Note: In the days ahead, the Mercury will take a closer look at all 24 Pioneer Athletic Conference basketball programs now that the 2025-26 season has officially arrived. First up is defending PAC champion Pope John Paul II, who will tip their season off on Saturday against West Chester Rustin.

It’s not often that the reigning league champion enters the following season with a sizable chip on its shoulder, but that’s precisely where the Pope John Paul II Golden Panthers find themselves on the eve of this campaign’s first game.

PJP won its first true, non-COVID boys’ basketball league title in 14 years last season, doing so as the No. 4 seed in the PAC playoffs. In the span of a week, Pope dispatched a strong Methacton squad in the first round, knocked off top-seeded Pottsgrove in the sem

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