Dec. 16, 2003

Winston-Salem, NC - The Winston-Salem State University Rams basketball team came out of the locker room on Tuesday evening on a mission, and totally dominated the Wilberforce University Bulldogs en route to a 99-70 victory.

The Rams, unable to go on Christmas break at their regularly scheduled time, due to the game being re-scheduled, showed their displeasure and acted ungraciously to their guests as they rolled the Bulldogs from the opening tip as they earned their ninth victory of the season.

The game started with early Ram foul trouble as freshman standout Audly Wehner (Fr./F/6'6"/215/Fayetteville, NC) picked up two quick fouls in the first four minutes of play and was forced to sit.

It got no better for Coach Stitt and the Rams as Wehner's replacement, junior transfer Terris Sifford (Jr./F/6'4"/195/Cleveland, NC) picked up two fouls in only one minute and six seconds of play, again forcing the Rams to go to the bench.

It mattered not, as the Rams continued to roll, as they were able to mount a 10-0 run without either big man in the game, and eventually pushed their lead to 31-11 with only 9:18 remaining in the first half of play.

For the second night in a row, the Rams relaxed enough to allow their opponent back into the contest, and saw the lead dwindle to 13 points with 1:00 minute left in the first stanza of play. A late Wilberforce basket cut the lead to 11 points, a lead which the Rams would take to the locker room with the score 41-30.

The Rams carried that lackadaisical attitude into the second half and allowed the Bulldogs to go on a 7-0 run to start the second half, trimming the lead back to only 4 points at 41-37.

A quick timeout later, Rashad McGee (Jr./G/5'10"/Waxhaw, NC) earned three points the hard way on a lay-up and foul which proved to be the catalyst for a Ram run. WSSU went on a 9-0 run after that McGee free-throw with last night's high-scorer Alleggrie Guinn (So./6'3"/G/Charlotte, NC) scoring seven of those nine points. After being held to only 3 points in the first half, Guinn tallied 17 more in the second en route to 20 total points.

Every Ram on the active roster recorded at least two points with four players in double figures. Earning career highs on the night were freshman Curtis Hines (F/6'2"/Charlotte, NC) with 20 points, Sifford with 14 points, and junior transfer Dontay Rollins (Jr./G/6'2"/Tallahassee, FL) with eight points as the Rams earned their second straight win and improved to 9-2 overall (1-1 CIAA).

WSSU is out of action for the Christmas holiday and will resume play in the CE Gaines Center on January 3rd, 2003 at 7:30 pm versus Queens (N.C.)