Jan. 18, 2004
Charlotte, NC - For the second straight year the Winston-Salem State University Rams traveled to Charlotte, NC and faced CIAA rival Johnson C. Smith University as the feature game in the Legacy Classic Basketball showcase, and for the second straight year the game would prove to be a nail-biter. However, it would be the Golden Bulls who would avenge last season's loss at the hands of the Rams, and hand WSSU its fifth loss of the season in a 62-61 game that almost went to overtime.
For the 12th time in 18 games the Rams scored first and were able to take a comfortable 7-0 in the first two minutes of the game. That lead would not hold for long however, as the Golden Bulls and feature game MVP Chris Clyburn would have other plans.
WSSU opened the scoring with an Alleggrie Guinn (So./G/6'3"/Charlotte, NC) three point field goal before stealing the next two JCSU possessions and pumping home easy lay-ups to open up their early seven-point lead.
The Rams and Golden Bulls would trade baskets for the majority of the first half and WSSU took a nine-point lead into the halftime intermission at 35-26.
At the half the Rams would have two players with nine points, one with eight and one with seven as Philip Stitt's system and the oft-clichéd "total team effort" seemed to be proving effect.
The second half however, seemed to belong to JCSU, at least in the early-going. The Rams would weather the storm of a Golden Bull run and at the under twelve-minute media timeout, the Rams would lead by only four points at 44-40.
After the timeout the Golden Bulls would tie the score at 44-44 with a pair of free throws and a put back, and the outcome was again in question. But it was Clyburn who, with two of his team-high 23 points, put the Golden Bulls ahead for good with a thunderous dunk.
JCSU eventually opened up a four point margin of their own, their first lead of the contest, and the Rams would try, unsuccessfully, to battle back.
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The Rams, for the second time in seven days of game action, would hoist at least 20 three-point field goal attempts towards the rim, and much like their 5 for 25 shooting performance at Shaw on Thursday, would come up short at the final horn.
Despite another disappointing three-point shooting night (5 of 23 for 21%) the Rams would have control for most of the contest, and only let the game slip away in final ten minutes of play.
Once again the Rams, despite dominating the paint, would be content to become a jump-shooting team, and another off shooting night would prove to be their undoing.
Ram post players were in complete control of the game as freshman forward Audly Wehner (Fr./F/6'5"/Fayetteville, NC) had his most effective game of the season. Wehner did not miss a shot in the contest, going a perfect 10 for 10 from the field and six for ten from the free-throw line en route to a game-high 26 points in a losing effort.
With the loss, the Rams fall to 13-5 overall and 4-4 in the CIAA. The most disheartening factor of the loss is that the Rams fall to 1-2 in the Western Division. The Golden Bulls improve to 9-9 overall, 4-3 in the CIAA and move to 2-1 in the Division.
WSSU is in action again on Wednesday evening at 7:30 pm when they travel to Petersburg, VA to face the Virginia State University Trojans in an out-of-division CIAA contest.
