Plymouth Whitemarsh’s Jaden Colzie ready to thrive at Jefferson: ‘It’s a winning culture’

As Jaden Colzie toured Jefferson University last week with Rams men’s basketball coach Jimmy Reilly, the two eventually made their way to Herb Magee Arena.

The Plymouth Whitemarsh senior wasn’t familiar with all of the East Falls campus, but when he stepped in the gym, memories started flooding back.

Colzie replayed the deep three-pointers and nasty crossovers he made in big games against Archbishop Ryan, Gwynn Park, Trenton Catholic, and more during Philly Live in the summer.

“That’s where I thrive,” Colzie said. “I told coach, this is probably the best gym that I’ve played at.”

Colzie will spend his next four years in a venue he’s comfortable in. The 6-foot-1 guard announced his commitment to Jefferson on Friday, just three days after he received a scholarship offer during his visit.

While he knew the Rams’ facility would feel like home, the rest of the campus, which is about a 20-minute drive away from PW, was a fit as well.

“When you actually see the campus and you see all these new buildings, it’s really nice,” Colzie said. “I think I’ll thrive as a student and as a basketball player. After that visit, me and my parents were already invested in the program, and I feel like it was just a great fit.”

Colzie was a four-year starter at PW, joining the 1,000-point club this winter. He finished with 1,368 points in his career.

He was also a four-time All-Suburban One League selection, earning first team honors twice. This past season, Colzie averaged 17.8 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.6 steals.

“They love my shot-making ability, the way I control the pace,” Colzie said. “The head coach said I play a lot like [former PW standout and assistant coach] Ronald Moore, controlling the game and playing the point guard role and just my ability to create.”

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Colzie helped the Colonials reach the state playoffs the past three seasons and was a standout on the District 1 championship team in 2022-23.

Reilly, who finished his second season at the helm after 15 years as an assistant under Magee, led the Rams to a Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference runner-up finish in his first year before guiding Jefferson to its first league title since 2018-19 this past year.

“Coming off that conference championship, it really means that it’s a winning program,” Colzie said. “I’ve always heard great things about Jefferson. It’s a great school for basketball, even better for academics. Being that hometown kid, I feel like I’ll just thrive there academics-wise and basketball-wise. I just know it’s a winning culture over there. Being at PW and having a winning culture, it’s good to go from high school to college still having that winning culture.”

Colzie had a few Division I programs show interest, including Samford and Le Moyne, late in the recruiting process. He also spoke with Division II programs West Chester, Kutztown, and Bloomsburg.

Jefferson didn’t get in the mix until last week, but Colzie and the Rams became a quick fit. He’ll try to help replace the losses of Erik Timko (19.6 points) and Hakim Byrd (12.1 points), who recently entered the transfer portal.

“It means the world,” Colzie said. “This recruitment process isn’t for the weak. It’s a stressful process, and I know for a lot of hoopers it’s as stressful as anything. You never know what coaches are really thinking, getting this commitment off my chest and now being able to go through my senior year not thinking about where I have to go, it feels amazing.

“It goes back to all the work that I put in.”

Colzie knows the work isn’t done. His focus this offseason will be trying to learn how to play off the ball. Since he’s close, he’s planning on meeting with his new college teammates to play pickup before arriving on campus.

“I feel like I’ll really do my best here,” Colzie said. “There’s a lot of memories in that gym [from] the past four years.”

And hopefully more to come.

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.