Jan. 12, 2009
Final Stats
DOVER, Del. – Winston-Salem State headed into Monday's contest having won only two of its 11 games away from home this season. The Hornets, despite sporting a deceiving 2-14 overall record, headed into the contest boasting a 68-17 record at home over the past nine seasons. Something had to give, and that something was the Rams attempt at a victory as Delaware State University turned a nine-point halftime advantage into a 23-point victory at Memorial Hall in Dover, Delaware as WSSU fell to 4-10 in 2008-09.
Looking to snap a one-game losing skid, the Rams took to the court trying to improve upon their season scoring average of 55.6 points per game while the Hornets attempted to improve upon their 2-2 record at home this season.
The two teams combined for only 43 points during the game's first 20 minutes of play as Winston-Salem State and Delaware State tallied 16 total turnovers in the half as the Rams and Hornets missed 31 of their 46 first half field goal attempts.
The Rams hit only five of their 18 first-half shots en route to posting a 27.8 percent shooting performance from the field as WSSU recorded their seventh single-half shooting display of less than 30 percent this season.
Playing without their best all-around player Arturo Dubois, who was suspended from the game for a violation of team rules, the Hornets had difficulty in the first half without Dubois' nearly 10 points and eight rebounds (9.9 ppg and 7.9 rpg) in the lineup as the Hornets hit only 10 of their 28 first-half shots.
The Hornets turned things around in the second half as they outscored the Rams 47-33 en route to their third victory of the season as DSU hit 14 of their 20 second-half shots, a 70 percent shooting performance.
Conversely, the Rams improved their shooting to a respectable 41.9 percent as WSSU connected on 13 of their 31 shots from the field. Despite the improved shooting, and a team-high 13 points from senior forward Jamal Durham, the Rams were unable to keep pace with the Hornets as WSSU suffered their tenth loss of 2008-09.
Durham led the Rams with 13 points as he was one of only two WSSU players to record double-digit point totals. Brian Fisher, who headed into the contest leading the team in scoring, posted 10 points in a losing effort.
With the loss Winston-Salem State falls to 4-10 overall as the Rams have dropped two consecutive games and three of their last five contests. The Hornets improve to 3-14 overall and snap a five-game losing streak with the victory.
Winston-Salem State returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 17 at 4:00 p.m. as they face the Bison of Howard University in Washington, D.C.
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.
