Phenom Hoops kicked off the season in a big way with the Carmel Christian Tip-Off Classic, bringing in some of the premier talent and teams from around the region under one building in Charlotte.
In our second game of the night, Wayne Country Day and Westminster Catawba battled it out in what looked to be an incredible game between two strong teams. Both teams came out strong in the first quarter, really finding their offense with Westminster Catawba earning the narrow lead after the first eight minutes, 18-16.
Westminster made a strong run in the second quarter to lead as many as seven but Collin Tanner and company came right back to retake the lead late in the second. MJ Collins hit a big three in the final seconds though, as Wayne Country Day led 32-31 at halftime.
Coming out in the third quarter, Wayne Country Day struggled at times to score the ball, getting most of their points from the line while Westminster found success behind Collins and Derek Bradley. With a buzzer-beating three, Westminster eventually found themselves up by 10 heading into the fourth quarter, 51-41.
Westminster continued to play on both sides of the floor, having their defense create turnovers and quickly attack the other way. They were finishing all over the rim late in the game, throwing down multiple thunderous dunks to extend their lead and eventually take home the win in Charlotte.
Final: Westminster Catawba 72 – Wayne Country Day 55
Stats:
Westminster: Derek Bradley 20 points/ MJ Collins 18/ Richard Black III 16/ Jalen Booker 6
Wayne Country Day: Collin Tanner 25 points/ Jordan Cooper 14/ Carlos Vazquez 7