Varsity Basketball
Record: 19-8
Select Team...
OVERVIEW
From All-Americans to Olympians to NBA players and coaches to Hall of Famers, DeMatha alumni contribute to the highest levels of basketball.
DeMatha’s tradition of excellence on the basketball court is built on a nearly unrivaled string of success. The Stags have won 20 or more games in 66 of the past 70 full seasons, highlighted by 41 conference championships and six national titles.
In 2025-26, DeMatha finished 21-10 and won games as far away as Southern California and Arizona. Ashton “Ace” Meeks, coach Mike G. Jones’ first recruit in 2022, was named first-team All-Met for a second consecutive year and finished with 1,729 career points.
Ernie Cage ’58 was the first All-American to play on Madison Street. He has since been joined by, among others, Adrian Dantley ’73, Danny Ferry ’85, Victor Oladipo ’10, Markelle Fultz ’16, Justin Moore ’19 and Hunter Dickinson ’20.
Ferry and Dantley were named National High School Players of the Year, and Fultz became the first former Stag to be taken No. 1 overall in the NBA Draft (Philadelphia 76ers, 2017).
Dantley and legendary coach Morgan Wootten are enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Wootten was the first exclusively high school coach so honored. Coach Mike Jones ’91 guided the Stags (2002-21) to 511 wins, eight WCAC championships and the 2006 national crown. He is now head coach at Old Dominion.
Pete Strickland ’75, serving as interim head coach in 2021-22, led DeMatha to the Alhambra Catholic Invitational Tournament championship. Mike G. Jones accomplished the same feat in his first year at the helm (2022-23) and has led the Stags to four-straight seasons of 20+ wins.
Stellar Stags Players & Coaches
Jordan Hawkins ’21, who helped lead UConn to the 2023 NCAA Championship, was a first-round pick of the New Orleans Pelicans. He and Dickinson have played together in 2025-26. Other DeMatha grads playing in the NBA this year include Fultz, Jahmir Young ’19 (Miami Heat) and Jerami Grant ’12 (Portland Trailblazers).
When Fultz signed late in the season to play with the Toronto Raptors, he became the fifth former Stag to appear in a 2025-26 NBA game. Few high schools in the country can make that claim. Fultz returns each year to host a summer basketball camp at DeMatha. Several other former Stags play professionally overseas.
DeMatha alumni roaming the sidelines include, among others, Mike Brey ’77 (Atlanta Hawks), Sidney Lowe ’79 (Detroit Pistons), Duane Simpkins ’92 (American), Rod Balanis ’88 (Howard), James Robinson ’12 (Old Dominion), Austin Freeman ’07 (Morgan State), Kenny Blakeney ’90 (Howard) and Mike Jones ’91 (Old Dominion).
If you want to see tomorrow’s basketball stars today, get your ticket for a game at the Looney Convocation Center.
Did You Know?
Did you know three former DeMatha basketball players have helped the United States win Olympic gold medals? Adrian Dantley ’73 and Kenny Carr ’74 were teammates in 1976 when the USA struck gold in Montreal. Jerami Grant ’12 returned from Tokyo in 2021 gold medal in hand.
SCHEDULE
| Opponent | Date | Time | Location | Advantage | Result | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
vs.
Riverdale Baptist
|
|
|
LT ( SEAL ) Brendan Looney ' 99 Convocation Center | Home | ||
|
vs.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel School
|
|
|
St. John's College High School | Away | Win | 62-58 |
|
|
|
Coolidge Senior High School | Away | Win | 90-65 | |
|
|
|
Our Lady of Good Counsel High School | Away | Loss | 54-71 | |
|
|
|
LT ( SEAL ) Brendan Looney ' 99 Convocation Center | Home | Win | 74-47 | |
|
vs.
Sidwell Friends School
|
|
|
LT ( SEAL ) Brendan Looney ' 99 Convocation Center | Away | Win | 44-41 |
|
|
|
LT ( SEAL ) Brendan Looney ' 99 Convocation Center | Home | Win | 64-62 | |
|
vs.
TBD
|
|
All Day
|
TBD | Away | Win | 67-61 |
|
vs.
Torrey Pines Invitational (CA)
|
|
All Day
|
TBD | Away | Win | 72-57 |
|
vs.
TBD
|
|
All Day
|
TBD | Away | Loss | 62-81 |
|
vs.
TBD
|
|
All Day
|
TBD | Away | Win | 62-57 |
|
vs.
TBD
|
|
|
TBD | Away | Win | 50-46 |
|
vs.
TBD
|
|
All Day
|
TBD | Away | Loss | 49-60 |
|
vs.
TBD
|
|
All Day
|
TBD | Away | Loss | 62-70 |
|
vs.
Gonzaga College High School
|
|
|
LT ( SEAL ) Brendan Looney ' 99 Convocation Center | Home | Win | 72-57 |
|
vs.
