CAMERON — Tying a program record with their 13th straight win to start the season, the No. 4 Richmond Raiders had to work hard late in the game to get past a tough and physical Union Pines High School squad on Friday.
On the road and playing in what head coach Donald Pettigrew called a “crazy basketball environment,” the Raiders kept their perfect season intact with a 71-65 win over the Vikings.
Winning their 13th game in a row to kickoff the 2021-22 campaign, the Raiders tied the program record set by the 2003-04 team.
Union Pines, which entered the night also with 12 wins, put Richmond’s winning streak in doubt several times, but the help of double-bonus free throws in the fourth quarter helped secure the win.
Battling a playoff-like atmosphere, sophomore shooting guard Paul McNeil finished with a game-high 23 points, including two three-pointers and going 9-for-11 at the line.
Junior guard Dakota Chavis aided the win with a career-high 20 points on 7-of-12 shooting, including a pivotal third-quarter performance that saw him net 9 points.
Sophomore guard Javian Drake tied his career-high of 19 points, including 12 points in the second half.
“The crowd was amazing and they did what they were supposed to do by getting us frustrated at times,” Pettigrew said. “They sped us up and Coach (Nick) Boney did a great job of getting his team prepared to make it difficult for us.
“But our guys played through it and they know that every team is going to give us their best shot,” he added. “Tying the school’s record and being a part of that history is a big deal for us. We knew it would be a tough win to get, but we got it and now we’re 4-0 in the conference.”
Chavis scored 4 points on the first couple of possessions for Richmond, but Union Pines (12-2, 2-1 SAC) responded to take a 10-4 lead at the 3:31 mark of the first.
McNeil hit a jumper coming out of the mask break, which was followed by a triple from Chavis to cap his 7-point first quarter. With under a minute to play, McNeil laid a shot off the glass to give the Raiders an 11-10 lead.
Off the inbound to start the second, McNeil splashed home a three-ball, but again the Vikings surged ahead to take a 19-14 lead. That run ended when McNeil drained a triple from the top of the arc, which ignited an 8-0 spurt by the Raiders.
McNeil added a drive in that run and Drake finished an old-fashioned three-point play to give Richmond a 22-19 lead.
Jack Adair answered with a three-pointer for the Vikings to tie the game, but a baseline jumper from sophomore Jamarion Wall with 1:20 to play in the half gave the Raiders their final lead change of the night.
That bucket, paired with a Drake step-back three-pointer and a Chavis drive in the final minute, put Richmond ahead 30-26 at the break.
“They were a really physical team, and we didn’t expect that,” Pettigrew explained. “That slowed us down a little in the first half, especially with how physical they were against Paul (McNeil).
“But the guys adjusted to it, and Dakota (Chavis) stepped up big with 20 points and J.V. (Drake) had 19 points. These were games of the year for those guys, and that’s what we want. The guys have Paul’s back and our chemistry is getting better each game.”
A 9-1 run by the Raiders in the first two minutes of the third gave them some breathing room, opening their lead to 12 points, 39-27.
Junior Zion Baldwin hit a putback and Chavis added another drive through the paint, while a three-pointer from Wall and a Drake transition bucket kept the Raiders ahead.
Chavis’ final two points of his 9 points in the third came on free throws with 31.6 seconds remaining. Heading into the fourth, Richmond led 53-44.
Union Pines scored 8 of the first 14 points of the fourth to make it a 59-52 Richmond lead, but foul trouble cost the Vikings late. McNeil was fouled at the 3:44 mark of the fourth, which sent the Raiders into the double bonus.
Down the stretch, Richmond converted 12-of-14 free throws to help ice the game. McNeil hit 5 free throws, Drake added 5 points from the line and Chavis ended his career night with a pair of shots from the charity stripe in the final minute.
Tyson Hise hit a three-pointer from the right corner in the closing seconds for the Vikings, but Richmond was able to inbound the ball and thwart the comeback attempt.
Adair finished as Union Pines’ leading scorer with 18 points, followed by 16 points from Kelby Wright, who scored 6 points in the fourth. Hise and Stevenson Lee Haskell both had 10 points and Demari Patterson chipped in 7 points.
The current SAC-leading Raiders (13-0, 4-0 SAC) will host Lee County High School (2-9, 0-3 SAC) on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.
With a win, Richmond will set a new program record for the most consecutive wins to start a season.
