FLORENCE, S.C. — Saturday’s scrimmage for the Richmond Senior High School boys’ varsity basketball team was one last chance to get everything right ahead of its season opener on Tuesday. And there was no better way than to compete against a back-to-back state title runner-up program.
Third-year head coach Donald Pettigrew and the Raiders traveled to the Pearl Moore Basketball Center to play Wilson High School (S.C.), the two-time reigning 4A second-place finishers in the South Carolina state playoffs.
But it was the Raiders who looked like a seasoned playoff team, as they rolled past the Tigers and head coach Derrick McQueen 42-24.
“Today was all about trying to get the little kinks out,” Pettigrew explained. “(Wilson) is a really good team and they play strong defense. They made us work today and I told the guys today showed us we have to keep believing in what we’re doing.
“If we keep shooting the ball and playing with confidence, eventually something good will happen,” he added.
Both teams battled defensively in the first 10-minute quarter (running clock), seeing the Raiders net just seven points. Senior power forward Jarvis Tillman laid a ball in off the opening tip, and junior point guard PJ McLaughlin added the other five points (two field goals and two free throws).
Leading 7-3 entering the second stanza, junior forward Nygie Stroman and sophomore guard Jalen David combined for 11 points to keep the Raiders ahead. Stroman, who is 6-7, showed his range with a mid-range jumper off the glass in the opening two minutes, and closed the quarter with back-to-back putbacks underneath in the final 35 seconds.
David, who’s in his first varsity season, hit a pair of free throws before adding a three-pointer. At the half, Pettigrew’s squad held an 18-14 lead.
Out of the break, senior point guard Quamir Sivels caught fire and delivered all of his team-high 12 points. He banged home deep triples on consecutive possessions, before draining another one midway through the stanza.
Tillman showed his range from downtown, adding a three-pointer to open Richmond’s lead to 30-16. Junior Dylan Lewis drove the paint for two of his four points, and Sivels beat the buzzer with a drive and made an and-one opportunity.
Wilson found its footing in the fourth quarter, opening with an 8-0 run to cut its deficit to 35-24. The Tigers also kept the Raiders out of the scoring column for the first 7:30 before Stroman powered his way to the bucket for two more of his 11 total points.
A Stroman three-pointer and a Lewis breakaway layup in the final minutes sealed the deal on the win.
“Defensively, we looked really good today,” Pettigrew said. “The way the guys played today (on offense and defense) is the way they’ve played all summer. It’s all about gym time and now we’re seeing it pay off.”
Behind Sivels’ 12 points, Stroman had 11, David and Tillman both added five points, and Lewis and McLaughlin each contributed four points. The Raiders played a “fifth quarter,” handing the Tigers a 12-0 loss to cap the day.
Richmond gets its season officially underway Tuesday at home against Anson High School. Tipoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ROSports will publish a season preview in Monday’s edition.
