Dec. 3, 2005
Final Stats
Winston-Salem, NC - The Winston-Salem State University Rams overcame an 18-point deficit to Wingate as they got as close as one point away on Saturday evening in second-round action of the CE Gaines Basketball Classic, but were unable to pull out a win as they fell in defeat to the Bulldogs 69-67 in non-conference men's basketball action from Winston-Salem, NC.
The Rams would not help their own cause as they started the contest by missing their first 13 shots en route to digging themselves and early hole to try to climb out of.
The first period of play was one that WSSU would rather forget as the home-team Rams connected on only six of their 26 first-half field goal attempts (23.1%).
Despite the cold shooting, WSSU found themselves trailing by only nine points at the break which left the 3,100 Ram faithful in attendance sure of a WSSU comeback.
With aggressive defense and marginally better shooting in the second half, the Rams used 12 Wingate second-half turnovers to generate easy buckets and draw nearer to their opposition.
Draw nearer was exactly what the Rams did as a Frank Johnson free throw cut the Wingate lead to as little as one point, at 68-67 with only eight seconds to play in the contest.
However, a last second Curtis Hines jumper to tie, following a Justin Baker free throw, was blocked by Bill Smith, and Wingate earned the win.
With the win, the Bulldogs improve to 3-1 overall while the Rams fall to 3-4 (0-1 CIAA) with the loss. Leading the way for Wingate was Justin Baker who tallied 20 points. Leading the Rams was freshman Jamal Durham who recorded a career-best 27 points and 11 rebounds and became the first WSSU player to record a double-double this season.
WSSU returns to action on Monday evening at the CE Gaines Center as they resume CIAA league play versus Shaw University.
For additional information on WSSU men's basketball, contact the WSSU Office of Sports Information at (336) 750-2143 or log on to the Official Website of WSSU Athletics at www.WSSURAMS.com
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