ROCKINGHAM — Following a whirlwind week for senior wing Paul McNeil Jr., he’s been named the Official Richmond County Male Student-Athlete of the Week presented by Rockingham NC Self Storage.
Breaking a pair of North Carolina High School Athletic Association single-game records, McNeil Jr. also achieved the feat of surpassing 2,000 career points.
Hoping to lead the Richmond Raiders to their first state championship before heading to play at N.C. State University, this is McNeil Jr.’s fifth career recognition.
Athletic Profile
Year: Senior
Height: 6’-7”
Winter Sport: Basketball
Position: Wing
Varsity Experience: 3 Years
Signed: N.C. State
CLASSROOM CREDITS WITH PAUL McNEIL JR.
McNeil Jr. and his fellow classmates are nearing the end of final exams for the first semester. This fall he completed Computer Science II, English IV, Psychology and Honors Weight Training.
After making the A/B honor roll the first nine weeks, McNeil Jr. finished out the fall semester with two As and two Bs. He currently has a 3.02 GPA and is the president of the African-American Studies Club.
Later this week, McNeil Jr. will begin his final high school semester. He’s set to take Math IV, Personal Finance, Physical Education and Spanish II.
“BREAKING RECORDS” WITH PAUL McNEIL JR.
Two hours after his fellow Richmond basketball player Jamyia Lindsey celebrated her 1,000th career point, McNeil went off and set two NCHSAA single-game records as part of a 118-52 blowout Sandhills Athletic Conference victory over Lee County Tuesday.
McNeil Jr. set a new single-game scoring record with 71 points, breaking a 74-year-old record formerly held by Bob Poole (Clayton High School, 68 points). He shot 28-of-49 with 10 three-pointers (57%) with 35 points in the first half and 36 points in the second half (with a running clock).
The 28 made field goals was also a new single-game NCHSAA record, surpassing three players who were tied with the previous record (25).
McNeil Jr.’s 10 three-pointers tied a single-game school record. He finished the game with a double-double with 14 rebounds and five assists.
Just 24 hours later, McNeil Jr. netted a game-high 37 points in a 79-33 victory over Pine Forest. With the clock nearing the buzzer of the first quarter, McNeil Jr. hit a step-back three-pointer to surpass the 2,000 point mark of his career.
In his seventh game this season scoring 33 or more points, McNeil Jr. added six rebounds, six assists and three steals in the non-conference win.
Through his 16 games this winter, McNeil Jr. leads all scorers in the state (in all classifications) with 33.1 points per game. LJ Smith IV (Lincolnton) is second in the state with 32.2 PPG.
He’s also averaging a double-double with 11.0 rebounds per game and his 2.5 steals per game leads the Raiders. McNeil Jr. is second behind teammate Javian Drake with 4.3 assists per game.
In 81 career games with Richmond, McNeil Jr. has 2,025 points for an average of 25.0 PPG.
The Raiders (12-5, 5-0 SAC) travel to Scotland High School (7-8, 3-2 SAC) Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. and will look to keep their unbeaten streak alive against conference foes.
RAPID RESPONSE VIDEO WITH PAUL McNEIL JR.
McNeil Jr. shares his thoughts about his record-breaking week, enjoying the benefits of making national news and talks about what the Raiders need to do to close out the regular season.
The Richmond Observer will publish two more Official Richmond County Student-Athletes of the Week next week.
