Victory Christian boys victorious in Port City Classic tournament

Duncan girls also grind out a first-place finish at the Port City Classic

CATOOSA, OKLAHOMA - The Port City Classic is one of Oklahoma’s high school basketball's longest running tournaments and has been running for 57 years. 

This year was a fantastic finish with two competitive championship games. For the girls, No. 15 Duncan (Class 4A) beat Plainview, 43-34. Then on the boys' side, No. 3 Victory Christian (Class 3A) beat Catoosa (Class 4A), 73-63.

Port City Classic Boys Championship

Victory Christian 73, Catoosa 63

Victory Christian senior Chris Mason put the team on his back at the end of the game, as he threw down two slam dunks in the fourth quarter.

He was named the all-tournament MVP and scored 21 points. This is his third all-tournament MVP of the season.

In last year’s tournament, Catoosa threw down some slam dunks and beat Victory Christian, but the tables turned this season.

“I would like to call myself a pro, but not quite,” Mason said jokingly. “Four years of playing high school basketball has prepared me for moments like this. I knew I had to get some revenge since they dunked it on us last year.”

Victory Christian got off to a hot start thanks to eight points from freshman Gene Mason and nine points from Connor Hilsop.

Catoosa had an offensive lull and Victory Christian took advantage, hitting open shots and were ahead, 21-11, going into the second quarter.

Oklahoma high school boys basketball Top 25 rankings (1/17/2024)

Victory Christian built a 31-17 lead. But Chance Handley from Catoosa nailed three 3-pointers in a row and Titus Miller had a block to spark a 14-7 run to end the half. Victory Christian was ahead 38-31 at halftime.

Victory Christian opened the third quarter on a 17-2 run with plays like Michael Doctor knifing through the lane for a layup and Gene Mason hitting a 3-pointer.

Victory Christian’s defense was doing nearly everything right in this quarter, as they only allowed eight points, but Catoosa's Luke Beauchamp made a 3-pointer at the buzzer.

“We stayed patient and got some really good looks,” Victory coach Ryan Wakley said. “We played great on defense. Catoosa is a great basketball team and we knew we would have to take advantage when shots were not falling in for them.”

The Indians answered in the fourth quarter and came alive when Victory Christian received a double technical foul. After this play and three made free throws by Handley, Catoosa found themselves trailing, 64-53, with three minutes to play.

Victory Christian got a stop and played stall ball, but missed an open layup. Handley hit a 3-pointer to make it an eight-point game, but Victory Christian hit one at the other end to make the score 66-56 with 1:41 left in the game.

Chris Mason was fouled and made three free throws and later threw down a two-handed slam. But Catoosa would not go away as Handley buried a 3-pointer with 41 seconds to play, as Catoosa trailed, 71-61.

Chris Mason threw down his second slam dunk at the end of the game for the final 10-point victory.

“We have several guys who are experienced basketball players,” Wakley said. “We knew Catoosa would not go down without a fight, but we stayed calm and kept scoring when they made runs at us.”

Duncan Lady Demons 

Port City Classic Girls Championship

Duncan 43, Plainview 34

The first half saw no offense, as both teams defended well and both crashed the boards. With missed shots and good defense, it was Plainview who had a 6-5 lead after one quarter of play.

Both defenses played well, but Plainview closed the second quarter on a 5-0 run with plays like Jacey Hammon knocking down an open 3-pointer when Duncan was late on a rotation. Plainview found themselves in front, 19-13, at halftime.

Duncan scored 14 points in the third quarter. The Lady Demons went on a 8-0 run to tie the game with plays like Dashia Givens grabbing three offensive rebounds in a row, then getting fouled and making a free throw. She also was named all-tournament MVP.

“The thing about our team is we have several girls who can play,” Givens said. “I did not score like I wanted to, but other girls such as Addie Siess and Ariyah Harris scored. We all play as one and I had great games in the first and second rounds of the tournament.”

Oklahoma high school girls basketball Top 25 rankings (1/16/2024)

Plainview finally scored in the third quarter when Marya Southerland scored a layup to tie it at 21. Both teams moved the ball and saw some offensive success, but it was Duncan who held a 27-24 advantage.

“We played well on defense and slowed down their offense,” Duncan coach Grant Givens said. “We swung the momentum and made plays on both sides of the ball. Holding a team like Plainview to five points on offense was great to see.”

Addie Siess scored the first five points in the fourth quarter for Duncan. She scored nine points in the fourth quarter and 11 points total. Duncan held a 36-33 lead with four minutes to play.

Siess kept making plays and made a pull-up jumper. On the next possession, she blocked a shot in the paint and with two minutes to play, Duncan allowed one more point and closed the game on a 7-1 run to win the game by nine.

“I never really get to block shots, so it was fun,” Siess said. “I knew Plainview was going to shoot the ball in that position. As for my scoring late in the game, I knew I had to make plays since Plainview would not go away."

Photo of Victory Christian boys

-- Josh Jennings | @SBLiveOK