Victory Christian’s Ebuka Izundu commits to Charlotte 49ers basketball

Victory Christian’s 6-foot-10, 180-pound senior Ebuka Izundu has committed to the Charlotte 49ers, his AAU coach Kevin Ligon told the Observer.

Izundu, a power forward, is one of three Kings who are at least 6-10 playing for first-year coach Aureice McCain. Ligon coached Izundu last summer and said the 49ers are getting a high school version of Miami Heat Chris Bosh. Like Bosh, Izunda is a left-handed player who can run the floor.

Izundu averaged 18 points, 12 rebounds and six blocks at Victory Christian as a junior.

“He runs the floor like a deer,” said Ligon, coach of the Charlotte ACES 17-and-under team. “He is a shot blocker who is really skilled around the basket. He has great hands and a high motor. He always hustles.

“He’s very team oriented and doesn’t need 100 touches to be effective. He can get rebounds and steals and dribble the ball. He’s an exceptional big man.”

Izunda and Victory Christian will open the season Friday against nationally ranked Oak Hill. The teams are playing in the Phenom Hoops High School Showcase at Forsyth Country Day.

The Phenom Hoops Showcase is at Forsyth Country Day and features eight top-50 players in the class of 2015, including three Oak Hill (Va.) recruits – 6-6 Dwayne Bacon (Florida State), 6-10 Daniel Giddens (Ohio State) and Josh Reeves (Penn State).

At 6 p.m. Friday, Providence Day will play Huntington Prep (W. Va.), which is ranked No. 10 in the preseason National Prep Basketball Poll.

At 7:30 p.m. Friday, Oak Hill, ranked No. 8, will face Victory Christian.

On Saturday, Gaston Day will face Durham Mount Zion at 10:30 a.m., followed by Kennedy Charter-Victory Christian at noon. At 4:30, three-time N.C. Independent Schools state champion Northside Christian will face Davidson Day.

The Oak Hill-Victory Christian game will be live streamed on netscapesports.com

The schedule:

Friday: Bull City Prep vs. New Hope Christian, 1:30 p.m.; Durham Faith Assembly vs. St. Louis Christian, 3; W-S Quality Education vs. Genesis Academy, 4:30; Huntington Prep vs Providence Day, 6; Oak Hill vs. Victory Christian, 7:30; Forsyth Country Day vs. Word of God, 9

Saturday: Mount Zion vs. Gaston Day, 10:30 a.m.; Kennedy Charter vs. Victory Christian, noon; Raleigh Word of God vs. Genesis Academy, 1:30 p.m.; Quality Education vs. St. Louis Christian, 3; Northside Christian vs. Davidson Day, 4:30; Greenfield vs. The Carlilse School, 6; Forsyth Country Day vs. Oak Hill, 7:30; High Point Christian vs. Huntington Prep, 9

Football

Greensboro Dudley’s appeal to the N.C. High School Athletic Association’s executive committee was denied Wednesday morning. The school sought to be allowed to play in Friday’s playoffs after reporting four ineligible players from Friday’s game.

Because those players were reported after Saturday’s playoff brackets were finalized, the pairings cannot be reseeded to include Dudley’s loss.

Dudley plans a second appeal to the entire NCHSAA Board.

If the appeal denial is not overturned, the reigning N.C. 4A champs, who have won 25 straight games, will not play in the postseason. Dudley, a No. 1 overall seed in the 4A West, would forfeit to No. 16 seed Jamestown Ragsdale, which would move to the second round to face the winner of Friday’s Vance at Mooresville game.

This story was originally published November 12, 2014 at 9:37 AM with the headline "Victory Christian’s Ebuka Izundu commits to Charlotte 49ers basketball."