For the 2025-26 season, Westminster Middle School Basketball has expanded with a green team, a white team, and a sixth grade team.
Over the course of an 11 game season plus playoff, this year’s Green Team is trying to get back to the championship after the same team was defeated by Holy Innocents last year in the championship game. They have won four games and lost one, a one-point heartbreaker to Lovett. All the other games have been pretty easy wins. 8th grader Wyatt Almy says his favorite part about being on the team is playing basketball with the guys. Almy says that the atmosphere of Westminster is one of the best parts because everyone gets to play which helps with team spirit. Almy says he’s looking forward to finishing the regular season and getting the opportunity to win the championship.
The Green Team is coached by Connor Smith, a community coach who played basketball at Oglethorpe University. Smith has coached NYO and AAU basketball. This is Smith’s second year coaching at Westminster. Smith started coaching at Westminster because of his relationship with Coach Alex Richey, who is our current Varsity Girls basketball coach and formerly had coached Smith at Oglethorpe. Smith had a strong first year as the seventh grade basketball coach, where he ended up leading the team to the championship. Ultimately, the team fell to Holy Innocents in a nail-biting game. Now coaching the same boys as eighth graders, Smith is looking forward to revenge on Holy Innocents and ultimately winning back the championship this year. Outside of Westminster, Smith works at Peachtree Presbyterian Church.
This year’s seventh graders get the chance to take the court for Westminster for the first time. The White Team also has an 11 game season plus the playoffs. They have won all four of their games so far. All four games have been good wins against difficult opponents. 7th grader Courie Whitfield says his favorite part about being on the team is playing with his classmates and playing for the school. Whitfield looks forward to getting the chance to play for a championship.
The White Team is coached by Carlos Taylor, a third grade teacher at Westminster. Taylor’s path to Westminster was very different from other coaches and teachers. Taylor described his childhood as an unorthodox childhood. Taylor is from Detroit, Michigan where he was adopted as a foster child. Taylor says that his childhood shaped his viewpoint of the world. It made Taylor want to work harder, no matter what he was doing, which got him to Westminster. Taylor played basketball at Alabama State University. Taylor has now been coaching for six years. The history of Westminster stood out to Taylor because of the rigorous academics and how the athletes are so well rounded. Taylor is looking forward to a fun season and wants to honor the legacy of former Middle School basketball coach Gary Jones. Outside of coaching and grading papers, Taylor is into fashion and creative arts.
With the addition of a sixth grade basketball team this year, the sixth graders are looking forward to playing a sport for Westminster. They have won three games and lost three. The boys opened the season with a win over St. Pius by two points. They have had good wins with some tough losses. 6th grader Terry Dent says he loves the game of basketball and playing with his teammates makes the experience even better. Dent looks forward to trying to make a deep run in the playoffs.
The sixth graders are coached by Jervon Walker. Walker is also the coordinator for practice games and event operations in the Athletic Department. Walker has coached basketball for five years while also playing for twenty. Walker plays CMO pro basketball for a team in Atlanta. Walker says basketball has taught him how to be a team player, how to be accountable, and how to deal with work life. Walker enjoys being with the kids and getting to know them not just as athletes but as people. Walker’s main goal is to win the championship, but he wants the players to just win one game at a time and learn from mistakes. Walker describes himself as an over-thinker, and he is very hard on himself. Walker strives to become an athletic director one day and is growing from experiences at Westminster.