ROCKINGHAM — The Richmond boys’ basketball team dominated the court during Monday’s seventh annual Richmond Raider Classic.
The summer jamboree featured a total of six teams from around the region, with Richmond scrimmaging Red Springs and Forest Hills high schools.
Also playing two games each were Fairmont, Pine Forest and Scotland high schools.
Richmond continued its three-week stretch of summer development, a chance head coach Donald Pettigrew said allows returning players and newcomers a chance to mesh on the floor.
Playing two 20-minute halves with a running clock, save for the final two minutes, the Raiders used two different rotating rosters to rack up the points.
Against Red Springs, Richmond rolled to a 71-40 victory. A trio of Raiders reached double digits, led by rising senior wing Jullien Cole’s 16 points, who had 11 points in the first half.
Just behind Cole was Braylon Barfield with 15 points. A recent transfer from Marlboro County High School, Barfield is a 6-8 wing and forward who showed off his range with a couple of three-pointers and his grittiness and blocking ability in the paint.
Rising junior Ahaiver McDonald, who will join the varsity team this winter, dropped 10 points, netting five in each half. At the intermission, Richmond held a 40-23 advantage.
Six other players recorded points for Richmond against the Red Devils — Jamarion Wall (7), Paul McNeil Jr. (6), David McNair (6), Jayden Hamilton (6), Keyonta Davis (3) and Javian Drake (2).
The Raiders led by as many as 22 points in the first half and opened that lead to 32 points two different times in the final 20 minutes.
In game two, the Raiders handed Forest Hills a loss. No final score or stats were available at the time of publication.
Up next, Richmond will travel to Jacksonville, N.C., for the three-day East Coast Invitational, starting on Thursday.
Below are photos of Richmond’s scrimmage against Red Springs, taken by sports editor Kyle Pillar.
