Phenom Hoops headed down past Charlotte to Victory Christian, a team that has been making a lot of noise to start the season and they were looking to continue that success against Providence Day. It was an early battle in the first quarter, with Providence Day holding the 7-4 lead after the first quarter. 2025 Nick Hailey had a good early showing in the first quarter, knocking down shots from outside, while 2025 Jonah Lawrence played hard to chip in early. That duo helped take an 18-14 halftime lead over Victory Christian.
But that is when the game shifted, as Victory Christian locked down, played swarming defense, and just seemed to make plays all over the court, which allowed them to outscore Providence Day 16-2 in the third quarter to take a double-digit lead after the third. That trend only continued, as Victory Christian made big play after big play, walled up on defense, and brought that team mentality in what ultimately became a convincing 52-34 win at home.
Final: Victory Christian 52 – Providence Day 34
Stats:
PDS: Jonah Lawrence 18pts/ Nick Hailey 9pts
Victory: Abubakar Cham 8pts/ Kabba Fanta 7pts, 14rebs/ Myles Smith 9pts/ Alius Bowser 7pts/ Xavier Perry 6pts, 7asts
Standouts:
2025 Jonah Lawrence (Providence Day): Lawrence was the true consistent player for PDS with his play, getting to his spots, making plays off the dribble, making plays out in transition, finishing strong and being a go-to scorer for his team. Made several strong finishes and stayed aggressive all game long.
2025 Kabba Fanta (VCCS): Fanta was a huge difference-maker in this game, especially with his ability to clamp down and be that anchor down in the paint. Time after time, he altered shots and walled up against opponents, making it extremely difficult for PDS to score down low. But he was also exceptional on the boards as well.
2025 Myles Smith (VCCS): Smith grabbed my attention with his presence on both sides of the floor. He was able to be an effective option offensively, scoring from multiple levels, but his defense was outstanding, creating havoc for opponents, playing scrappy and in-your-face defense, and playing with a ton of energy.
2024 Xavier Perry (VCCS): Perry did a nice job in creating and making plays off the dribble, really creating and dishing to set up his teammates as he racked up some impressive assists. Perry, the leading scorer on the team, shared the ball well.