RAEFORD — Entering Tuesday’s Sandhills Athletic Conference basketball game, the Richmond Raiders were looking for their best conference start since beginning 3-0 during the 2013-14 season and the current stretch.
Traveling to Hoke County High School, an atmosphere head coach Donald Pettigrew admitted is always a “tough place to play,” the Raiders took care of business with a 57-51 victory.
Using a game-high 18 points from junior Nygie Stroman, Richmond held off a late push by the Bucks to move into first place all alone in the SAC standings.
Pinecrest High School defeated Lumberton High School on Tuesday, the only other team without a conference loss, to put the Raiders at the top.
Also having big night scoring were juniors PJ McLaughlin and Dalton Stroman, whose 14 and 10 points, respectively, were season-highs. On the boards, senior Jarvis Tillman collected a team-high eight rebounds to his five points.
Caleb Hood, Dalton Stroman and Nygie Stroman each crashed the glass six times.
The Raiders took a 42-27 lead into the start of the fourth quarter, but Hoke County used a 19-11 run to pull within seven points with just over three minutes remaining.
Led by eight points from Vinny Latham and seven more from Jordan Maynor, the Bucks eventually got as close as four points, 55-51 following two free throws from Maynor.
With the clock winding inside the final 15 seconds, junior Caleb Hood was fouled and he converted on both of his free throws to secure the win.
“The last few games we’ve turned the ball over late and that can’t happen,” Pettigrew said of letting big leads slip late. “I have to do a better job with them in practice to get them to realize they need to stop that.
“We really should have put them away, but the turnovers hurt us,” he added. “We couldn’t get things right for a while in the fourth quarter.”
Nygie Stroman carried the weight of Richmond’s scoring in the first half, netting seven points in each of the first two quarters. Dalton Stroman also got his first start of the season, as he knocked in five points on a three-pointer and a drive in the opening eight minutes.
Both teams went back and forth and a McLaughlin fastbreak layup on a long bounce pass from Nygie Stroman in the closing seconds of the first gave Richmond a 14-11 advantage.
Again, Nygie Stroman led the way in the second, but a three-pointer from sophomore Kellan Hood from the top of the key helped distance the Raiders. Caleb Hood added a drive through the paint, and a Nygie Stroman spin-around jumper on an offensive rebound gave the Raiders a 25-14 lead.
To close the final two minutes of the half, Nygie Stroman hit three free throws while Tillman added another. At the break, the visitors led 29-19.
McLaughlin would come in clutch for the Raiders to extend their lead out of the break, as the junior point guard made the paint his own and scored eight points. He started with a transition layup on a pass from Dylan Lewis, and followed a Nygie Stroman dunk with another easy basket under the hoop.
McLaughlin made quick work moments later with a one-handed floater from the middle of the floor, and capped the quarter with a steal at halfcourt for the easy lay in. A Kellan Hood three-pointer, his second of the game, helped the Raiders to the 42-27 lead heading into the final stanza.
Dalton Stroman opened the first two minutes of the fourth quarter with a three-pointer from the left wing and added a spinning basket off the glass. Those five points were part of an early run before Hoke County made its late push.
“Dalton has been shooting the ball all week in practice and he was big for us shooting and rebounding tonight,” Pettigrew said. “We expect Nygie to play the way he played. And like I’ve said all season, PJ is playing like the best point guard in the conference -- he’s our motor.
“We’re very excited to be 4-0 and we’re going to get ready for another big one on Friday,” he closed.
The Raiders (10-2, 4-0 SAC) will welcome in SAC opponent Lumberton (11-2, 2-1 SAC) on Friday at 7:30 p.m.
