Sherwood players in the midst of a game against Blake

by Andrew Fenner ‘27

The Warriors put on a show Saturday before a sold-out crowd, beating an undefeated Blake team 74-69, behind notable performances from junior guard Tyler Grambling, senior guard Alex Welch, and senior forward Khalil Wilson. The gritty win brought Sherwood to an 11-1 record.
Sherwood came out of the gate strong, scoring 18 points by the end of the first quarter. Blake played a 2-3 zone on defense, aiming to take away the drive while allowing the Warriors perimeter shots. Blake also tried their hand at pressing, though it wasn’t as effective as they hoped. The lack of disruptive perimeter pressure from Blake allowed the Warriors to settle into their offense, and the Warriors consistently found open shots and shot the ball well.

For Sherwood’s defensive scheme, their main challenge was 6’8” forward Babatunde Oladotun, top ranked sophomore in the country. Oladotun is a threat down low and from deep, which posed a lot of problems for the Warriors. Wilson started out on Oladotun, and did a great job keeping in front of him and denying him space. Wilson rattled Oladotun, forcing multiple turnovers and lackluster passes. Welch, senior forward Cartlon Hill, and sophomore forward Jamar Nix also rotated guarding Oladotun, each doing a good job keeping him out of the post. But late in the second quarter Nix went down with a sprained ankle and didn’t return for the rest of the game. After losing Nix in the second quarter, the Warriors needed everyone to step up.

Sherwood finished the half steady, extending their lead to 11 heading into the locker room. Sherwood moved the ball especially well during the second half, taking advantage of Blake’s zone and finding the open man. The third quarter was all Sherwood, as the Warriors extended their lead to as much as 15 at one point.

Blake started to crawl back in the fourth quarter. Oladotun and Blake guard Armani Fowlkes stepped up late, scoring tough shots in transition to cut Sherwood’s lead down to single digits. Fowlkes cut the lead to just six points before going down with thirty seconds left in the game. After scoring back and forth Grambling was fouled with twelve seconds left in the game and made both free throws, bringing the lead back up to six. Blake guard Tahj Martin hit a deep three to cut the lead to three, giving Blake an opportunity to tie the game if they got a steal off the inbound. Once Sherwood got the ball in safely, Blake had to foul, putting the game in the hands of Grambling. With the game on the line Grambling made both free throws and squashed Blake’s chances of a win, securing the Warriors the win over the 15th ranked high school basketball program by The Washington Post.

Sherwood’s success this season has exceeded everyone’s expectations, except for Coach Sheahin’s. After losing so much talent last year after the seniors graduated, the outlook on the season was uncertain. But at the beginning of the season, Sheahin was confident. He had said in the beginning of the year that, “When we get everyone playing well, we will be a tough out,” and this game against Blake has proven just that.