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Penguin Playbook 1/20

The Rookery

Boys Basketball

The boys have struggled since the break, going 2-4 over the period to bring their record to 7-10 on the season. All 6 of those games were in-conference, with the victories coming against Phelps and HD Woodson. The latter was a thriller, with Walls denying a late HD Woodson comeback. Woodson tied the game at 61-61 late in the 4th quarter but Takhari Bates (‘26) drove to the net for a layup over multiple defenders to give SWW the lead with under 20 seconds left. The key to the victory was the three-pointer, with the Penguins shooting an impressive 53% from behind the arc. Six Walls players made at least one three-pointer in the game.


Despite that big win, Walls sits at just 3-7 in DCIAA games, placing them 12th in the DCIAA. With just the top 8 teams making the DCIAA playoffs, the Penguins will need to make up some ground in order to extend their season. The team still has 5 DCIAA games left against Bell, Bard, Cardozo, Ron Brown and Coolidge, and each one will be critical. Bard and Ron Brown will be particularly important games, as both teams sit directly ahead of Walls in the standings (Bard is in 11th and Ron Brown is in 10th). 


Bates, Paul Joire (‘25), and Chidiire Nwokwu (‘25) have continued to lead Walls on offense, with all of them averaging at least 9.0 points per game (PPG). Joire, Isaac Wallsten (‘27), and Elijah Lott (‘25) lead the team in rebounds, with Joire and Wallsten having over 100 each on the season. Ellington Hunt (‘27) has only appeared in 8 games due to an injury that had him sidelined for much of the first half of the season, but has had an immediate impact. The sophomore has maintained a three-point percentage of 45.5%, the highest on the team. 


The boys will continue their playoff hunt on Wednesday, January 22nd against Bell at 7:30 PM at Bell. 


Girls Basketball

The girls team has continued an incredible season, going 5-1 since the break, improving their record to 12-3. They picked up key victories against Dunbar and McKinley Tech during the stretch, winning 45-38 and 41-37, respectively. 


The Penguins are an impressive 8-3 in-conference, putting them 5th in the DCIAA. The girls are well ahead of everyone behind them, so a playoff appearance seems likely. Currently, they would play the #4 seed Banneker in the first round, who beat the Penguins 48-16 in a January 15th matchup. This could change though, as Walls could pass a few teams in the standings. 


On offense, the Penguins have been powered by strong performances from Sophie Whitaker (‘25) and Eleanor Olesh (‘28). Defensively, they have been led by Nadia Kallmer (‘27) and Joelle Barksdale (‘25), whose steals have generated lots of fast breaks for the Penguins. 


The girls have 4 more games left in the regular season, and all of them are against DCIAA opponents. The final regular season game will be against Coolidge on January 31st. Before winter break, Whitaker said that beating Coolidge was a major focus for the second half of the season and for good reason - the undefeated Colts currently sit on top of the DCIAA standings. 


The girls will resume DCIAA play on Wednesday, January 22nd against Bell at 5:30 PM at Bell as they look to move up in the standings.

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School Without Walls High School's student-run newspaper

2130 G Street NW Washington, D.C. 20037

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