School closes down Morgan Wootten Gym
There’s nothing ostentatious about the rickety, old gym at DeMatha Catholic High School — old wooden bleachers, American flag above midcourt, a prominent crucifix on the wall, subtle banners that only hint at the school’s athletic excellence.
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It’s a gym that’s all about perspective. Who would guess that for 60 years it’s been the home of arguably the most famous high school basketball program in the nation?
Thursday night, the DeMatha Stags closed down Morgan Wootten Gymnasium, named in 1988 for the man who built the basketball program, and who spoke before DeMatha played Good Counsel.
“I spent 46 wonderful years here, surrounded by wonderful people,” said Wootten, who was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2000.
Next year, when DeMatha moves into an $8 million on-campus Convocation Center with nearly twice as many seats (1,200), it won’t be as easy to imagine the DeMatha greats who made the old gym a mecca for serious Washington-area basketball fans.
From 1961 to 1976, DeMatha never lost a game in its cozy gym. Some of the players who made that streak possible — including Bob Whitmore and Aubrey Nash — were there Thursday.
When the gym opened in the winter of 1950, temporary baskets were anchored to the floor with sandbags. Until 1990, when more bleachers were added, a stage stretched along the baseline.
Twenty years ago, when current DeMatha coach Mike Jones played at the school, and Wootten had already solidified his legend, the gym still was reserved Friday nights for bingo.
“We had to play games in the afternoon,” said Jones. “Those were some of our best atmosphere games though. The students just stuck around after school.”
As is the case with all elite programs that move into new venues, the Stags won’t have trouble recalling their success. The location changes, but the history remains.
“Tradition never ends, it just continues,” said Wootten.
