How two Father Judge graduates are leading the way for Merrimack men’s basketball
From Philadelphia to Massachusetts, Kevair Kennedy and Ernest Shelton spent two years together at Father Judge and reconnected at Merrimack, where they are the team’s leading scorers.
When Kevair Kennedy saw Ernest Shelton enter his name in the transfer portal after spending two years at Division II Gannon University in Erie, Pa., the Merrimack College pledge texted his former Father Judge teammate about joining him in Massachusetts.
“I was just telling him, if me and him team up again, we could cause so much damage,” said Kennedy, now a 6-foot-2 freshman point guard. “He’s familiar with my game, I’m familiar with his game. He knows that I like to drive, he like to shoot, so we got a good one-two punch. I also was reminding him about all the good times that we had at Father Judge, and he bought into it.”
That he did. Shelton, a 6-5 junior shooting guard who led Gannon with 17.4 points last season, didn’t have any Division I scholarship offers in high school. But after proving himself in the PSAC, Shelton wanted to move up a level.
His name and background — being a Father Judge product coached by Chris Roantree — stood out to Merrimack head coach Joe Gallo, who heavily recruits the Philadelphia area and has built a relationship with Roantree. So with the push of a former teammate and the familiar ties to his hometown, Shelton landed with the Warriors, where he and Kennedy are the team’s leading scorers, averaging 14.6 and 15.2 points, respectively, for the 6-7 team.
The two have quickly emerged as impact players, and their addition to the program, which lost its top scorer last season in former West Catholic standout Adam “Budd” Clark, now at Seton Hall, has filled a large void.
“I knew Kev would probably have to carry a big load with us losing Budd, and we’re a pretty point guard heavy program,” Gallo said. “We always have a great guard, so I knew he’d have the opportunity to do it. He’s definitely exceeded expectations, and Ern the same thing. You never know when a player goes from Division II and transfers up a level if it’s going to translate. But they both hit the floor running right from the summer.”
Here’s a glimpse of their contributions so far: Shelton tied the single-season program record with 9 three-pointers against Boston on Nov. 15, where he finished with a career-high 33 points and was named MAAC Player of the Week. Kennedy also had his first career double-double (16 points, 11 rebounds) against the Terriers. He’s been selected as Rookie of the Week twice.
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A familiar face played a major part in their success. Shelton and Kennedy met while playing AAU together on Philly Triple Threat. Shelton spent his first two years of high school at Bishop McDevitt in Wyncote, before it closed down at the end of the 2020-21 academic year.
He considered going to Archbishop Wood, where Roantree was a longtime assistant under John Mosco. But once Roantree landed the head job at Father Judge, Shelton decided to follow his coach there. He was reconnected with Kennedy, then a freshman who saw minutes. He later became a stater on the varsity team.
The team took some bumps in those first two years as the program underwent a rebuild under a new coach. The Crusaders finished 4-9 in the Catholic League in 2021-22. They were 6-7 in 2022-23. But last season Father Judge made school history, earning the triple crown with a Catholic League, District 12, and state championship.
Kennedy played a large role in that achievement.
“I feel like I grew a lot in leadership there,” Kennedy said. ”Somebody had to be the leader, be the voice, and get us going on days when they didn’t feel like it. I feel like [Roantree] trusting me at an early age helped me with my accountability, not just hold others accountable, but hold myself accountable too.”
Kennedy, who held one other scholarship offer from Wagner, had the chance to play at the Plaestra as a college player when Merrimack competed in the Cathedral Classic from Nov. 28 to Nov. 30. It wasn’t the same as playing in front of 10,000 fans for the Catholic League championship, but it was “a special moment” as the current Father Judge staff and team attended some of the games.
The Warriors were riding a four-game winning streak before falling to Vermont on Dec. 14, thanks in part because of Shelton and Kennedy. The two would consider themselves to be more reserved, but on the court, they always seem to know where each other are.
“It’s a lot more eye contact then words,” Gallo said. “Kev gets Ern a lot of unscripted three-point shots in transition, where we don’t even have to call a play, because [Kennedy] knows where [Shelton] is.”
They aren’t the only Philly-area players on the team, either. Graduate student Jaylen Stinson is a former Archbishop Wood guard, senior forward Brandon Legris attended Perkiomen School, and next year, Rocco Westfield, a senior at Father Judge, intends to play for Merrimack.
Gallo likes to recruit the area because of the the high-level competition in the Catholic League, and earlier in the season, when Merrimack faced Auburn and Florida, Kennedy and Shelton looked unfazed.
“They’ve just been Philadelphia battle tested,” Gallo said. “Neither one of them blink at any of the competition we played against. I think that’s just going to continue to pay dividends.”
So would Shelton and Kennedy say their time at Father Judge is helping them now?
“For sure, definitely,” Shelton said. “It means a lot to have someone that you grew up with in college.”
Kennedy added: “Having him here, it made me break through the ice even easier than it would have been if he wasn’t here. It was easier for me to get out of my shell, knowing that if I don’t know anybody at least I have Ern.”