Seeing that color, one has to wonder whether maybe someone in Richards' family has been hit with breast cancer. The answer is no, thank goodness. But Marquise knows bits and pieces about the medical field because his mother, Lisa Dashiell, became a nurse, and his sisters, Melissa and Monica Richards, soon will join that profession. And he will, too, he hopes.
Yesterday, of course, the only focus was basketball and Richards, a 5-11, 160-pound senior wing guard, helped the Huskies outlast Sankofa Freedom (charter) Academy, 77-72, in a frenetic, first-round Public League playoff that was also a Class A quarterfinal.
In addition to posting four rebounds, two assists and three steals, Richards, a true quickster with big strides, scored 27 points. He shot 8-for-21 from the floor (3-for-7 on treys) and drained all eight of his free throws.
Late in the game, he also beat the crap out of a teammate . . . Not really, but those far away, or close with bad angles, might have thought so.
With 18 seconds left, Robeson's lead, once quite gaudy at 21 points, was down to four. As Ahmed Doumbia stepped to the line, Richards walked over, stood right in front of him and used both fists to pound away on Doumbia's chest. Very lightly, that is. As if both guys were pro wrestlers.
Doumbia, who'd barely shot the ball all game, swished the first one, then one-bounced in the second.
Success!
"Make these foul shots! Ice the game!" were the words Richards said he told Doumbia.
Marquise added: "He knew what he had to do. Just wanted to [reinforce] it. Guys like [fellow veterans] Nate Hargust and Acquil Craft-Brown, we're used to all this. We have the understanding."
Late, they also had at least a hint of the heebie-jeebies. That's what blowing most of a comfortable lead will do to guys.
