ROCKINGHAM — Richmond Senior point guard P.J. McLaughlin scored just two points during Tuesday’s opening-round matchup against No. 20 seed Butler in the 4A West bracket of the N.C. High School Association boys basketball playoffs, but they proved to be the game’s most important.
With just 4.1 seconds left and the contest tied, McLaughlin calmly dropped in a pair of free throws, sealing a 57-55 win to advance his team to the next round.
No. 13 Richmond is scheduled to play at fourth-seeded Independence on Thursday in the second round of the state playoffs.
Raiders (20-8) coach Donald Pettigrew watched McLaughlin struggle from the field and at the free throw line throughout the contest, but had a message for his floor general during timeouts.
“He was getting discouraged a little bit and I told him, ‘Man, don’t worry about that…keep playing,’” said Pettigrew. “And he ended up knocking down two free throws when we needed them. That was big for us.”
Before McLaughlin’s game-clinching foul shots, fellow junior starter Nygie Stroman got into an offensive rhythm to propel the team down the stretch. The long lefty finished with a double-double, 18 points and 10 rebounds, and had eight of those points in the final period.
“He was settling a little bit in the first quarter, but then he got comfortable in the mid-range, got himself going,” Pettigrew said of Stroman.
After Butler (12-14) knotted it at 43 with 5:17 left in the fourth, Stroman knocked down his first of two 3-pointers in the period to give the Raiders back the lead. A couple of minutes later, he rocked the rim with a right-hand dunk that capped a 7-0 spurt and expanded the margin, 50-43.
“That’s just a little taste of what he can do. Hopefully, he can continue to keep playing how he’s playing and he’s going to be tough.”
Bulldogs’ center Patrick Wessler also finished with a double-double, totalling game highs with 22 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks. The 7-footer had seven early points, including a floater to give the Bulldogs a 9-5 lead after the first quarter.
Wessler and Co. took a 13-5 advantage in the opening stages of the second period, but a Dalton Stroman 3-pointer ignited a spark from the home team. After the triple, Richmond scored 17 unanswered points to close the half, heading into the break with a 22-13 lead.
Pettigrew commended the work of forwards Dalton Stroman (nine points and five rebounds) and Jarvis Tillman, who had 10 rebounds and team-high three blocks, in helping on the defensive end to limit the work of Wessler in the second quarter.
Wessler had eight fourth-quarter points and got help from Ty black to make a late push. Black knocked down a pair of 3’s in the final 30 seconds, the second of which tied the contest at 55 with just 13 ticks left.
But McLaughlin would take the ensuing rebound and weave his way to the basket where he was fouled, setting up the clutch free throws.
Up next for Richmond, a rematch of last year’s second-round matchup at Independence awaits. The Raiders fell 58-39 in Charlotte a year ago, but Pettigrew feels better about the meeting this time around.
“I think, this year, our guards will be more experienced. Last year, we had a lot of guys where it was their first time making the playoffs,” he said.
“Independence is a good team with a good coach. Our guys got to be ready to bring energy and take care of the ball and keep attacking like we been doing.”
Caleb Hood finished with 10 points in the win, while Tillman, Kellan Hood and Quamir Sivels all chipped in with five points.
