The Western PA Bruins and Metro Basketball, LLC are two of the most respected and longest running girls AAU basketball programs in Western Pennsylvania but the two organizations are now one. The Bruins and Metro are pleased to announce that we have merged and will continue together to fulfill our goal of providing the most competitive girls AAU basketball option in the region.
It is the second such merger the Bruins have agreed to in the past month as we joined forces with 5th Street Basketball to create the Western Pa Bruins-Tri County division. Both mergers will help the Bruins grow their footprint and strengthen the brand.
“It is always our goal as an organization to improve, to get stronger, to get better so that we can provide girls basketball players the best opportunities to challenge themselves, compete at the highest level and get college exposure.” Western Pa Bruins director John Tate said. “Metro has always been a first-class organization run by two people, Ed Manfredi and Bill Coddington, who share the same goals and principles as we do. That’s why this merger made sense for both organizations and we are excited about what the future holds for us.”
Manfredi brings nearly 45 years of basketball experience to the organization and was the co-founder of the Metro USA Basketball League as well as the founder of Metro Basketball, LLC. He is a retired school teacher and has more than 20 years of coaching experience. He was the athletic director at Brentwood and is currently an assistant coach at Thomas Jefferson High School.
Coddington is a retired PA State Trooper and is currently the Director of Safety and Security for the Baldwin-Whitehall School District. Mr. Coddington has held a number of coaching positions through the years. He has been a coach for Metro Basketball, LLC for a decade and was the CFO and co-owner of Metro Basketball, LLC.
“After much discussion and deliberation, Ed and I agreed that the Bruin organization can help us give our student athletes the tools necessary to develop into better players,” Coddington said. “This merger will help us provide more opportunities to play with similarly talented players, to extend our pool of available player to choose from and give our players the opportunity to play at more events. This will also help Ed and I extend our reach to even more college coaches than before.
“We are extremely excited to be a part of the Bruins organization.”
Metro Basketball, LLC was founded in 2005 by Manfredi and its mission statement was to “promote lifelong success for each student-athlete by encouraging the positive values of hard work, commitment, respect, and teamwork.”
