Jan. 29, 2005
Winston-Salem, NC - First it was #1 Virginia Union, and on Saturday afternoon it was the #13 Bowie State University Bulldogs. The snow was not the only thing falling outside as the Bulldogs fell at the feet of the WSSU Rams who used a season-low five turnovers en route to a 67-62 win over Bowie State University at the C.E. Gaines Center as the Rams chalked up another win over a ranked opponent to improve to 13-5 overall (6-1 CIAA, 1-1 CIAA West).
The Rams would trail for only 37 seconds in the contest as WSSU jumped out early and used almost perfect ball-handling and aggressive defense to beat one of the tallest teams in the nation.
First half action saw the Rams jump out to a 10-6 lead only 2:24 into the contest on a deep three-pointer by Frank Johnson. The long three gave would spark a dominating performance by the Rams in the first half of play.
WSSU would increase its lead to a first-half high of 12 points at the midway point of the first half when true freshman Darrell Wonge hit a jump shot in traffic with 10:04 to play.
The Bulldogs would prove why they were deserving of the nation's #13 ranking as they stormed back, using a 9-2 run to trim the WSSU lead to only three points four minutes later.
Looking as though they may have trouble regaining the momentum, the Rams immediately stepped up and went on a run of their own to regain a double-digit lead over the Bulldogs, holding a 35-24 advantage with less than two minutes left in the first half.
WSSU would hold a solid seven-point lead at the halftime intermission, clutching to a hard-fought 35-28 lead.
The second half of play would be one in which the Rams' second leading scorer, Alleggrie Guinn (15.6 ppg), would not tally a single point, as he was reduced to ball handler and decision maker. He would show his maturity and poise as he failed to commit any turnovers while dishing out a pair of assists and picking up three steals despite not scoring.
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Bowie State would eventually take the lead away from the Rams at the 10:24 mark when CIAA Player of the Year candidate Lee Cook took a feed from Brent Campbell and used an inside power move for an easy lay-in to put BSU up 49-47.
A Cook free-throw only 26 seconds later would give Bowie State their largest lead of the game, a three-point advantage at 54-51, with seven minutes remaining in the contest.
The lead would be short-lived for the visiting Bulldogs as WSSU would close the game with a 16-9 run, hitting all but one of the game's final seven free throws to preserve the 67-62 win, WSSU's fourth straight win overall, and their 13th win of the 2004-05 season.
Leading the way for the Rams was 2003-04 CIAA Rookie of the Year Audly Wehner who recorded 19 points on 8-for-12 shooting as well as tallying nine rebounds. Wehner led three Rams in double-figures as Rashad McGee chipped in with 14 points and Alleggrie Guinn added 11.
Leading the way for the Bulldogs was Lee Cook who recorded 17 points and 10 rebounds in a losing effort.
With the win, the Rams improve to 13-5 overall, 6-1 in the CIAA, and remain at 1-1 in the CIAA Western Division. The Bulldogs fall to 15-3, 6-2 in the CIAA, and remain at 3-0 in the CIAA Eastern Division.
WSSU will return to action on Tuesday, February 1st, 2005 at 7:30 pm when they travel to Fayetteville, NC to take on the Broncos of Fayetteville State University at 7:30 pm in a CIAA Western Division contest.
For additional information on WSSU men's basketball, contact the WSSU Office of Sports Information at (336)-750-2143 or log on to the Official Website of WSSU Athletics at www.WSSURAMS.com
