Feb. 4, 2010
Final Stats
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Winston-Salem State University head men's basketball coach Bobby Collins got exactly what he wanted on Thursday evening at the C.E. Gaines Center. His Rams easily earned a 62-49 victory over the Panthers of Ferrum College without requiring much work from his starters as he went 13 players deep in an effort to conserve energy in the first game of a three-games-in-five-days homestand.
The Rams, coming off of a two-game Florida road trip that covered over 1,500 miles, faced Ferrum on short rest in the first of three straight home games as WSSU will have very little time off as they return to action on Saturday versus Howard and on Monday versus Hampton as they play three games in the span of 120 hours.
WSSU's starters jumped out to an early seven-point advantage as they simply outsized and out-muscled the Panthers en route to an 11-4 advantage only three minutes into the contest.
To the Panthers' credit they would not surrender to the Rams as they took their first and only lead of the game at 22-19 with 10:58 to play in the first half as the stunned WSSU crowd watched Ferrum mount an 18-8 run to open up a three-point lead.
The lead would be short-lived however as Ferrum led for only 62 seconds as a Shelton Carter three-pointer sparked a 19-2 run over the final 10:58 of play in the first half, a run in which the Rams held Ferrum to only one field goal, as WSSU led by 14 points at 38-24 at halftime.
The final 20 minutes of play saw Collins empty his bench as 13 players registered playing time with nine players recording points in the win.
The Rams opened the final period of play with a 6-0 run that pushed the lead to 20 points as they sealed their eight victory of the season en route to matching last season's win total with nine games remaining in the 2009-10 season.
The Rams recorded 24 points in the paint in the contest and used their size and physical advantage to dictate the tempo as Collins was able to go to his bench early and often.
“I really wanted the guys off the bench to go out and show me that I could use them in the future” Collins said. “We played a little sloppy but we are going to get better and I am pleased with the win. We have to prepare for two more games in four days so it's good to get the first win to get us on a roll” he added.
Paul Davis led the Rams with 11 points as he paced the WSSU offense for the seventh consecutive game. Davis added a team-high nine rebounds in the win as he led WSSU in rebounding for the fifth consecutive game.
Joining Davis in double-figures, Corey Morris and Brian Fisher each recorded 10 points in the victory as the pair combined to hit nine of their 18 field goal attempts.
The victory moves WSSU to 8-12 on the season and snaps a two-game losing streak. WSSU plays host to Howard at 4:00 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 6 at the C.E. Gaines Center.
For additional information on WSSU Athletics, 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.
