Basketball Game Preview: St. Anne-Pacelli Vikings vs. Calvary Christian Knights

The St. Anne-Pacelli Vikings will square off against the Calvary Christian Knights at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday. St. Anne-Pacelli knows how to get points on the board -- the team has finished with 55 points or more in their past six contests -- so hopefully Calvary Christian likes a good challenge.

St. Anne-Pacelli's offense will try to repeat the strong performance it gave on Saturday, when they got past Strong Rock Christian's usually-dominant defense. St. Anne-Pacelli really took it to Strong Rock Christian for the full four quarters, racking up a 62-22 victory. The Vikings have made a habit of sweeping their opponents off the court, having now won 11 matchups by 24 points or more this season.

Grace Smith

Steals

02/08/25 vs Strong Rock Christian	3
02/07/25 vs Westfield School	4
02/04/25 @ Brookstone	3
02/01/25 @ Midtown	4
01/31/25 @ Strong Rock Christian	2
+ 7 more games

St. Anne-Pacelli can attribute much of their success to Grace Smith, who posted 12 points and three steals, and Mckayla Hosley, who went 6-for-11 on her way to 13 points. Smith is on a roll when it comes to steals, as she's now grabbed two or more in the last 12 games she's played. Tamiyah Ransom was another key player, putting up six points in addition to five boards and three steals.

St. Anne-Pacelli smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with ten offensive boards. That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they've now pulled down at least ten offensive rebounds in three consecutive games.

Meanwhile, with a playoff win on the line, Calvary Christian rose to the challenge on Tuesday. They came out on top against the Patriots by a score of 43-33.

St. Anne-Pacelli pushed their record up to 17-4 with the win, which was their eighth straight at home. They've dominated over that stretch too, winning by an average of 29.8 points. As for Calvary Christian, their victory ended a six-game drought on the road and puts them at 7-12.

Everything came up roses for St. Anne-Pacelli against Calvary Christian in their previous matchup back in January, as the squad secured a 61-22 win. In that contest, St. Anne-Pacelli amassed a halftime lead of 30-7, an impressive feat they'll look to repeat on Thursday.