ROCKINGHAM — If you include the boys basketball team’s first-round playoff game against E.E. Smith last year, I’ve only covered four basketball games that have taken place at Richmond Senior — so, I don’t know if this next sentence holds much weight.

The varsity matchups between Richmond and Hoke on Thursday night brought out the biggest crowd I’ve ever seen in Raider Gymnasium.

Now I’m sure more people were on hand for the ACC Barnstorming Tour game last March, but I’m talking about a game where both teams actually have a chance of winning.

I got to the school about 30 minutes before the girls’ game tipped off, so I was able to see most of the crowd fill the stands. But I didn’t notice how many people were there until I decided to stand on the baseline and take some pictures in the final minutes of the boys’ game.

You would’ve thought Tone Diggs hit a three-pointer to win the state championship game the way the crowd reacted after he brought the Raiders within two points in the last minute. Leon Zeigler’s layup, which tied it a 101, almost blew the roof off the place.

“It was a great atmosphere,” boys coach David Laton said. “I think it was great for the rest of the state to see how we play.”

The ending to the girls game was extremly similar, as the crowd roared when Keiona Love knocked down a three-pointer with under a minute to go. If she would’ve made her next one from downtown — which would’ve gave the Lady Raiders a one-point lead — I’m 100 percent sure the roof would’ve come off the building.

“It was very exciting to have the gymnasium full of supporters,” girls coach Rosalind McDonald said. “The girls were excited about the game being televised and having most of their friends and family there.”

THE GIRLS

The Lady Raiders played some of their best basketball this season in the second quarter. They began to press more and forced a lot of turnovers — which turned into points. After they went into the half up 11 points, I was positive that they were going to hold on for the win.

“Our girls did a great job defensively in the first half of the game, which allowed us to take that strong lead,” McDonald explained. “I guess the excitement of being in the lead and being able to shut down one of Hoke’s main shooters helped.”

But things were different after the half and you could see momentum begin to shift in favor of Hoke.

The Lady Bucks began putting points on the scoreboard at the end of the third quarter, but I knew the Lady Raiders were in trouble once they commited back-to-back turnovers early in the final period.

Love’s late three-pointer — which tied things up at 44 — made all of Richmond’s pain go away, however. All the Lady Raiders had to do was play solid defense and secure the rebound.

But they fouled Hoke’s Kiya Locklear as she was dribbling.

Although that was a bad foul, it did take the pressure off Richmond to get a stop and put it on Locklear to make her free throws. Hoke had been struggling from the foul line all throughout the second half, but Locklear stepped up to the line, made both of them and sealed the win — ruining the opportunity for me to write about how Love stepped in and saved the day.

“To lose by two points, especially after going into the half with the lead. That was disappointing for us,” McDonald said.

THE BOYS

Things weren’t looking too good for the boys team at first. Hoke opened the game on a 10-0 run and led 14-1 before Richmond began to score.

Some, including myself, may have questioned if the Raiders would ever get things going. Coach Laton on the other hand, made it clear that he doesn’t doubt his team in those situations.

“I never worry about that with the way we play,” he said. “I thought we played really, really hard and I thought we had a great comeback.”

To their credit, the Raiders did fight back. They cut their deficit to seven points before the first quarter ended and never let Hoke get comfortable with the lead.

Leon Zeigler had another good game, leading the team with 25 points, but Malik Flowers performance was a forgotten chapter in the midst of Thursday’s storyline. The junior forward had his best game of the season, scoring 21 points in the loss.

“I thought it was a coming-out party for Malik Flowers. I thought he had a great night,” Laton said.

Hoke’s ability to handle Richmond’s pressure was a huge reason why the Bucks were successful. Guard D’Coda Cummings did a great job of running the offense and big man Silas Love did a good job of finishing above the rim. Love had a posterizing dunk over a Richmond defender in the first quarter and caught a few alley-oops as the game progressed.

“Our kids were disappointed in the locker room, but we’ll be back,” Laton said. “I’ve got to the point in my career that if we play hard as we can, and we’re unselfish, I don’t have any problems. We’ll move on.”

THE OVERALL

I didn’t get the chance to play on television while in high school, so I can only imagine how excited each player was to get an opportunity like the one they had Thursday.

I understand that no player, coach or fanbase wants to be on the losing side of any game, especially the ones that took place Thursday, but I don’t think anyone could’ve asked for any more than what all four teams left on the court.

Both games — which were decided in the last minute — saw a number of lead changes and an endless amount of hustle and determination coming from everyone who took the floor.

That’s what I think high school basketball is, and should be, all about.

Reach sports editor Leon Hargrove Jr. at 910-817-2673 and follow him on Twitter @_UncleLeon.

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Leon Hargrove Jr.

Sports Editor