Dec. 18, 2008
Final Stats
DURHAM, N.C. – The Winston-Salem State University Rams waited 278 days to earn their revenge against the Eagles of North Carolina Central University. The wait was well worth it for the Rams as they avenged last year's season-ending loss on Thursday evening in Durham by keeping NCCU winless in 2008-09 by handing them a 66-51 loss on their home court.
Winston-Salem State jumped out to an early 7-0 lead as the Rams equaled their largest lead of the season to date, a lead that dated back to Nov. 30 in a contest that WSSU would ultimately drop to Nicholls State.
This time however, the Rams would not only hold onto the lead, but build upon it as WSSU led by as many as 19 points in the victory.
The Rams used a first half of play in which they would turn in their best shooting period of play, a 56.5 percent performance, as 11 players recorded playing time in the game's first 20 minutes en route to helping WSSU hit 13 of their 23 first-half shots.
The second half was much of the same for the Rams as they used 26 points in the paint to earn their second victory of the season.
Leading the way for the Rams were Jamal Durham and Brian Fisher who each tallied 19 points in the victory.
The pair of upperclassmen combined to hit 15 of their 26 field goal attempts in the game including hitting six of their 11 attempts from three-point range.
Joining Durham and Fisher in double figures was Diontae Gibson who recorded 10 points in the victory.
“We got exactly what we needed out of our experienced guys tonight” WSSU head coach Bobby Collins said in postgame interviews.
“Jamal [Durham] and Fish [Brian Fisher] provided us the spark tonight. Prior to the game tonight, we talked about what sacrifices each of our guys had to make, what things each of our young men had to focus on, and our guys really took that to heart. They did what we asked and because of that effort, we got a crucial win tonight” Collins added.
The victory improves the Rams to 2-7 overall in 2008-09. The loss drops the Eagles to 0-13 on the year.
Winston-Salem State returns to action on Saturday, Dec. 20 at 4:00 p.m. as they face the Cougars of Averett at the C.E. Gaines Center in Winston-Salem, N.C. The contest will mark the Rams home-opener after playing the first nine games of the year on the road.
For additional information on WSSU men's basketball, contact the WSSU Office of Athletic Media Relations at (36) 750-2143 or log on to the Official Website of WSSU Athletics at WSSURams.com.
