Lehigh Valley college basketball: Darryl Keckler building a solid foundation at Moravian

By Stephen Miller When Darryl Keckler took over the Moravian mens basketball team before the 2022 season, he knew it would take time to build the program he wanted.

Early in his third season, the Greyhounds have shown signs theyre trending upward.

The two 50-50 games Keckler expected when Moravian opened its season last week never materialized.

The Greyhounds instead rolled to two wins, beating Immaculata by 25 points and Penn State-Abington by 32.

One week doesnt make a season.

The Greyhounds opened Landmark Conference play Wednesday and fell 82-75 to Drew, the team Keckler coached before coming to Moravian.

Keckler, however, has seen the benefits of having players who were freshmen two years ago develop into leaders this season.

Add in two cycles of players he recruited, and Moravian has reached a solid spot in its rebuild.

To be a little bit older and combining that with some talented young guys, its got us more competitive, Keckler said by phone Tuesday.

Were about to go into a really hard stretch.

So, well certainly find out more about ourselves in the next 3-4 weeks.

Two juniors who have started throughout Kecklers tenure have continued to progress since last season.

Porter Kelly, the first recruit Keckler landed, has shifted from a role player to a primary scorer.

He is averaging 15.0 points per game while shooting 43.5 percent from 3-point range.

Marquis Ratcliff, a Nativity BVM (Pottsville) graduate, has been Moravians best scorer since he walked on campus.

The 6-7 forward stuffed the stat sheet per usual in his first three games, averaging 17.7 points, 8.0 rebounds, 2.7 blocks and 2.3 steals.

He reached 1,000 career points in Wednesdays loss.

Ratcliff improved his dedication to conditioning and strength training before this season.

He has carried that work into this season, showing improved practice habits and leadership.

I think theres an excitement that he has having some other guys where he looks around, and he thinks theyre really good as well, Keckler said.

Thats certainly helped.

Hes a phenomenal young man.

Hes got a great smile, a great personality.

[In the past] he was never 100 percent committed to being a leader for us, but he is now.

Thats probably the next step for him, really being a good leader all the way through good times and bad.

Moravian also added an impact transfer.

Junior guard Chad Kratzer, who played at Central Catholic, has stepped into the starting lineup and averaged 18.3 points through three games.

He has excelled at drawing fouls, going 21-for-23 from the free-throw line.

He works hard, Keckler said.

Part of the reason we got him was the mens leagues in the area.

He met up with Porter Kelly, and they became friends.

They just worked out for hours every day throughout the summer.

So he brings a great work ethic too.

He loves coming to practice every day.

Theyre in the gym right now in between classes working out.

Theyre just always in there.

Its really nice to have.

Moravian had eight players average at least 14 minutes through three games.

Only two, graduate student Alex Dietz and senior Michael Leonardo, predate Keckler.

The Greyhounds expect to face tougher games in the weeks ahead, similar to what Wednesdays matchup with Drew brought.

Keckler welcomes it.

He wants to see how this group responds to a tight game or three.

Its still going to take us a little bit more time, one or two more recruiting classes, Keckler said.

But talent isnt the issue anymore necessarily.

Rivalries renewed: DeSales will host a pair of doubleheaders against Lehigh Valley rivals over the next few days.

Muhlenberg visits Billera Hall on Saturday, with games scheduled for 1 p.m.

(women) and 3 p.m.

(men).

DeSales will then face Moravian in another womens-mens pairing Monday (6 and 8 p.m.).

The DeSales-Muhlenberg mens matchup could pit siblings against one another.

Former Notre Dame-Green Pond star and 2021-22 Morning Call boys basketball co-player of the year Brendan Boyle is in his first year at DeSales after spending two years at Kutztown.

His younger brother, Colin, is a freshman at Muhlenberg.

Tip-ins: Northampton High graduate Morgan Sterner leads the DeSales women in scoring (14.0 points per game) through four games.

The Bulldogs are 3-1 despite returning just one starter.

...

The Lafayette men (1-4 overall) went 1-2 during their season-opening stretch against Big 5 programs.

They lost at Villanova and La Salle before collecting a home win against Penn..

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