ROCKINGHAM — A barrage of three-pointers and a career-high 38 points from junior Jullien Cole ignited the No. 2 Richmond Raider basketball team to a playoff win on Tuesday.
Hosting No. 31 Purnell Swett High School, the Raiders used a running clock to earn a 96-57 win and advance to the second round of the 4A East playoffs.
Cole set the program’s all-time single-game record for the most three-pointers made, draining 10 shots from beyond the arc. He had five triples in both the first and third quarters.
As a team, Richmond scored 17 three-pointers, the most in a game since hitting the same number against Orange High School in 2016.
Paul McNeil Jr. added 18 points, Zion Baldwin notched a double-double with 10 points and 12 rebounds and Javian Drake finished with 11 points.
Richmond will welcome in No. 15 Sanderson High School (19-7) on Thursday in the second round. A start time is to be determined at the time of publication.
Below are photos from Tuesday’s first-round playoff win, taken by sports editor Kyle Pillar.
