HINSDALE, N.H. — In a perfect world, Issaiah Chappell would've celebrated the milestone in front of friends and family in the familiar confines of the Sherburne Gymnasium.

But as Chappell's well aware, the world — and more specifically, the Sunapee boys' basketball team's 2014-15 campaign — is far from perfect.

Even so, in a show of both sportsmanship and solidarity among its Division IV counterparts, Hinsdale didn't hesitate to celebrate Chappell's achievement as if it had been accomplished by one of its own.

So when the junior shooting guard converted a fade-away jumper off a pass from Matt Tenney to clinch his 1,000th career point late in the first quarter Feb. 13, the celebration extended far beyond just the Lakers' bench.

Hinsdale officials halted the game and announced the feat over the public address system, then, after members of the opposing team and its coaches offered their congratulations, Chappell was given the game ball and a bouquet of flowers — which he promptly presented to his mother, Jolene Chappell.

"They were really prepared and really cool about it, so it was awesome," said Chappell, who became the 13th athlete — fourth male — to accomplish the milestone in a Sunapee uniform. "I'm sure (coach) Ed (Tenney) mentioned it to them, but he was planning to have something back at home at our next game. I think (Hinsdale) just really wanted to make the moment special."

Chappell said the gesture wasn't a surprise considering the relationship he and his teammates have had with Hinsdale over the years. The Pacers haven't exactly established themselves as a rival in recent history — at least in the spectrum of boys' sports — but Chappell was quick to point out that competition between the schools has always been friendly.

Sunapee earned its first win of the season against Hinsdale on Jan. 9, and improved to 7-7 on the season Feb. 13 in an emotional 18-point victory.

"Hinsdale's always been good to us," he said. "The team, the players are all really nice. We always talk to them on the court and we've never had any problems or issues, so I kind of knew they'd be cool about it."

Chappell, who became a manager for the varsity basketball team while in middle school, said he always wanted to see his name embroidered on the banner commemorating Sunapee's 1,000-point scorers.

He said he attended his first varsity basketball game while in sixth grade, and though he never got to cheer on a 1,000-point scorer in a Lakers uniform, watching the likes of Brian Brewster and Troy Fowler light up the scoreboard was all the motivation he needed.

"I've always had it as a goal so it's just awesome that it actually happened," Chappell said. "I wanted to be remembered in this school somehow, so getting my name on that banner was a way I could walk in at any time, see it up there and know I did something."

Perhaps most satisfying, Chappell said of accomplishing the milestone, was the fact his 1,000th point came off a pass from point guard Matt Tenney. Chappell said the two have been friends for as long as he can remember, and added it wouldn't have felt right if the ball had come from someone else.

"He's the one who assisted on most of my points, so it may as well have come from him," he said.

Chappell finished with a game-high 22 points in the win over Hinsdale, and is now positioned as the leading scorer in both Division IV and the entire NHIAA with 28 points per game. Still, Chappell said he doesn't plan on taking things easy just yet.

After all, with just four regular-season games left as a junior, and memories of a loss in last year's Division IV title game still fresh in his head, Chappell said he still has plenty to work toward.

"I want to be named Player of the Year for sure, so that's definitely one of my goals," he said. "But I also want to lead this team to a winning record — not .500, not a losing record. I want to have a winning record. So I'm going to do everything I can to make sure we get that done."

Beyond that, we'll just have to wait and see.