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Victory Christian stops United Faith Christian Academy in NCISAA 1A state final

The Victory Christian Kings broke open a tight game in the fourth quarter and won going away to claim the NCISAA 1A boys basketball state championship Saturday over the United Faith Christian Academy Falcons, 65-51, at United Faith.

Victory Christian placed four players in double figures with Lewis Duarte and the Simpkins’ twins, Tajuan and Takai, all leading the way with 12 points apiece. Randi Ovalle also placed in double figures with 10 points, and Deiman Reyes added nine.

The balanced scoring really pleased Victory Christian Head Coach Marcus Dilligard.

“They bought in to do whatever it takes to win,” Dilligard said. “The more guys that we have score, the easier the game seems to be for us. We’ve got a couple of guys that can put up 30 (points) without question, but they sacrifice a little bit of themselves for the greater good of the team.”

The Kings’ size certainly helped their cause as the 6-foot-9 Reyes, 6-7 Ovalle and 6-6 Lewis Duarte were all hard to handle in the paint. Victory Christian outrebounded United Faith 47-25. Reyes had nine of the team’s 47 rebounds and said that his efforts during practices paid off.

“I’ll been working for that all the time, every single day, working hard,” Reyes said.

United Faith coach Josh Coley agreed that the Falcons had a tough time containing the Kings down low.

“They’re good,” Coley said. “Some of the things that we talked about all week was slowing them down and containing them, but they’re really good players. You might get them once, but you don’t get too many cracks at it.”

Xavier McKelvy lead United Faith with 15 points, and Lance Gill added 10 points for the Falcons. The game was close throughout until the fourth quarter. The Kings held a 27-26 halftime advantage and led by only six points at the end of three quarters. Three times in the first half Victory Christian went up by seven points only to see United Faith go on a run and erase the King’s advantage. The biggest lead for the Falcons in the game was three.

THREE WHO MATTERED

Lewis Duarte – Victory Christian: Tied for the team’s scoring lead with 12 points, pulled in 10 rebounds, had four steals and a blocked shot.

Xavier McKelvy – United Faith: Led all scorers with a game-high 15 points and added three steals and three rebounds.

Simpkins’ twins (Tajuan and Takai) – Victory Christian: Each tied Lewis Duarte as the Kings’ leading scorer with 12 points and combined for 12 rebounds.

THEY SAID IT: “It was very hard because all of the pressure that you get in those kind of games. They are really tight so no matter what you have to make them or you can’t get the win for your team.” Victory Christian’s Randi Avalle in going 4-for-4 from the free-throw line late in the fourth quarter to seal the win.

RECORDS: Victory Christian (20-7); United Faith Academy (18-4)

Victory Christian 15 12 20 18 — 65

United Faith 8 18 15 10 — 51

Victory Christian: Lewis Duarte 12, Tajuan Simpkins 12, Takai Simpkins 12, Randi Ovalle 10, Anderson 9, Reyes 8, Thompson 2.

United Faith: Xavier McKelvy 15, Lance Gill 10, Willis 8, (LJ) Johnson 6, Scheuermann 5, Hester 3, Quick 2, (Landon) Johnson 2.