Take a bow, Class AAA.
The top class in NEPSAC boys basketball delivered with a 2024-25 season to remember. It ended with one of the most insane championship games in the history of New England prep school basketball, as Newman blew a 16-point lead with less than four minutes remaining before prevailing in thrilling overtime fashion over New Hampton. It was an epic battle of two of the best NEPSAC teams this season.
Individually, the season didn’t disappoint either. Class AAA has the best collection of high-major talent of any class in NEPSAC, and we were treated to dazzling performances all winter. It made our first Class AAA awards difficult to choose from. The inaugural list includes Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Coach of the Year and first and second All-Class AAA teams.
Our choices were all-encompassing, factoring in season-long production, consistency, team success and postseason performances. Let’s take a look at this season’s honorees for Class AAA, and check back the rest of the week as we unveil award winners for the rest of NEPSAC, with Class AA on Wednesday, Class A on Thursday and Class B on Friday.
Player of the Year: Lucas Morillo, Newman
Class of 2026, 6-7 guard
Hometown: Mount Vernon, N.Y.
In his first NEPSAC season, Morillo made a big name for himself as he led Newman to its first Class AAA championship. The 6-foot-7 point forward did it all for the Cardinals, averaging 16 points, 9.2 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game as he dominated games throughout the winter with his all-encompassing impact. He raised his game to higher levels in the postseason, when he made the difference in a tough semifinal victory over Darrow before going off for 35 points, 10 rebounds and four assists in the championship to earn tournament MVP.
Read more about Morillo’s season here.
Defensive Player of the Year: Teshaun Steele, Darrow
Class of 2025, 6-7 wing
Hometown: Worcester, Mass.
NCAA: New Haven
After winning back-to-back championships at Worcester North, Steele transferred to Darrow, where his length, physicality and competitiveness was on full display throughout the entire winter. He was a total disruptor on the defensive end, where he produced 2.4 steals and 1.7 blocks per game to go along with 2.9 deflections per night. He also contributed 9.7 rebounds per game, including 6.1 on the defensive end as his activity on the glass helped finish defensive stops.
Coach of the Year: Antonio Anderson, Darrow
A year after going 7-22 in Class AA, Anderson pushed Darrow into Class AAA and led a faster-than-expected turnaround. The Ducks – with a roster full of transfers – came together and went 23-10, earned the No. 3 seed and won a home playoff game as they advanced to the semifinals in their first season in NEPSAC’s highest class. Anderson fit his new pieces together well as they played hard for him and developed a strong culture that will make this program formidable for years to come.
All-Class AAA First Team
Keyshuan Tillery, New Hampton
Class of 2025, 6-0 guard
Hometown: Albany, N.Y.
NCAA: Cincinnati
Tillery was unsurprisingly terrific in his third and final season as New Hampton’s point guard as he led the Huskies to a 29-6 record and berth in the National Prep Championship Tournament. He produced 17.0 points, 6.1 assists, 5.3 rebounds and 1.8 steals per game as a masterful floor general who was always in control. He scored 32 points in New Hampton’s NEPSAC semifinal win over St. Thomas More, before putting up 28 points, eight assists, seven rebounds, four steals and three blocks in the championship. Tillery almost always delivered when New Hampton needed him to.
Nasir Meyer, New Hampton
Class of 2025, 6-6 guard
Hometown: Agoura Hills, Calif.
NCAA: Wyoming
Meyer looked like one of the best recruits in the region all winter with his combination of skill, size, athleticism and shooting ability. A matchup nightmare, the Wyoming-bound guard posted 17.1 points, 6.8 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game while shooting 41.8 percent from 3-point range.
London Jemison, St. Thomas More
Class of 2025, 6-8 wing
Hometown: Bloomfield, Conn.
NCAA: Alabama
Following a summer with Expressions Elite in which his shotmaking went to the next level, Jemison picked up where he left off in his final season with St. Thomas More. The Alabama-bound wing scored 24.3 points per game to go along with 4.5 rebounds as he shot an absurd 43.6 percent from distance on 10.7 3-point attempts per game. Jemison led the Chancellors to the No. 4 seed and the NEPSAC semifinals before spearheading their run to the championship game of the National Prep Championship after his buzzer-beating 3 beat Cushing in the semifinals.
Collins Onyejiaka, Newman
Class of 2026, 6-10 center
Hometown: Abuja, Nigeria
Newman’s big man undoubtedly got better as the season progressed, as he finished the year averaging 9.8 points, 8.5 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game as the anchor inside for the Cardinals. He came up big in the season’s late stages, going for 16 points, nine rebounds and eight blocks in a win over Vermont Academy before posting 14 points, 14 rebounds and seven blocks in Newman’s Class AAA championship victory.
Lucas Morillo, Newman
Class of 2026, 6-7 guard
Hometown: Mount Vernon, N.Y.
Morillo is our first Class AAA Player of the Year. Read about his breakthrough season here.
All-Class AAA Second Team
Daye Kaba, Vermont Academy
Class of 2025, 6-5 guard
Hometown: Harlem, N.Y.
Kaba was a two-way force for the Wildcats as he averaged 12 points, five rebounds, two assists and two steals per game while shooting more than 54 percent from two-point range this winter.
Teshaun Steele, Darrow
Class of 2025, 6-7 wing
Hometown: Worcester, Mass.
NCAA: New Haven
Our Defensive Player of the Year, Steele also averaged 12.6 points, 9.7 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game to go along with his eye-popping defensive numbers. Steele was often tasked with guarding the opponent’s best player while also making important contributions on the offensive end.
Mason Blackwood, New Hampton
Class of 2025, 6-7 wing
Hometown: Rochester, N.Y.
NCAA: Penn State
Blackwood capped his third and final season at New Hampton with another productive winter on both ends of the court, finishing with 15.9 points and 6.8 rebounds. One of the best defenders in NEPSAC, Blackwood’s versatility and length was on display, too, as he averaged 1.8 steals and 2.1 deflections per game. One of his best highlights of the season came in November, when his game-winning 3-pointer in the final seconds lifted New Hampton to a victory over Putnam Science and completed a 30-point performance.
Cheickna Sylla, Bridgton
Class of 2026, 6-10 center
Hometown: Bamako, Mali
Sylla was a monster in his first NEPSAC season as he averaged 24 points and 14 rebounds per game and emerged as one of the best big men in the region. His season included multiple 30-point, 20-rebound performances, and two of his best efforts came in Bridgton’s wins over Newman and New Hampton, when he went for 24 and 14 and then 27 and 17.
Brandon Benjamin, St. Thomas More
Class of 2025, 6-7 forward
Hometown: Newark, N.J.
Benjamin turned heads in his first NEPSAC season for St. Thomas More, where his athleticism, scoring ability and activity off the glass were overwhelming for opponents. He scored 16.3 points to go along with a whopping 15.2 rebounds per game for the Chancellors while providing great versatility on the defensive end.
Honorable mentions: Jalen Harper (Newman), Kamari Whyte (Vermont Academy), Tim Walker (South Kent), Shuto Sakihama (St. Thomas More), Haisi Mayben (Darrow)
