ROCKINGHAM — Saturday’s third-round playoff game between No. 1 Richmond and No. 8 Pine Forest needed an extra four minutes to decide a winner, and it ended in the Raiders advancing to the fourth round.
The top-seeded Raiders continued their magical march in the 4A East playoffs with a 70-63 win over Pine Forest, defeating the Trojans for the second time this season.
Finishing regulation tied at 63 points, Richmond outscored Pine Forest 7-0 in overtime. Sophomore shooting guard Paul McNeil added the final five of his team-high 28 points in the extra frame.
McNeil, who had a double-double with 19 rebounds, hit the eventual game-winning free throw with 3:25 left. A free throw each from junior Dakota Chavis and sophomore Jamarion Wall in the final 45 seconds helped secure the victory.
Fellow sophomore Javian Drake added 22 points in the win, with 13 points coming in the third and fourth quarters.
The Raiders celebrate after senior Xavier Collazo drove the lane for a bucket in the first quarter. (Kyle Pillar/The Richmond Observer)
Setting a new program record with its 26th win of the season, Richmond broke the previous best mark set by the 1995-96 and 1996-97 teams.
It’s also the first time since the 96-97 team that the Raiders are dancing in the fourth round of the playoffs. Current head coach Donald Pettigrew was a senior on that year’s team.
The Trojans (23-4) carried a 49-47 lead into the fourth quarter after trailing following the first two periods. The teams battled out to six ties in the final eight minutes, including two in the last 1:57 of regulation.
Tristin Harkins, who finished with 16 points, had three three-pointers in the fourth for Pine Forest. He gave the Trojans a 57-55 lead on his first, and then tied the game at 60 and 63 points with his other two.
Harkins’ final three-ball came from the left corner with 11.6 seconds remaining in regulation, tying it all at 63 points. Just prior, with 28.4 seconds left, McNeil drained three consecutive free throws after being fouled on a three-point attempt at the top of the arc.
In the closing seconds of the fourth, McNeil collected a loose ball in front of the Raiders’ bench and attempted a game-winner at the buzzer. It hit the back of the iron, sending the game to overtime.
Junior Dakota Chavis (5) moves up the floor after a steal during the first half. (Kyle Pillar/The Richmond Observer)
Pine Forest had its chances to score in the extra stanza, but Jordan Jones missed two free throw attempts with 2:37 left. He finished with a game-high 33 points, including 23 points in the first half.
Richmond played keep-away for much of the final two minutes, and used an offensive charge drawn by senior Deshon Watson with 1:36 left to get the ball back. Chavis also came up with a big offensive rebound to send him to the line for his lone point of the game.
In the closing 17.1 seconds, Jones and Chamond Williams missed three-point attempts for Pine Forest. McNeil grabbed the game-clinching rebound with 10.9 seconds remaining and added his final free throw after being fouled.
Richmond opened the game on a 7-0 in the first quarter, but saw its lead cut to three points, 14-11. In the closing 2:06 of the frame, a 10-4 stretch put the Raiders ahead 24-15.
The Trojans outscored Richmond 17-11 in the second and 17-12 in the third. Drake, who had 9 points at the break, used a 4-0 run in the second to help the Raiders take a 35-32 lead into the locker room.
Drake made a transition basket before stealing the ensuing inbound pass to put a shot off the glass to make it a 10-point lead.
Sophomore Javian Drake flies to the basket past Darrius Simmons (10) for a transition bucket in the second quarter. (Kyle Pillar/The Richmond Observer)
Junior Zion Baldwin scored all seven of his points in the first quarter, and added three boards. Chavis had five assists, four steals and three rebounds for the Raiders.
Rounding out Richmond’s scoring were Watson (7 points), Wall (3 points) and senior Xavier Collazo (2 points).
Richmond (26-1) will host No. 5 Cleveland High School in the 4A East regional semifinals on Tuesday.
The Rams (29-1) defeated No. 4 D.H. Conley 49-40 in the third round. Tip-off is to be determined at the time of publication.