Our Lady Of Good Counsel High School
|
|
|
Our Lady of Good Counsel High School | Away | Win | 68-58 |
|
vs.
Bishop O'Connell High School
|
|
|
LT ( SEAL ) Brendan Looney ' 99 Convocation Center | Home | Loss | 53-61 |
|
vs.
South River High School
|
|
|
LT ( SEAL ) Brendan Looney ' 99 Convocation Center | Home | Win | 79-41 |
|
vs.
Archbishop Carroll High School
|
|
|
Archbishop Carroll High School | Away | Win | 90-53 |
|
vs.
St. Mary's Ryken High School
|
|
|
St. Mary's Ryken High School | Away | Win | 74-33 |
|
vs.
Bishop Ireton High School
|
|
|
LT ( SEAL ) Brendan Looney ' 99 Convocation Center | Home | Win | 84-66 |
|
vs.
St. John's College High School
|
|
|
LT ( SEAL ) Brendan Looney ' 99 Convocation Center | Home | Win | 50-47 |
|
vs.
St. Paul VI Catholic High School
|
|
|
LT ( SEAL ) Brendan Looney ' 99 Convocation Center | Home | Loss | 50-67 |
|
vs.
Archbishop Carroll High School
|
|
|
LT ( SEAL ) Brendan Looney ' 99 Convocation Center | Home | Loss | 60-64 |
|
vs.
Gonzaga College High School
|
|
|
Gonzaga College High School | Away | Win | 60-55 |
|
vs.
Our Lady Of Good Counsel High School
|
|
|
LT ( SEAL ) Brendan Looney ' 99 Convocation Center | Home | Win | 60-51 |
|
vs.
Bishop O'Connell High School
|
|
|
Bishop O'Connell High School | Away | Win | 65-63 |
|
vs.
Bishop McNamara High School
|
|
|
LT ( SEAL ) Brendan Looney ' 99 Convocation Center | Home | Loss | 71-74 |
COACH
Head Coach
Mike G. Jones
(240) 764-2255
mgjones@dematha.org
First as a Player and Now as a Coach, Mike G. Jones is a Winner
By Chris McManes
DeMatha Communications Manager
Mike G. Jones knew what he was getting into when he became DeMatha’s head basketball coach in April 2022. It is here where two of the finest coaches in high school basketball history roamed the sidelines, and expectations are always sky high. The former NBA assistant has more than met the challenge.
In his first three years leading the Stags, Jones’ record of 69-31 (.690 winning percentage) exceeds that of Morgan Wootten (62-31, .667) and Mike Jones ’91 (63-30, .677). His teams have won two season-ending championships and finished with final Washington Post rankings of 14th, 10th and sixth last season.
Jones came to DeMatha after leading St. Stephen’s/St. Agnes of Alexandria, Va., for seven years. He closed his tenure with three straight Interstate Athletic Conference championships (2019-22). Between 2018 and 2020, the Saints were a combined 57-7.
In 2020, Jones was recognized by the Black Coaches Association as one of the nation’s top 10 black high school boys basketball coaches and was named NBC4 Washington Coach of the Year.
Jones, former head video coordinator for the Brooklyn Nets (2014-16), finished the 2015-16 season as an assistant coach. He had opportunities to continue as an NBA coach but thought he could have a greater impact on young men in high school.
Playing Career
Jones averaged 19.5 points, 5 assists and 2.4 steals during his two years (1996-98) at Texas Christian University. As a senior, he helped the Horned Frogs (27-6) go undefeated (14-0) in Western Athletic Conference play and advance to the NCAA Tournament.
Jones, during that season, averaged 21.3 points, 5.7 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 2.9 steals and became the first player in TCU history to score 40 or more points in back-to-back games. After producing 44 points, Jones went up against Delaware State on Dec. 3, 1997 and scored a then-school-record 51 points.
He was named first-team All-WAC in 1997-98, WAC Defensive Player of the Year and honorable mention All-America.
When Jones earned his bachelor of science degree in kinesiology from TCU in 2000, he became the first person in his entire family to graduate from college. A native of Oklahoma City, he was named 1994 Oklahoma High School Player of the Year after averaging 30.3 points, 10.1 rebounds and 5.1 assists per game at Casady School. He finished with 2,329 career points.
He then attended Northeastern Oklahoma A&M for two seasons (1994-96) and scored 1,014 career points. As a sophomore, he averaged 22 points.
After leaving TCU, Jones played pro basketball for 11 years in Europe, Asia and the United States, including three stints in the NBA Summer League with the Dallas Mavericks. He was a two-time league MVP for teams in France and Iran.
In July 2000, Jones scored 19 points to lead the NBA Ambassadors to a 103-68 victory over China’s CBA All-Stars in the decisive third game of the Asian Basketball Association League championship series.
Today, Jones is happy to be teaching and coaching at one of the most prestigious high schools in the nation.