FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. – The Winston-Salem State University Rams stayed unbeaten in CIAA play, as the rode the broad shoulders of Justin Glover to a 58-54 win over host Fayetteville State on Saturday at Felton J. Capel Arena in a nationally-televised game.

Winston-Salem State (14-2, 7-0, 1-0) managed to hold off a furious Fayetteville State (4-9, 2-4, 0-1) rally in the closing minutes of the CIAA Southern Division opener for both teams.

Justin Glover got off to a hot start, even if the Rams didn't. Glover had 12 first-half points, hitting 4 of 9 shots from the field. The rest of his team, however, managed to connect on just 7 of 24 attempts.

But it was enough for Winston-Salem State to take a lead at the break. The Rams closed the opening period on an 8-1 run, overcoming a quick start for the Broncos who brought the near capacity crowd at Capel Arena to their feet with a high-flying alley-oop just 2 minutes into the game.

Winston-Salem State used a 14-3 run spanning halftime to build a 33-26 lead with 16:20 remaining and 2 minutes later, led by nine, 39-30.

But the Broncos answered with a 7-0 spurt in the next 2:37 to close within two.

Then Glover hurt them again, as no other player would. With the shot clock winding down, Glover buried his third 3, putting the Rams ahead 50-42 with 4:38 left. A Stephon Platt foul shot capped the 9-2 run, and Winston-Salem State appeared in control, 51-42, with 4:17 to go.

But the Broncos were not going away easy on their home floor, as a three point shot brought Fayetteville State within five, 55-50, and after a Tyre Desmore foul shot, FSU's Seth Hawkins hit a corner three to bring the Broncos within two, 56-54, with 59 seconds to go.

Fayetteville State came up with a stop on the Rams' ensuing possession, and with 12 seconds left, had a chance to go for the tie or the win. The Broncos Tim Plummer's running one hander was no good, and a FSU player hauled in the rebound, but in doing so, fell to the floor. He was whistled for traveling with 4.1 seconds left, and Justin Glover made two foul shots for the final margin.

Justin Glover made 9 of 19 shots from the field - the rest of the Rams only made 11 of 36 for 31%.  Nequan Melvin added seven points, WyKevin Bazemore added six points and seven rebounds, and Marcus Wells chipped in five points, two rebounds, three assists and a steal.

For the Broncos, Sidney Evans scored 23 points, while the rest of the Broncos weren't much better than Glover's teammates, finishing just 11-for-50 from the field for 22%.  Tim Plummer finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds, and  Tyrrel Tate added eight points.

"Another one of these typical CIAA games that we had to grind out," says head coach, Bobby Collins.

"They did a good job early of getting us out of our rythym, forcing us into a some bad shots.  But I thought once we settled down, we were able to play the type of game we wanted and in the end were able to make some plays when we needed them," added Collins

Winston-Salem State University will return home for an out of conference game, when they host Washington Adventist at 7:30pm on Tuesday at the CE Gaines Center.