Victor Sims Jr.

Victor "Little Vic" Sims Jr. was the heart and soul of the Dutch Fork High School basketball team in Irmo, South Carolina. As a senior, he and his teammates had set new standards of excellence in the basketball program compiling a record of 58 and 25. A school record for most wins in a single season was set during Vic's junior year with 19 wins. During his senior year his team established a new record with 25 wins. They won the school's first Region Championship, Lower State Championship and were AAAA State Runner-up.

Vic was the first 1000-point scorer in Dutch Fork history. He was named to the All-Area, All Region and the AAAA All State teams his senior year. He was selected by the South Carolina Coaches Association to participate in the South Carolina/North Carolina All Star Game which involved the best players from both states. Vic was one of only 1600 high school basketball players nationwide to be nominated to the 2003 McDonald's All American High School Basketball team.

At age 18, just one month shy of his high school graduation, Lil Vic went into sudden cardiac arrest while doing what he loved best - playing basketball. It turned out that Vic had hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) or an enlarged heart, which had been undetected. His parents, Patricia and Victor Sims Sr., are dedicated to increasing public awareness around sudden cardiac arrest and promoting intervention through early detection of conditions, such as HCM, that may lead to sudden cardiac arrest.

Lil Vic's radiant personality, bright smile, and childish pranks were the magnet that drew people to him. He was a loving son, brother, grandson, god-son, nephew, cousin and friend whose genuine loving, gentle and caring spirit, along with the memories of his infectious smile will be missed by all those who loved and knew him but his love and enthusiasm for basketball and life will be remembered forever. On December 18, 2003, Vic's jersey, number 31 was officially retired.