ROCKINGHAM – The Richmond Senior High School boys’ basketball victory on the road at Jack Britt High School last Friday was both a big moment for this season’s Raiders, as well as a milestone win for the program.
Nygie Stroman’s game-winning basket with 5.7 seconds remaining not only extended the Raiders’ SAC winning streak to six, but it also ended a long drought in the process. It was the first time in school history that the Raiders defeated the Buccaneers at Jack Britt High School.
One year after Jack Britt opened (2000), the Raiders and Bucs were placed into the same conference. The strong basketball programs at Seventy-First and Westover injected some quality competition into the newly formed Mid-Southeastern Conference (MSEC) and it didn’t take too long for the Jack Britt program to live up to its Cumberland County roots.
During the eight year existence of the MSEC, Richmond only went 2-17 against the Bucs. At first, it did not appear that the series was going to wind up so lopsided. The Bucs trounced the Raiders 77-55 at Jack Britt in the first ever meeting between the two schools in January of 2002.
Richmond avenged that loss on senior night at Raider gym a few weeks later with a narrow 66-63 victory. It was a perfect senior night. Not only did it mark the first victory over Jack Britt, but Raider seniors Eugene Grant, Azariah Jones and Travis Moore each scored double-digits in the win.
Looking back to their first meeting the following year, you would think that the Raiders would have easily notched a win against the Bucs in Fayetteville. Eric Belkowski (19), Jamar Bryant (14), Steven Edwards (12), and Marty Covington (11) lit up the scoreboard in a 73-39 rout of Jack Britt at Raider gym.
When the Raiders traveled to Jack Britt a few weeks later for the 2003 regular season finale, the two teams entered the night tied at the top of the standings in a winner-take-all grudge match. The Bucs managed to slip by the Raiders in a 57-56 heartbreaker that was lost at the free throw line in the final seconds.
To add a little salt to the wound, the Raiders traveled back to Jack Britt one week later for a rubber match in the MSEC tournament semifinals and fell short once again, 64-61.
Probably the most unbelievable scenario played out the next year. The Raiders won 16 of their first 17 games en route to a 23-5 season and a third round playoff appearance. The lone loss in the 16-1 start was a narrow 53-48 road loss at Jack Britt.
Fortunately, Richmond did not need to defeat the Bucs to claim the 2004 conference title. Using a big scoring night from Belkowski (13), Bryant (10), Fred McDonald (10), and Greg Crump (10), they managed to earn the MSEC crown with a 47-46 come-from-behind victory against Hoke County in Raeford a week prior to their rematch with Jack Britt.
This worked out in Richmond’s favor because Jack Britt managed to sweep the series with 63-55 win at Richmond in the final regular season game of 2004. The two losses to the Bucs were the only blemishes on Richmond’s MSEC record (12-2). Jack Britt finished in second place with an 11-3 finish.
The Bucs defeated the Raiders 12 more times between 2005 and 2009, including first round victories over Richmond in the MSEC tournament win 2007 and 2009. That extended their winning streak over the Raiders to 16.
The two basketball programs went their separate ways after the MSEC was dismantled following the 2008-09 school year, but were reunited in 2018 when both schools landed in the newly formed Sandhills Athletic Conference as part of the 2017-18 realignment.
When the two squared off last season for the first time in eight years, Jack Britt defended their home court once again with a 49-37 victory against the Raiders extending their streak to 17. That streak, which began on Valentine’s Day in 2003, finally came to an end on Jan. 26, 2018.
The Raiders only managed to earn two conference victories in the SAC’s inaugural season, but one was a 48-41 home win over the Bucs ending the nearly 15 year drought.
This season began with a 0-4 start for the Raiders. In the first cycle of conference play, Richmond dropped games to Purnell Swett (74-78), Pinecrest (41-48), Jack Britt (37-42), and Hoke County (49-54) high schools.
During that time, Jack Britt had taken up residence closer to the top of the SAC standings. However, when the Raiders traveled to Fayetteville to face the Bucs last Friday, it was Richmond that was carrying all of the momentum. Richmond had won five consecutive conference games and seemed poised to get their first win on the Bucs’ home court – and they did.
Stroman, who has been a big part of Richmond’s recent success, led the Raiders with 22 points in the 49-48 milestone victory at Jack Britt. With the win, the Raiders have avenged three of their four conference losses.
On Tuesday, Richmond erased the last bit of red in its ledger, beating Hoke County High School to avenge all four SAC losses. The 61-48 win put the Raiders one step closer to a conference title – a goal that seemed impossible just a few short weeks ago.
