Nov. 13, 2009

Game #1 at Oregon
The Rams will open the 2009-10 season in Eugene, Oregon as they face the Ducks of the University of Oregon in the first-ever meeting between the two teams. The game will mark the final game of day-one action from the 2009 Basketball Travelers Invitational. The contest between the Rams and the Ducks will mark the first regular-season game for both teams and will be the first of three straight games for WSSU who will face the Rams of Colorado State on Saturday (Nov. 14) and the Aggies of UC Davis on Sunday (Nov. 15). All three games will take place on the campus of the University of Oregon at MacArthur Court.

2008-09 Quickie Review
The Winston-Salem State men's basketball team finished the 2008-09 season with an 8-22 overall record and a 5-13 mark versus opponents from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. The Rams, under the tutelage of WSSU head coach Bobby Collins again showed considerable improvement as they continue to move ever closer to official NCAA Division I classification. The Rams closed the season 3-8 at home, 5-10 on the road and winless at 0-4 at neutral sites. The Rams bid farewell to a pair of seniors in Jamal Durham and Julian Murphy-Long and saw the growth of a team that was comprised of 10 underclassmen which included six sophomores and four freshmen.

Looking Ahead To 2009-10
The Rams will welcome the services of nine newcomers as head coach Bobby Collins boasts a lineup that is 18 players strong. The Rams will return three starters in Paul Davis, Brian Fisher and Diontae Gibson and will bolster the lineup with nine newcomers which include three junior-college transfers and six freshman.

A Fresh Start The Rams will start the season versus Oregon with four new starters. The only true returning starter is senior guard Brian Fisher (13.9 ppg/3.4 rpg). McIntoche Alcius started only nine games for the Rams last season and Corey Morris started only once. Shelton Carter sat out the season after transferring from Charleston Southern University while Andrew Jackson spent the season at Brunswick Community College.

National Rankings Neither the Rams nor the Ducks are ranked in either the AP Top 25 poll or USA Today/ESPN Coaches poll. Since making the transition to the NCAA Division I level the Rams have not been ranked.

The Rams Vs. Ranked Teams
Since making the transition to the NCAA Division I level, WSSU has faced a ranked opponent four times, losing all four contests. The Rams fell to #11/#12 Kansas on Dec. 19, 2006; fell to #17/#22 Georgetown 76-32 on Dec. 16, 2006; fell to #21/#22 Notre Dame on Nov. 29, 2006 and fell to #20/#24 Wake Forest on Nov. 24, 2008.

Rating Percentage Index (RPI) Update
The Rams closed the season ranked 317th in the RPI. The Rating Percentage Index (RPI) has been used by the NCAA since 1981 to supplement selection of at-large teams and help determine the seeding of all teams for the NCAA Tournament. The RPI is derived from three components: Division I winning percentage, schedule strength and opponent's schedule strength. Game against non-Division I opponents are not used. WSSU's current RPI is 317. The Rams posted a 6-22 Division I record and had the 262nd toughest schedule in the nation.

Next Up For The Rams
The Rams next opponent will be the Rams of Colorado State University. The Rams are coming off of a 2008-09 season that saw them post a 9-22 overall record and a 4-12 conference mark. CSU boasts a lineup that sees three returning starts, 10 returning letterwinners and seven talented newcomers. WSSU and CSU have never met and Saturday's game, slated for a 4:15 pm (PT) tipoff will mark the first meeting between the two programs that share the "Rams" nickname.

The Matchup
The Rams and Ducks had eerily similar seasons in 2008-09. The Rams posted an 8-22 record while Oregon posted an 8-23 mark overall. The two teams gave up just under 10 points more per game than they scored and shot nearly 40 percent from the field. The Rams have yet to play a contest this season while the Ducks earned a pair of exhibition victories as they downed Concordia 99-61 on Nov. 1 and defeated Lewis and Clark 74-59 on Nov. 8.

Looking Ahead To Sunday
Winston-Salem State will close out play at the 2009 Basketball Travelers Invitational on Sunday at 1:00 pm (PT) as they face the Aggies of the University of California-Davis. The Rams and Aggies have never met on the hardwood yet met for the first time ever on the football gridiron this season. UC-Davis handed the Rams a 45-14 defeat on Oct. 17 in Davis, Calif.

The Aggies are fresh off of a 13-19 season in 2008-09, a season that saw them finish tied for seventh in the Big West Conference with a 7-9 conference mark. The Aggies return three starters and six letterwinners and will welcome the services of six newcomers.

Tough Going Away From Home
The Rams had a difficult time away from home last season. Winston-Salem State posted a 5-10 record on the road and lost 14 of its 19 games played away from home (road and neutral-site games combined) in 2008-09.

