Jan. 29, 2007

Final Stats

TALLAHASSEE, FL - Despite a valiant effort and a never-quit spirit, the Rams of Winston-Salem State University fell short on Monday evening in Tallahassee, Florida as WSSU dropped an 83-68 decision to the Rattlers of Florida A&M at Gaither Gymnasium in non-conference men's basketball action.

For the fourth consecutive contest the Rams failed to shoot better than 40% from the field as WSSU connected on only 38.3% of their shots from the field, converting only 23 of 60 field goal attempts in the loss.

The two teams traded baskets for the first nine minutes of the game as the Rams and Rattlers were deadlocked at 17-17 with 11:13 remaining in the first half. 

Halftime adjustments from head coach Bobby Collins helped the Rams shave the Rattler lead to as little as nine point three times in the second half of play, yet WSSU's inconsistency from three-point range (seven of 28 in the contest) never allowed them to get to within nine points en route to the 15-point loss.

Darius Floyd led the Rams with a game-high 27 points as he hit nine of his 16 shot attempts including recording a five of nine shooting performance from behind the three-point arch.  Joining Floyd in double-digits was Brian Fisher who tallied 15 points in the loss.  Floyd's team-high 27 points marks the seventh time this season that the freshman has led WSSU in scoring.

Florida A&M was led by Rome Sanders' team-high 24 points as he led three Rattlers in double-figures.  Sanders was joined by Darius Glover (14 points) and Akini Adkins (12 points) in the win.

The loss drops the Rams to 4-20 on the season while the Rattlers improve to 13-9 overall with the win.  WSSU returns to action on February 6, 2007 at 7:00 pm at the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum as they face their cross-town rival, the Demon Deacons of Wake Forest University in the Twin City Classic. 

The two teams will be meeting for the first time in the regular season with the only other meetings between the two storied programs coming in exhibition action during the 2004-05 and 2005-06 seasons.

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.

* Note - The win by the Rattlers evens the series with the Rams at 1-1 as WSSU won the only other meeting between the two schools, one that came in Winston-Salem, NC during the 1957-58 season.

- wssurams.com -