ROCKINGHAM — Getting his first start of the season at point guard, freshman Jamarion Wall didn’t disappoint in the Richmond Raiders’ opening-round win in the Sandhills Athletic Conference tournament on Monday.
The No. 3 Raiders welcomed in No. 6 Hoke County High School and used a 22-point third quarter to earn the 61-53 win.
Filling in for injured senior Patrick McLaughlin, Wall went off for a career-high 24 points, netting 10 in the first half before adding 14 points in the final two quarters. He finished the game with four rebounds and two assists.
“It felt good to get my first start and what really drove me was playing for Jalen (David) and P.J. after his minor setback,” Wall said. “I came in and did what I had to do, and tried to do everything the coaches expected me to do.
“It was a drive-and-kick game,” he added of what worked well on offense. “(Hoke’s) defense would crash and we’d kick the ball out. The extra swings allowed for a lot of us to be open. My teammates found me tonight and that helped me score.”
Senior wing Dylan Lewis added 13 points in the win, collected eight boards and notched a team-high four blocks. Fellow senior Nygie Stroman hit double-figures, scoring 10 points and adding three rebounds and five assists.
Freshman Paul McNeil led the way with nine rebounds to go along with his six points and four assists.
“Jamarion played with a lot of confidence,” Pettigrew said. “It’s what he’s shown he can do, and he’s not shy. He shot the ball over 20 times tonight, and he’s one of two freshmen who can play at a high level.
“We didn’t shoot well from the three-point line, we were 3-for-19 in the first half and finished 6-for-29,” Pettigrew said. “But the guys kept shooting and driving, and the shots eventually started falling.”
The Raiders used the paint and mid-range shots to help defeat the Bucks, starting with a 13-2 run to open the first quarter. Sophomore Dakota Chavis started with a bucket under the basket, two of his three points, and Wall followed with a transition layup.
On the next rush, Wall connected on the first of his team-high three three-pointers from the right corner. Helping close the run were three points from Lewis, a tip from Stroman and a transition bucket from McNeil.
Wall scored Richmond’s final points of the quarter on a drive through traffic and the Raiders took a 15-8 lead into the second.
Fifteen more points in the second stanza gave the Raiders a 30-22 halftime lead. Six Raiders would score, including three points each from Wall, Stroman and junior Xavier Collazo, who rattled in a transition triple from the left wing in the closing seconds.
Senior Travis Thomas netted his lone bucket of the game to start the quarter, but added six rebounds on defense. Lewis and McNeil each scored two more points before the break.
“This was a good win and I know the whole team wants to win the conference tournament,” Lewis said. “We came to play and we were aggressive. I hope we can make some noise, and this win was the first step in doing that.
“Coach Pettigrew always tells us to play with a high motor and we did that tonight,” he added. “We lost Jarvis Tillman last year, so I’ve been trying to be a good rebounder and blocker every game.”
The turning point for the Raiders was a 22-point third quarter. Wall drained a pair of triples from opposite sides of the floor, and made a transition layup and a baseline floater. His steal and transition bucket put Richmond up 17 points, 44-27.
Stroman chipped in his final three-pointer of the game from the top of the arc and added a pair of free throws for his final five points.
Lewis was big on the glass and turned defense into offense with four more points, all on drives in the paint. At the end of three, the Raiders held a 52-40 lead.
Wall and Lewis would combine for Richmond’s nine fourth-quarter points, and Pettigrew said using a different lineup took some adjusting to on defense to slow a late push from the Bucks.
Jamaii Murray connected on three second-half triples for the Bucks for all nine of his points. Kamonte Williams tacked on four points in the fourth for the final of his team-high 11 points. Jordan Maynor (six) and Vinny Latham (four) each had a bucket in the closing minutes.
In the final 10 seconds, Wall made a steal at halfcourt and fed it to Stroman, who found Lewis racing in transition for two insurance points. Lewis also added another layup at the buzzer.
“We had two freshmen and a sophomore playing at a crucial point of the game,” Pettigrew said of Wall, McNeil and Chavis. “It was tough not having P.J., but the guys pulled it together.
“It was a good team win and we’re ready for Wednesday,” he closed. “We just need to come ready to play and in both games we’ve played against Lumberton, we haven’t put the ball in the hole. That’s what we’ll really try to do well.”
This year’s SAC tournament is following a different format with no eliminations and each team is guaranteed to play in all three rounds. With their win, the No. 3 Raiders will continue in the semifinal round and travel to No. 2 Lumberton High School on Wednesday.
In the two regular-season games against the Pirates, the Raiders fell by an average of 10.5 points, and struggled to score late.
“We want to come out with good energy like we normally do, and keep that up the entire game,” Wall said. “The key is to finish smart.”