Neutral Negatives
The Rams posted an 0-4 record at neutral sites last season. Winston-Salem State dropped a 71-58 decision to UC Santa Barbara on Nov. 28 and dropped a 67-61 decision at the hands of Nicholls State on Nov. 30. Both of those neutral site contests came at Redbird Arena in Normal, Ill. as part of the World Vision Invitational Tournament hosted by the Redbirds of Illinois State University. As well, the Rams dropped a 59-43 decision to Hampton on Jan. 12 at the Richmond Coliseum in the first game of the 2009 Freedom Classic Festival and WSSU fell 63-56 to North Carolina Central at the Joel Coliseum on March 14 in the "Bonus Game" of the 2009 MEAC Men's Basketball Championship Tournament.

In four neutral-site contests the Rams averaged 54.5 points per game and gave up 65 points per contest. The Rams shot 40 percent from the field and hit 21.7 percent of their three-point field goals. Jamal Durham averaged an impressive 15 points and six rebounds per game in neutral-site contests last season.

Home Sweet Home
The Rams will benefit from playing at home this season as Winston-Salem State has moved all but one home game back to the C.E. Gaines Center on the campus of WSSU. The 3,200-seat venue is one of the most hostile places for a visiting team to play with the Rams boasting a nearly .730 winning percentage inside its confines. The only home game that will be played at the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum is the Jan. 25 contest versus North Carolina A&T.

Fisher On Fire
Brian Fisher led the Rams in scoring in eight of WSSU's last 12 games. The junior guard closed the season recording 12 double-figure scoring performances in WSSU's last 13 contests. Fisher led the team in scoring 13 times in 2008-09. Fisher and departed senior forward Jamal Durham led the Rams in scoring in 27 of WSSU's 30 games last season.

Fisher To Be 26th Member Of 1,000-Point Club
Senior guard Brian Fisher will likely become the 26th member of WSSU's illustrious 1,000-point club in 2009-10. Fisher heads into the season with 958 career points. With a career scoring average of 11.3 points per game, Fisher is on pace to score his 1,000th career point in WSSU's fourth game of the 2009-10 season.

The Well Runneth Over
Freshman point guard Marcus Wells will immediately contribute for the Rams in 2009-10. A 2009 graduate of Southern Durham High School, wells was named the 19th best point guard in the nation by ESPN.com and the third best point guard in the nation (behind only John Wall and Akeem Richmond). The fifth-best high school basketball player in the state of North Carolina, Wells averaged 18 points, six rebounds, four steals and five assists per game as a senior.

Continued Shooting Woes
The Rams had their share of shooting difficulties last season as WSSU shot in the 20th percentile in six games, in the 30th percentile 10 times, in the 40th percentile 11 times and shot 50 percent or better from the field in only three games.

Look Inside The Numbers
• The Rams were 6-5 when leading at the half in 2008-09. Conversely, Winston-Salem State was 2-15 when trailing at the half last season. WSSU was 0-2 when heading to halftime tied.

• WSSU was 0-11 when opponents hit 50 percent or more of their shots from the field. The most recent occurrence of allowing an opponent to shoot 50 percent from the field came in the Rams' loss to South Carolina State on March 5. The Rams allowed opponents to shoot 50 percent or better in two of their final three games in 2008-09.

• Winston-Salem State was 2-14 when shooting less than 40 percent from the field. WSSU was 0-11 when opponents shoot 50 percent or better.

• WSSU was 3-0 when they hit 50 percent or more of their shots from the field and was 5-1 when they hold an opponent to under 40 percent shooting from the field.

• The Rams were winless at 0-14 when they scored 59 points or less in games last season. WSSU was also 0-10 when they allowed their opponents to score 70 points or more.

• The Rams were 1-11 in 2008-09 when their opponent scored first. WSSU was 7-11 when they scored the first points of the game.

• WSSU was 5-10 on the road and 0-4 at neutral sites. The Rams were 5-14 in the New Year and were 3-7 when wearing their black, alternate road uniforms.

• WSSU was 4-9 on Saturday's last season, 0-2 on Sunday's, 3-6 on Monday's, 0-2 on Tuesdays, 1-1 on Thursdays and 0-2 on Fridays last season.

• The Rams were a perfect 1-0 in overtime in 2008-09. WSSU defeated Bethune-Cookman in Daytona Beach, Fla. in overtime on Feb. 2, 2009 by the score of 62-61 in WSSU's only overtime game of the year.

• WSSU posted a 2-15 overall record last season when they were outrebounded by their opponents. The Rams were a more manageable 6-7 when they outrebounded their opponents.

• The Rams shot 70 percent or better in only three games last season. In those contests the Rams were 1-2.

• The only month in which the Rams posted a winning record last season was the month of December when WSSU went 3-2. The Rams were 0-6 in November, 3-2 in December, 2-6 in January, 3-5 in February and 0-3 in March.

Struggles Versus The MEAC
The Rams struggled against Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference opponents last season. WSSU posted a 5-13 record versus teams from the MEAC with the wins coming courtesy of a road victory at South Carolina State on Dec. 6, 2008; a road win at Florida A&M on Jan. 31, 2009; a road win at Bethune-Cookman on Feb. 2, 2009; a 62-55 victory over Howard on Feb. 14, 2009, Valentines Day and a road win at Norfolk State on Feb. 23, 2009.

