Joey McMullin deserved better.
It was an achievement that very few Orange players reach: scoring 1,000 points in a career. To do it, you usually have to start playing as a freshman, stay healthy and be successful enough to have a string of postseason games. It hasn’t happened since Connor Crabtree in 2017, when McMullin started as a freshman and the Panthers reached the 3A state quarterfinals.
McMullin entered Thursday’s game against Northern Durham needing only eleven points to reach 1,000, but he wanted more than that.
He wanted to beat Northern Durham and bring an end, as brief as it may be, to the tsunami of bad fortune that has overtaken Orange basketball since Christmas ended.
For much of the night, it felt like McMullin would get his wish and his milestone. McMullin rebounded a missed shot by Hunter Birch and scored on a stickback late in the third quarter for his 1,000th point.
That put Orange ahead by eleven in a game where they had never trailed. In what has become a pattern, the Panthers faltered down the stretch.
Anthony Freeman hit two free throws with :4.1 seconds remaining as the Knights rallied to defeat Orange 60-59. Orange’s Jason Franklin split a pair of foul shots to give the Panthers a 59-58 lead, and missed a 30-footer as time expired.
It was Orange’s sixth straight loss to fall to 7-7, 0-3 in the Big 8 Conference. Since beating Walter Williams on December 18, the Panthers have gone 22 days without a win.
Franklin returned to the Orange lineup after missing three games with an injured back, suffered during the South Granville Holiday Tournament against Franklinton.
After the contest, McMullin was joined by Orange Coach Derryl Britt, former Orange Coach Greg Motley (who is now the head coach at Southern Durham and still teaches a class with McMullin as a student), along with Joey’s parents for a ceremony at midcourt.
Northern (4-10, 2-3) defeated Orange for the seventh straight time. Orange’s last win against the Knights came on December 30, 2009.
McMullin’s had a baptism by fire in his freshman season. He started the first high school game of his career as Orange faces Leesville Road during a tipoff event at Millbrook High School. The Panthers entered the two-day event undermanned. Several Orange football players, such as Ryan Sellers, Kendall Whitted, Eli Haithcock, and Morgan Paschall, weren’t available because they were preparing to face Havelock in the 2nd round of the 3A State Playoffs. McMullin still scored ten points in a 76-65 loss to the Pride.
He had 16 points against Cedar Ridge in an 88-57 win on January 14, 2017 in Panther Gymnasium. He also scored ten points in Orange’s win over J.F. Webb on February 7, which clinched the Big 8 regular season championship.
McMullin started off this season with a career-high 38 points against Research Triangle. He already has six 20-point games this season, including 21 points in Orange’s 82-32 win over East Chapel Hill on December 17.
It won’t get any easier for the Panthers on Friday night. Northwood, riding atop the Big 8 Conference, will visit Panther Gymnasium on Friday night. Coverage on Hillsboroughsports.com will start at 7:30. You can hear the game on the website, or on our Facebook page.