Amile Jefferson, Southeastern Pennsylvania boys' basketball player of the year

Amile Jefferson is playing on the Main Line now, but he attributes part of his basketball success to playing at recreation centers and on hard courts in West and Southwest Philly.

"That's kind of where you earn your stripes," he said. "You get bruised up a bit, but it helps with your overall toughness. It makes you play with heart, with aggressiveness, and with passion. If you don't, you won't last long."

Jefferson, a 6-foot-8, 190-pound forward, has made a lasting impression in his three years at Friends' Central in Wynnewood.

This season, the junior, dangerous in the paint and in transition, averaged 17 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks while helping spark the Phoenix to a 23-4 record, a second straight Friends Schools League title, and third consecutive Pennsylvania Independent Schools Tournament crown.

For his efforts, Jefferson is The Inquirer's Southeastern Pennsylvania boys' basketball player of the year.

Division I college coaches are salivating over his length, athleticism, agility, and work ethic. And it doesn't stop there.

"He has a high basketball IQ," Friends' Central coach Jason Polykoff said. "He can read double teams, he understands what play calls to make, and when to outlet the ball. That, along with his skills, makes him a difficult player to guard."

Jefferson, ranked by ESPN as the No. 9 player in the Class of 2012, also was named the Gatorade boys' basketball player of the year for Pennsylvania.

"He has a bouncy gait, can finish with either hand, and he keeps the ball up for easy putbacks or outlet passes," said Norm Eavenson, a recruiting analyst for the Bob Gibbons All Star Report. "Despite a thin build, he's a feisty inside player."

Before coming to Friends' Central, Jefferson, who lives near 47th and Woodland Avenue, considered Central, Episcopal Academy, and Shipley.

"When I found out my grades and IQ test scores were good enough to get me into a private school, I knew that's what I was going to do," he said. "Episcopal moved its campus to Newtown Square, and Shipley was also a little too far away."

Jefferson, who has 1,086 career points, showed his explosiveness in a nonleague contest Dec. 30 against Life Center Academy (N.J.). He rang up 28 points, 22 rebounds, 7 assists, and 5 blocks in an 86-67 win at Widener.

"He has that natural athleticism," Polykoff said.

Jefferson's father, Malcolm Musgrove, starred at West Philadelphia High in the late 1980s and went on to Delaware State. "He's at every one of my games," Jefferson said. "He advises me on almost everything, inside and outside of basketball."

Jefferson will play this week for the I-3 All Stars in the Albert C. Donofrio Classic, at the Fellowship House in Conshohocken. In last year's final, with 22 points and nine rebounds, he helped the squad outlast the Roadrunners, 103-95.

The 17-year-old has scholarship offers from Georgetown, Miami, Syracuse, Temple, Villanova, and Wake Forest, among others. He visited with Temple coach Fran Dunphy and his players last Wednesday. North Carolina and Duke are also keeping tabs.

"The sky is the limit for him," Polykoff said. "I honestly think he hasn't come close to reaching his full potential."