Prep Profiles - Putnam Science Academy

Wednesday, October 19th, 2022

It is that time of year again, when we start to preview the top prep programs in New England. 

This year, we are going to begin with the local teams who will take part in the National Prep Showcase, held November 18th-20th at Albertus Magnus College in New Haven, Connecticut. 

Putnam Science Academy is coming off a year to remember during the 2021-22 season. They went 38-0 including winning the National Prep Championship and AAA Power Five Conference. 

3 Things You Need to Know About This Year’s Team

They are loaded at the forward position

Mouhamed Dioubate and Duane Thompson return from last year’s squad, but they have added two more high level talents in Blake Barkley and Tarique Foster. Dioubate, Barkley, and Foster are committed to Alabama, Northwestern, and VCU respectively. Thompson recently picked up his first high major offer from Virginia Tech. The lineup flexibility that the four of them give PSA is a difficult scout for opposing teams. 

Their tradition of tough-minded guards continues 

DJ Dormu joins returners Miles Rose and Darryl Simmons. Dormu comes from Bishop Walsh in Maryland where he is known as someone who can pick up opponents full-court and hit pull-up jumpers in the lane. Rose took a nice leap during the AAU season, showing his quick feet defending the ball and overall guard skill improvements. Simmons is difficult to stay in front of with his creative handle, a pull-up shooting threat, and pesky on defense. Former Drake commit Will Lovings-Watts has been one of the most impressive players this fall and has shown his ability to score from anywhere and possesses all the tools to be a good defender. Another guard to watch out for is Ramsay Checo. He is a 2025 with a number of similarities to the other three. 

A sharpshooting wing was brought in 

With floor spacing being an integral part of today’s game, PSA made sure to address that with the addition of URI commit Connor Dubsky. He can get hot in a hurry and is a three-point threat off the catch or move. Dubsky is more than just a shooter though, also possessing a smooth mid-range pull-up and vision to find teammates for high-percentage looks. The attention teams will have to spend limiting him from long-range should open up shots for others. 

3 Questions Heading into the Season

Will there be a Championship hangover? 

While they had a season last year that the school will never forget, will that mean they will come into this season with less motivation and potentially start out slow? It will be something to watch as while they have a number of newcomers, there are also multiple returnees from the national championship squad as well. 

Who is going to assert themselves inside? 

It is not often that a program starts a big man going to Kentucky while bringing another one off the bench going to St. Louis. That is exactly what PSA had last year with Ugonna Kingsley and Mouhamadou Cisse. Now they have the task of replacing them. You start the discussion with Muazibini Jabal Adamu. He has made clear strides with his conditioning and post-skills. Another one to watch despite being in the 2026 class is Ben Ahmed. He already has good footwork/touch for scoring on the block and soft hands to catch passes/rebound. 

Will they be willing to sacrifice? 

Part of what made the team last year as good as they were was the players did whatever was possible to win, even if that meant getting fewer minutes or shots. Kingsley came in mid-year and pushed Cisse to the bench which Cisse handled admirably. How players buy into their roles will be vital if PSA wants to reach its goals. It is also much easier said than done with all of the talent that is assembled on this squad.