March 1, 2008
Final Stats
TALLAHASSEE, FL - The Winston-Salem State University Rams held the Rattlers of Florida A&M University without a field goal for the final three minutes and five seconds yet were unable to sneak out of Gaither Gymnasium with a win on Saturday afternoon as FAMU defeated WSSU, 68-61, to split the season series between the two teams.
The Rams jumped out to an early 8-2 lead yet could never pull ahead of the Rattlers by more than six points as the early margin proved to be their largest advantage of afternoon as the Rattlers used nine three-point field goals in the game to keep the Rams at bay in a contest that saw three ties and five lead changes.
Following WSSU's early run to open the game, the Rattlers used a 19-9 run over the game's next 11 minutes of play to open up a four-point lead with five minutes remaining in the first half, a lead that they would never relinquish.
Trailing by only three points, down 26-23, at the halftime intermission, the Rams could not even the game up in the second half as FAMU opened the game's final 20 minutes of play with a 9-2 run en route to one of their largest leads of the day, an eight-point spread, with more than 15 minutes of time remaining in the game.
Despite shooting nearly 46 percent from the field in the second half, WSSU was no match for the Rattlers and their eight-of-14 (57 percent) shooting from three point range in the game's final period.
Led by Leslie Robinson and his game-high 25 points, the Rattlers were able to fend off all challenges from the Rams en route to the win. Robinson recorded a six-of-ten shooting performance from long distance as he hit five second-half three-point field goals.
For the first time this season the Rams would see five players in double-digit scoring as Darrell Wonge led WSSU with a team-high 15 points. Joining Wonge in double-digits were Brian Fisher and Darius Floyd with 12 points each, and Jamal Durham and Paul Davis who each recorded 10 points in the loss.
WSSU led in nearly every statistical category as they lost only the three-point shooting battle as the Rams shot an unusually cold 1-of-12 (8.1 percent) from behind the three-point arc.
Three-point shooting would prove to be the difference in the contest as WSSU dropped the seven-point decision as the two teams split the season series.
WSSU drops to 11-16 on the season with the loss while Florida A&M improves to 12-16 with the victory. FAMU improves to 2-1 all-time versus the Rams while WSSU head coach Bobby Collins drops to 6-6 all-time versus the Rattlers with the loss.
The Rams return to action on Monday, March 3 at 7:30 pm as they face the Wildcats of Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Fla.
For additional information on WSSU men's basketball, contact the WSSU Office of Athletic Media Relations at (336) 750-2143 or log on to the Official Website of WSSU Athletics at WSSURams.com.
