SOUTHERN PINES — Redemption was served by the Richmond junior varsity boys’ basketball team against a familiar conference foe in a double overtime thriller on Wednesday.
Extending their winning streak to four games, the JV Raiders got one back against Pinecrest High School, a team that handed them their only loss of the season over the holiday break.
Meeting for the second time in the last week, and the first in Sandhills Athletic Conference play, the JV Raiders erased several late-game and overtime deficits to win 61-59.
Not once, but twice, the JV Raiders used a pair of free throws to force the second extra period and win the game.
Sophomore Keyonta Davis, who had a team-high 18 points, knocked in a pair of free throws with 0.5 seconds left in the first overtime to tie the game at 52 points.
Icing the win with 8.1 seconds left in double overtime was freshman Terande Spencer, who finished with 10 points, including four in the fourth quarter and two in double OT.
Stepping to the line after he was fouled under the basket, Spencer scored the game-winning points. Pinecrest inbounded the ball and a last-chance opportunity was no good.
Also scoring in the double overtime were Davis (4 points), sophomore Ahaiver McDonald (2 points) and sophomore Davion Ingram (1 point).
Jumping out to a 4-0 lead, McDonald and sophomore Ali Tyson each netted a field goal. Pinecrest scored the next three buckets to take a two-point lead.
Davis notched a free throw to start his scoring, and both teams traded points, with Tyson’s final field goal of the first making it an 8-7 deficit.
Davis knotted the game with another free throw at the 1:50 mark, and erased another small hole to make it 10-10 with 22 seconds on the clock.
Pinecrest hit a shot at the buzzer to take a 12-10 lead, starting a 12-0 stretch that spanned into the second period.
Sophomore Davion Ingram ended the drought for the JV Raiders when he drove the lane for two points at the midway part of the second.
Trailing 22-12, Richmond used four straight points from Spencer in a 90 second span to pull within two possessions, 22-16.
A late triple by the JV Patriots (3-7, 0-1 SAC) gave the home team a 25-16 lead at the break.
Out of the locker room, Richmond used a 9-1 run to pull within a point. Contributing to the scoring stretch were freshman Amer Morrison, Davis and Ingram.
But the JV Patriots answered with a 7-2 run to close the period and take a 33-27 lead into the fourth.
Outscoring Pinecrest 17-11 in the fourth, Richmond used five points each from Morrison, who finished with 11 points, and Davis. Spencer had a pair of field goals and McDonald added a triple to his 11 total points.
With the game tied at 44 points, Richmond inbounded the ball with 14.9 seconds left. McDonald attempted a three-pointer and a field goal attempt by Davis was off the mark to force extra time.
The first overtime saw both teams hold a lead, and a three-pointer from McDonald from the right wing made it a 50-49 advantage with 1:25 to play.
A bucket and a free throw by the JV Patriots switched the lead again, setting up Davis’ two free throws to tie it at 52 points.
Richmond (8-1, 3-0 SAC) will close out its three-game week with a home game on Friday against Union Pines High School (4-6, 0-0 SAC). Tip-off of the tripleheader with the Vikings is slated for 4:30 p.m.
