into the gym — getting all these guys here, getting together this early in the season is something that we haven’t been able to do. I’m really excited for them, and I hope that they see some of that success in the regular season.”

The Churchmen are far removed from the shared Inter-Academic League title they claimed alongside Germantown Academy in 2017. Last season, EA went 10-15 with a 1-9 finish in the conference. The program hasn’t won more than three league games in Wright’s three years with the program — originally as a JV coach and varsity assistant.

Wright was named EA’s interim head coach last June when Brian Shanahan stepped down. The school removed his interim tag this spring, officially turning the program over to the 2011 graduate, who played football, basketball, and baseball for the Churchmen before having a standout baseball career at Brown.

» READ MORE: Taylor Wright leads Episcopal Academy the way his father led Villanova: Through ‘attitude’

“It’s kind of nice that he’s the head coach and we got all our guys together,” said senior guard Kevin McCarthy. “We can work through the offseason now, all fall and spring to make sure we’re on the same page, running the same stuff, especially defensively we’re doing our rotations correctly.”

McCarthy is a two-time first team All-Inter-Ac selection. The 6-foot-3 sharpshooter averaged 18.2 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 1.0 steals last season, while knocking down 64 three pointers.

He hopes to put together a winning campaign in his final year of wearing an EA uniform.

“He’s one of those guys that the other guys respect because of how hard he works,” Wright said. “He’s a great lead by example kind of guy to show our guys what it takes to be as good as he is, and we’re looking forward to guys taking his lead and putting in the work like Kevin does.”

Outside of McCarthy, the Churchmen return senior guard Tyler Beaulieu and sophomore wing Timmy Dennis, who stands at 6-7 and can stretch the floor with his shooting, to their starting lineup. Senior Calvin Szoradi, a 6-5 forward who’s a standout football player, and senior guard Murilo Pereira are two other returners with significant playing experience.

EA also added Matt McCarthy, a 6-2 junior guard from Archmere Academy of Delaware, and Langston Foster, a 6-3 sophomore guard from Lower Merion. Both reclassified to their respective grade level this offseason.

The senior core, Wright said, will likely be the driving force this season.

“They do seem to enjoy playing together,” he added. “We have a lot of older guys who have been playing together for a long time, and they seem to really like each other. I’m excited for them, and for what that’s going to mean when we get into the season.

“Hopefully we’ll take that leap forward.”

Malvern Prep and Penn Charter have split the last two Inter-Ac titles and look to be the league favorites once again as the Friars’ return first team all-league player Ryan Williams (Northeastern), and the Quakers added high-major big man Matt Gilhool and D1-level guard Jake West to the group.

» READ MORE: Penn Charter boys’ basketball ready to bring its ‘A’ game behind influx of new talent

EA dropped its last six conference games last season and ended the regular-season on a five-game skid in 2022-23. It won’t be easy to move up the league hierarchy but the Churchmen bring in some momentum, like winning two postseason games over Abington Friends and league rival Germantown Academy to claim the Commonwealth Cup to cap last season’s campaign.

“We had a tough year last year, but we fought through it and kept playing,” Kevin McCathy said. “It’s going to be about playing together, trusting each other, and defense.”

This story was produced as part of a partnership between The Inquirer and City of Basketball Love, a nonprofit news organization that covers high school and college basketball in the Philadelphia area while also helping mentor the next generation of sportswriters. This collaboration will help boost coverage of the city’s vibrant amateur basketball scene, from the high school ranks up through the Big 5 and beyond.