ROCKINGHAM — One last home game will be played by the No. 2 Raiders during Friday’s fourth round of the 4A East state playoffs.
Reaching the Elite 8 for the third straight year, Richmond and head coach Donald Pettigrew are aiming to return to the regional championship for the second time in as many seasons.
The next opponent for Richmond is No. 3 Green Level High School, a team the Raiders haven’t played before.
Working their way through the bracket, the Raiders have defeated No. 31 East Chapel Hill, No. 15 Riverside-Durham and No. 7 Cardinal Gibbons to reach the fourth round. Those three wins have come at an average of 35.0 points.
Now Richmond will face its toughest matchup of the playoffs on paper and look to extend its winning streak to 18 games in the win-or-go-home contest.
The Raiders (24-5) will tip-off against the Gators (29-1) in the fourth round at 7 p.m. Friday.
Below are some fast facts about the Green Level Gators:
- As head coach, John Green has helped the Gators to an 11-0 mark on the road this season. The team won its first 26 games of the season before losing to Panther Creek School in overtime.
- Despite having a better overall record, Green Level made the playoffs behind the Raiders in seeding because of a weaker schedule. Green Level’s final ratings percentage index was 0.6496 and Richmond’s was 0.6648.
- To get to the fourth round, the Gators have defeated No. 30 Pine Forest, No. 14 Wakefield and No. 6 Garner, averaging each win by 19.0 points.
- Green Level won the 4A Southeast Wake Conference championship with an undefeated run through conference play (14-0), as did the Raiders in the Sandhills Athletic Conference (12-0).
- The Gators finished the RPI rankings with a 0.5153 opponent winning percentage and had an identical opponents’ opponent winning percentage. Richmond recorded a 0.6453 OWP and a 0.5558 OOWP.
- Through 30 games this season, the Gators have averaged 63.9 points per game, compared to Richmond’s 82.1 points per game. In the postseason, Green Level is averaging 66.0 PPG and Richmond is averaging 95.3 PPG.
- Everything for the Gators revolves around two juniors — Isaac Erickson (17.6 PPG, 8.1 rebounds per game) and Israel Eatman (15.3 PPG).
- Seniors Tye Cain and Trey Manhertz are other offensive contributors with 9.6 and 7.2 PPG, respectively.
- The Gators are also one of the taller teams across the board the Raiders have played this season. A dozen players are listed as 6 feet or taller, with Erickson towering over at 6-9.
- From the field, Green Level is shooting 47% as a team and 40% on three-pointers. Richmond is shooting 48% and 35%.
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