Jan. 24, 2011

Box Score

WINSTON-SALEM, NC - The Winston-Salem State Rams (13-3) clicked on all cylinders in a 77-64 win over the Brevard Tornados (7-6), Monday evening. The Rams gave one of their most dominating efforts of the season to pick up the win as the team controlled the game from the opening tip-off to the final buzzer. The big win was just what the team needed as the Rams played their third game in the last five days.

The Rams showed little signs of fatigue with a great defensive effort, holding the Tornados to shooting just 38.5% from the field while shooting a great 53.4% from the field. The Rams had a great defensive effort as well with seven blocked shots and forcing 10 turnovers by the Tornados. Redshirt-senior guard Shelton Carter broke of a recent shooting slump with a great overall effort. For the game, he totaled 18 points, eight rebounds, and two blocked shots. Senior center Paul Davis added another double-double with 14 points and 11 rebounds as well as three blocked shots.

"I thought some good things came out of the game tonight. We got the ball inside early and often. I told them I wanted them to play the game from the inside-out. I didn't want them to lose their aggression," WSSU head men's basketball coach Bobby Collins said after the win. "So they did a very good job of getting the game inside to Paul and when they made a run, we bent, but we did not break."

Junior guard Lamar Monger continued his great season with 16 points and two assists in the game. The statistics didn't reflect the impact that Monger had on the game as he answered every challenge that the Tornados made in the game. "Lamar does everything hard. When you go hard and you make the extra effort, good things happen and that's why good things are happening for him." "We like knowing that we have him to go to if we get off to a slow start or if we get out to a fast start, we have him to take things to another level and that's the benefit of having a Lamar Monger."

The Rams took control of the game early when a jumper by senior guard Andrew Jackson hit a jumper that put the Rams on top, 16-7 with 13:07 left to play. A lay-up by senior forward McIntoche Alcius would give the Rams their biggest lead of the half, 26-13 with 8:09 left to play in the half. Once in control, the Rams kept their lead at double-digits for much of the half, slipping to nine points, just twice. A Carter jumper at the 00:36 mark left the Rams with a solid 37-24 halftime lead.

The second half was tougher for the Rams, but the team never backed down from the challenge, maintaining the lead for all 20 minutes. Things went well early in the half as the Rams held on to their 13-point lead as a Davis lay-up at the 16:50 mark kept the Rams ahead, 43-30. It was then that the Tornados made their stand with a 16-4 run that cut the WSSU lead down to one point, 48-47 with 10:18 left to play. When faced with the challenge, the Rams didn't back down as the team responded with a 17-2 run that left WSSU on top, 65-49 with 6:29 left to play. The Brevard run was the last challenge for the Rams as the team turned up its defensive efforts and cruised to the 77-64 victory.

The Rams will get a bit of a break as the team's next game will be on Saturday when the team hosts the Saint Augustine's Falcons who are led by former WSSU assistant coach Ken Spencer. For more information on Rams basketball, contact the WSSU Office of Athletic Media Relations at (336) 750-2143 or log on to www.WSSURams.com.