FAIRMONT — Opening its season Monday, the Richmond Senior High School junior varsity boys’ basketball team had its chances to win down the stretch.
Getting multiple opportunities in the final minutes to tie or take the lead, the JV Raiders fell 44-43 at Fairmont High School.
Richmond finished its debut with two double-digit scorers on the board — sophomores Elijah Peterkin (14 points) and Adrion Pore (11 points).
Four others found the basket in the loss, including eight points from sophomore Eric Legrand. Sophomore Jayden Ratliff had six points and fellow sophomores Mikai King and Jacques Jackson both had two points.
Richmond opened the game on a 14-6 run. Three players combined for the JV Raiders’ scoring, led by Peterkin’s six points. He was 4-for-4 from the line with a field goal.
Ratliff netted a pair of buckets for four points and Legrand matched those four points with two foul shots and a basket.
Richmond led for most of the second quarter before missed free throws and turnovers allowed the JV Golden Tornadoes to take a two-point halftime lead.
Scoring just eight points to Fairmont’s 18 points, Richmond used two points each from Ratliff, Pore, King and Jackson.
The JV Golden Tornadoes took the lead on a field goal with 1:50 left in the half, and held on for a 24-22 lead at intermission.
Richmond came out of the half on a 10-4 run and took a lead by as many as four points, 32-28. That stretch started with a Pore drive, a Legrand layup and a Peterkin free throw.
Pulling Richmond ahead by a possession was Pore at the 2:46 mark, who hit a three-pointer from the top of the arc. Peterkin was fouled on the next run down the floor and his two successful free throws extended the lead to 32-28.
But a 7-2 run by the JV Golden Tornadoes in the closing 2:05 saw Richmond trail 35-34 at the end of three. Richmond’s two points were courtesy of a Pore drive with less than 10 seconds remaining.
Fairmont’s run carried over into the fourth stanza, which scored the first four points. Legrand hit a shallow jumper with 4:20 left, the JV Raiders’ first points of the quarter, which sparked a 6-0 run.
A couple of technical fouls called against Fairmont sent Pore and Peterkin to the line, both of whom connected on one of his two chances. A drive from Peterkin capped the run and tied the game at 40 points with 2:36 left.
Trading buckets, Richmond tied it again at 42-42 when Peterkin hit a putback under the rim. The winning basket was scored with 22.1 seconds to go for Fairmont.
Pore had a chance to tie it at the free throw line with 16.1 ticks left. He hit the first and missed the second. A couple of rebound opportunities were missed by Richmond as the clock expired.
The JV Raiders (0-1) will play at Westover High School Friday at 5:30 p.m.
Sports editor’s note: A photo gallery of Monday’s season opener will be published later this week.