The Rams were 1-8 versus MEAC opponents at home, were an even 4-4 versus MEAC opponents on the road and were winless at 0-1 versus MEAC opponents at neutral sites.

Blocked Shots Machine
WSSU sophomore forward/center Paul Davis has turned in stellar freshman and sophomore campaigns as he has already entrenched himself amongst WSSU's career leaders in blocked shots. Davis turned in a single-season record 48 blocks last season and followed it up with 46 blocks last season. He now ranks third on WSSU's all-time career blocked shot list with 94 rejections. Davis needs only eight more blocks to overtake Corey Thompson and Marcus Best who sit atop of the Rams' career blocked shots records with 101 career blocks. Davis also ranks first in the Rams' single-game blocked shot records with seven blocks as he tallied seven blocks versus Norfolk State on Jan. 26, 2009.

Score 60 Please
All eight of WSSU's victories last season came when the Rams scored 60 or more points. WSSU was 8-8 in 2008-09 when they scored 60 or more points and was 0-14 when scoring less than 60 points.

16 Below 40
The Rams played 16 games in which they shot less that 40 percent from the field. WSSU lost 14 of those 16 contests with the wins coming in their Dec. 20 win over Averett and their Feb. 2 win at Bethune-Cookman. In WSSU's victory over Bethune-Cookman on Feb. 2, the Rams hit 38.3 percent from the field as they shot below 40 percent and earned a win.

Three Times Above 50
The Rams recorded three games last season in which they shot 50 percent or better from the field. WSSU defeated North Carolina Central on Dec. 18 following a 51.1 percent shooting display; the Rams defeated Columbia Union with a season-high 52.5 percent shooting performance and WSSU handed Norfolk State a 68-64 loss on Feb. 23 as they hit 51.2 percent of their shots from the field. Conversely, the Rams allowed their opponent to shoot 50 percent or better from the field 11 times and WSSU lost all 11 of those contests.

Charge Ahead
The Rams took 43 charges last season (1.43 charges per game). Leading the way for the Rams was Diontae Gibson who took 10 charges. Brian Fisher checked in with nine charges taken, Jamal Durham recorded five charges drawn and Lamar Monger took five charges as well.

Worst Start Ever
The Rams' 0-6 start to the 2008-09 season was the worst start in the history of the program. In 62 seasons of basketball at WSSU the 2008-09 season marked the first-ever time that the Rams had started 0-6. WSSU avoided falling to 0-7 overall with a win over the Bulldogs of South Carolina State on Dec. 6.

In, But Not Completely
Though the Rams are considered a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) they are unable to compete for a championship until the 2011-12 season (per NCAA reclassification mandates). The Rams play a full slate of MEAC games (18 conference games) but are ineligible for a conference title, ineligible for postseason awards, and will not be listed in the MEAC statistics.

63 Years Of Tradition
The Rams have turned in an overall record of 1074-660 over the span of 63 completed seasons of men's basketball competition for a winning percentage of 61.9 percent. The Rams have turned in 49 winning seasons and have recorded only 14 losing seasons. The 2008-09 season marked the 14th losing season in WSSU history.

National Champions
Under the tutelage of legendary coach Clarence "Big House" Gaines and behind the play of Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer Earl "The Pearl" Monroe, the Rams earned the 1967 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball National Championship. The 1967 Rams posted an overall record of 31-1 and defeated three top-10 teams in the National Championship tournament en route to the National Championship title.

The House That Gaines Built
Legendary coach Clarence "Big House" Gaines coached at Winston-Salem State University from 1946-1993 and was a fixture at WSSU until his death on April 18, 2005. Gaines coached the Rams for 48 seasons and posted an 828-447 overall record as well as leading the Rams to the 1967 National Championship. He still ranks as the fifth-winningest coach in NCAA history and ranks as the all-time winningest African American head basketball coach in NCAA history.

Pearl's Wisdom
Vernon Earl "The Pearl" Monroe rose to prominence playing basketball at Winston-Salem State University, a college career that he parlayed into a successful 13-year career in the NBA. Under the coaching of legendary Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame coach Clarence "Big House" Gaines, Monroe averaged 7.1 ppg his freshman year; 23.2 ppg as a sophomore; 29.8 ppg as a junior and 41.5 ppg his senior year en route to becoming the Rams' all-time leading scorer with 2,935 total points. In 1967, he earned NCAA College Division Player of the Year honors and led the Rams to the NCAA College Division National Championship. Hailed as the innovator of the spin move, Monroe was the 1968 NBA Rookie of the Year, was named to the 1969 All-NBA First Team, earned All-Star honors four times, won the 1973 NBA World Championship as a member of the New York Knicks, was enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1990 and was named to the NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team in 1996. Innovator of the spin move, Monroe was the 1968 NBA Rookie of the Year, was named to the 1969 All-NBA First Team, earned All-Star honors four times, won the 1973 NBA World Championship as a member of the New York Knicks, was enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1990 and was named to the NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team in 1996.