CAMERON — Entering Thursday with equal overall records, the Richmond Raider basketball team tallied another one in the victory column over Union Pines High School.
Not having their Division I signee was no problem for the Raiders, who cruised to a 75-47 win in the Sandhills Athletic Conference meeting.
Senior wing Paul McNeil Jr. didn’t play due to illness, but a trio of his teammates took care of business.
Seniors Braylon Barfield, Javian Drake and Jamarion Wall filled the gap, each scoring double-digits against the Vikings (9-5, 1-2 SAC).
Barfield had his best outing of the season, netting a season-high 18 points to go along with 11 rebounds. He finished the night 7-of-10 from the field.
Drake netted a team-high 20 points, piling it on early with 15 points in the first half. He was 8-of-15 shooting with one three pointer and three boards.
Wall got hot from beyond the arc in the second half, finishing with 18 points and 10 rebounds for the double-double. He went 4-for-8 from downtown, including a trio of triples in the third quarter.
Five other Raiders found the basket in the win — senior David McNair (three points), juniors Keyonta Davis (six points), Davion Ingram (five points), Ahaiver McDonald (three points) and sophomore Jayden Hamilton (two points).
Wall set the tempo early for the Raiders, connecting on his first three-ball from the right corner in the first 10 seconds.
Drake, who led the way with 10 points in the first quarter, made a transition bucket to start his scoring. Barfield added two free throws and another Drake basket off a steal led to a 9-2 lead and a Union Pines timeout less than two minutes into the game.
A 15-10 run in the remaining six minutes gave the Raiders a 24-12 entering the second quarter. Two buckets from Barfield in the paint, a drive from Drake and a mid-range jumper from Wall extended the lead to 17-9.
In the closing 90 seconds of the half, Drake finessed his way to the hoop for two more field goals and drained a three-pointer from the right wing.
A closer second quarter saw the Vikings keep pace as Richmond held on to to outscore the home team 15-12. McNair started the Raiders’ scoring with a three-pointer in front of the student section.
Barfield netted the next six points for Richmond. He was awarded a basket on a goaltending call and followed that with an offensive rebound putback and a pair of shots from the line.
Leading 33-24, the Raiders closed the final 45 seconds of the second on a 6-0 run. Drake, Barfield and Wall each scored in the paint to build a 39-24 halftime lead, the largest lead in the first half.
Using five scorers in the third quarter, Richmond led as many as 22 points. Davis and Hamilton joined the scoring with a basket and Barfield muscled up for two more points.
Wall broke the game open with the first of his three third-quarter triples, connecting from the right corner to make it 48-33. Two of Richmond’s next four baskets were Wall three-pointers, both coming from the right side.
A Drake free throw and another putback by Davis were the other two baskets. Wall hit a deep two and Drake was credited two points on a goaltending call to make it 61-41 entering the fourth.
In the final eight minutes, Ingram led the Raiders with five points on a three-pointer and a field goal. McDonald chipped in a three-ball, and Barfield, Davis and Drake each netted two points.
The Raiders’ largest lead of the game, 28 points, came when Ingram banked a putback off the glass in the closing minute.
Union Pines was led in scoring by Jalen Kyle, who tied Drake for the game-high with 20 points. Zion Kiser added 12 points in the loss.
The Raiders (10-5, 4-0 SAC) look to remain unbeaten in conference play when they host Lee County High School (5-8, 1-2 SAC) Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. The game was originally scheduled for Friday.
Raiders’ game at Myers Park ruled a loss
Athletic director Mike Way confirmed Thursday that Richmond’s season-opener at Myers Park on Nov. 21, which was suspended late in the first half due to court conditions, was ruled an official loss.
The game was stopped with 2:59 left in the second quarter because water was leaking from the roof onto the court. Richmond trailed 27-21 at the time.
Way said the decision was made by looking “deep in the rule book.” With the loss, the Raiders’ overall record moved to 10-5.
Sports editor’s note: This article was updated to adjust Jamarion Wall’s rebound total.
