The prophet of John Carroll

BALTIMORE (Map, News) - He’s introduced before every home game as Isaiah “The Prophet” Philmore.

If Philmore truly was prophetic, he’d be able to envision for which major college he’d be a star. But before enrolling at John Carroll, Philmore’s future didn’t look quite as bright.

Philmore lived in six states and two countries, attended five middle schools, and escaped a Kansas school he said had books twice his age. He had plenty of doubters, including the ones who claimed he played varsity basketball as an eighth-grader and changed his name to get rid of past mistakes — both false, Philmore, 18, said.

A member of a military family, Philmore and his mother, Annette Wagner, left Kansas after Wagner’s divorce from Philmore’s step father.

“Kansas was not a place where we planned on really going,” Wagner said. “We didn’t have a whole lot of friends there. There wasn’t a whole lot that was left in Kansas.”

But there was plenty to gain at John Carroll, where Philmore decided to repeat his sophomore year, and is now on the cusp of a having a 3.0 grade-point average.

The junior forward is averaging 19.5 points and 10.3 rebounds per game for the No. 9 Patriots (16-8), who are 9-5 in their first season in the MIAA A Conference.

“He wills himself to score big baskets when our team needs that go to scorer,” John Carroll coach Tony Martin said after Philmore scored 25 points — including 10 straight — in the Patriots’ 63-57 win over St. John’s Catholic Prep Tuesday. “He’s become more rounded this year in terms of his leadership and being a good teammate, and those were his areas of focus coming in.”

At 6-foot-7, 210 pounds, Philmore looks like he’s been playing his whole life. But he didn’t give up soccer for basketball until eighth grade.

At Saint Xavier in Junction City, Kan., Philmore averaged 40 points a game as a freshman.

But Philmore sought a more challenging load on the court and in the classroom by moving more than 1,200 miles east to attend the small, Bel Air private school.

It was the best move he’s ever made. Virginia Tech, Miami, Marquette, St. Joe’s, George Washington, Auburn and Virginia already have offered scholarships — and he’s still a junior.

Martin calls Philmore’s energy contagious, and his work ethic leads him to the weight room, where he’s working hard to add some weight to his slender frame. He’s not done growing either, as he expects another growth spurt because he’s been feeling growing pains in his knees.

He’s likely to play small forward in college, but could play power forward at a smaller school. Rivals.com has Philmore listed as the No. 69 recruit in his class — 26th at the power forward position — after averaging 15.9 points and 9.6 rebounds per game as a sophomore, when he earned second-team All-Examiner honors.

Philmore lived in Germany twice, and made stops in Alabama, Georgia, Kansas, South Carolina and Texas before settling in Harford County.

“Being more wordly, it enabled him to adapt more quickly,” Martin said. “It’s probably polar opposites from what he was used to.”

swelsh@baltimoreexaminer.com

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