St. Mary's High School is absolutely loaded with Division-I talent for the future, as Head Coach Damin Lopez has built a strong basketball program in Arizona in a short period of time. The Knights' program is on the rise and another major reason for the improvement of the program is the development of 6-foot-10 rising junior post Jeremiah "Bear" Cherry. The younger brother of current Arizona State junior forward Taeshon Cherry, Bear Cherry is now coming into his own as a college prospect.
Cherry and his family moved to Arizona to be closer to Taeshon, via San Diego, California, just a little over a year ago. The move was a very good one for the Cherry family, as Bear Cherry has helped to anchor the St. Mary's lineup, and has developed under former Division-I coach Damin Lopez (Pepperdine) and his coaching staff. Cherry has grown physically over the past year, and now stands 6-10 in height and 250-pounds. There are no prospects in the state's AIA Classification with Cherry's size, and actually currently no prospects in the prep school ranks with his size either, as he stands alone currently. While there prospects his height in the Arizona prep school ranks, no prospects have his combination of height and sheer physical size and girth.
Last season as a sophomore, Cherry helped lead the young Knights to an impressive 24-4 overall record on the season - the program's best record in many years. St. Mary's also would advance to the 4A State Semi-Finals in the process, before running into a buzzsaw on the road at Peoria HS (85-59).
Last season was a year of learning and development for the young Cherry, but this season he should have a breakout season for his program.
Cherry is among the top overall prospects in the state's 2022 Class, as he is a big, wide-body post player that runs the court hard and finishes strong in the open floor, while also being able to step outside in the half-court set and make shots with range. He continues to improve in this area of his game. Cherry is a rare find in the state, as there are not many bigger post players in the state with his combination of sheer size and mobility. As Cherry matures physically, he should become much more athletic and stronger physically, which will suit him nicely as he continues to develop over the next couple years. Cherry has very good versatility for his size and he is also a strong rebounder and finisher inside the paint.
Currently, Cherry does not yet have a scholarship offer to his credit, but he will look to garner much recruiting interest over the next (12) months, as college coaches begin to know who he is and understand his potential for the future, regardless of whether there is a high school season or not. This young man's ceiling is very high, and he should soon begin to come into his own as a college prospect. It just takes more time often for post players to develop.
I will continue to watch and follow the progress of Cherry as a player and college prospect closely, and bring you any updates as they begin to develop.
Arizona Hoop Review Scouting Report: Cherry is among the top overall prospects in the state's 2022 Class, as he is a big, wide-body post player that runs the court hard and finishes strong in the open floor, while also being able to step outside in the half-court set and make shots with range. He continues to improve in this area of his game. Cherry is a rare find in the state, as there are not many bigger post players in the state with his combination of sheer size and mobility. He still needs to get in better physical shape to reach his maximum potential as a player. As Cherry matures physically, he should become much more athletic and stronger physically, which will suit him nicely as he continues to develop over the next couple years. Cherry has very good versatility for his size and he is also a strong rebounder and finisher inside the paint. He runs the floor very hard and is a strong finisher in the open floor. He moves well for his size. A very good shotblocker with good length of arms for his size. A solid passer out of the post. Pushes the basketball ahead to the guard and finishes on the other end. Has very good upside and potential for the future.
