Richmond defenders Kenny Bing (20) and Connor Vachon (11) try to shut down the advance of Sacopee Valley’s McGwire Sawyer (3) during Saturday’s basketball game at Richmond. Bing had 27 points and 17 rebounds in the Bobcats’ 69-21 win. (Bob Conn / The Times Record)
RICHMOND — Saturday’s Class C South boys high school basketball game had all the makings of a close battle. Sacopee Valley entered the contest with just one win, but that came recently against Seacoast Christian, followed by a close loss to North Yarmouth Academy.
Meanwhile, Richmond’s early contests have been up and down, with the Bobcats standing at 2-3.
A close contest was not in the cards, as the Bobcats raced out to a 17-5 first-quarter lead and quickly pulled away in the second for a 69-21 win.
Richmond is 3-3 and heads to Forest Hills on Tuesday (6:30 p.m.), hoping for its first two-game winning streak of the campaign.
The first half was all about Richmond senior forward Kenny Bing, who had 21 points and 13 rebounds by halftime. He outscored (21-11) and out-rebounded the Hawks (13-7) himself in the opening 16 minutes as the Bobcats went to the break with a 38-11 lead.
Richmond’s Kenny Bing is defended in a game with Sacopee Valley on Saturday. Bing was trapped this time, but popped for 27 points and 17 rebounds in the Bobcats’ 69-21 victory. (Bob Conn / The Times Record)
“Kenny is just relentless on the boards, so he gives us a lot there, and I felt that we did some nice interior passing zone to zone,” said Richmond coach Phil Houdlette. “We got some pretty good looks. We went high-low, and it didn’t hurt to hit a couple early threes to get them to come out. They didn’t have a matchup for us inside.”
“We knew what we had to do. Coach taught us that we need to pound the backboards and pound the inside of the paint, and me and Calob (Densmore), that is what we do. It led to our great start tonight,” said Bing.
Richmond scored the game’s first six points, with Dakotah Gilpatric hitting a 3-pointer six seconds into the game. A trey by Densmore upped the advantage to 11-4, and the lead grew to 12 points before Sacopee’s McGwire Sawyer scored late to draw the Hawks (1-4) to 17-7 after a quarter.
Leading 19-9, Richmond put the game away with a 19-0 run, as Bing picked up 12 more points. The Bobcats owned the boards, holding a 24-7 edge on the glass at the half.
With Bing’s performance so far this season, comparisons to former Bobcat standout Zach Small can’t help to be mentioned.
“I don’t think anyone works any harder than Kenny, and in terms of competitiveness and working hard,
Richmond point guard Cole Alexander (2) looks for someone to pass during Saturday’s Class C South boys basketball game against Sacopee Valley. The host Bobcats rolled to a 69-21 victory. (Bob Conn / The Times Record)
Kenny really gives it to us,” said Houdlette.
“I don’t try to mimic (Zach), but it feels good to be compared to him,” said Bing.
Richmond continued to pull away in the third quarter, outscoring the Hawks 20-7 for a 58-18 advantage. Bing finished off his afternoon with six more points, ending the day with 27 points and 17 rebounds, along with four assists.
Densmore also had a double-double for Richmond, scoring 15 and pulling in 10 boards, with Cole Alexander and Gilpatric each adding eight. Alexander chipped in eight rebounds and three assists, while Connor Vachon contributed six points, eight rebounds and three blocked shots off the Richmond bench. The Bobcats finished with a 49-17 rebounding advantage.
Houdlette has seen his team alternate wins and losses so far this season, but feels his Bobcats continue to improve every day.
“We have Forest Hills, Old Orchard and Traip coming up, but I think the wins and losses are a sign of a young team, where we go through peaks and valleys. It is hard when you don’t play to your capabilities. At Traip, I thought we played pretty well despite losing by 13. We battled the entire game,” Houdlette said.
“We just lost a tough game to Traip, so we know that we needed this if we want to get to the A-C-C (Augusta Civic Center),” Bing added.
Sawyer led the Hawks with seven points, with Evan Coolbroth adding five.
Richmond 69, Sacopee Valley 21
Saturday at Richmond
Sacopee — 7 4 7 3 — 21
Richmond — 17 21 20 11 — 69
Sacopee Valley — Carson Black 1-0-2, McGwire Sawyer 2-3-7, Kyle Mason 1-0-3, Teagan Meggison 1-0-2, Phoenix Davis-Bailey 0-0-0, Evan Coolbroth 2-0-5, Devyn Mudgett 1-0-2, Sam Anderson 0-0-0, Sean Wedgewood 0-0-0, Jonah Naratil 0-0-0, Jacob Earley 0-0-0, Grady Cummings 0-0-0, Cody Sprague 0-0-0. Totals — 8-3-21.
Richmond — Cole Alexander 2-3-8, Dakotah Gilpatric 2-3-8, Kenny Bing 10-7-27, Max Viselli 2-1-5, Calob Densmore 7-0-15, Connor Vachon 3-0-6, Chance Taylor 0-0-0, Lucas Cote 0-0-0, William Miller 0-0-0. Totals — 26-14-69.
3-point field goals — (SV) Mason, Coolbroth; (R) Alexander, Gilpatric, Densmore.
Records — Richmond 3-3, Sacopee Valley 1-4.
Up next for the Bobcats — Tuesday at Forest Hills, 6:30 p.m.
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