Jan. 27, 2008
NORFOLK, VA - The Winston-Salem State University Rams (7-10) have very little time to regroup after Saturday's loss at North Carolina A&T as they are in Norfolk, Virginia as they prepare to face the Spartans of Norfolk State University (8-9, 5-1 MEAC) in a MEAC league contest on Monday, Jan. 28, 2008 at 8:00 pm from Echols Hall on the campus of Norfolk State University.
Game #18 vs. Norfolk State Notables...The Rams and the Spartans will tip-off on Monday, Jan. 28 at 8:00 pm Eastern Time at Echols Hall in Norfolk, Virginia...The two teams will meet for the first time since Jan. 18, 2007 when WSSU earned an 81-71 victory in Norfolk, VA...The game is a conference match-up as both teams are members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC)...The Spartans hold a 8-9 record overall and sport a 5-1 mark in the MEAC...The Rams enter into the contest with a 7-10 record overall... The Rams attempt to earn their first road win of the season as they face Norfolk State, a team that they earned their first-ever Division I win against...Starting this season (2007-08) the two teams will face one another two times every year (once at home, once on the road) as part of the MEAC league schedule...The two teams have met 57 times in history with the Spartans holding the 41-16 edge in the series.
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Game Details
The Winston-Salem State University Rams (7-10) versus the Norfolk State University Spartans (8-9, 5-1 MEAC) at Echols Hall (7,000 capacity) in
Setting the Scene
Monday's contest will mark the first contest between the two teams in 366 days as the last meeting between the two storied programs came on Jan. 18, 2007 at Echols Hall in Norfolk, Virginia in a contest that saw the Rams record their first-ever Division I win over a Division I opponent by the score of 81-71. The two teams are no stranger to one another as they played twice annually during the late 80's and early 90's. The game will also mark a homecoming of sorts for WSSU head coach Bobby Collins who spent the better part of 11 seasons coaching at nearby
The Series In Depth
The Rams and Spartans have met 57 times in history with the Spartans holding the 41-16 edge in the series. The two programs are no stranger to one another as both the Spartans and the Rams were long-time members of the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) as members of NCAA Division II. WSSU and NSU renewed the rivalry between the two proud HBCU's last season after a 10-year hiatus. The Rams may have won the last meeting (Jan. 18, 2007) but the Spartans have won eight of the last 10 meetings with the only other WSSU win in the last 10 meetings coming in 1990-91 when WSSU won 81-67 in Winston-Salem, NC.
Streaks
Television Coverage
There will be no live television broadcast of the game between the Rams and the Spartans.
WSSU Radio Coverage
The Rams will not broadcast the contest. The Rams' next radio broadcast will take place on Feb. 2, 2008 when WSSU faces Florida A&M at the Coliseum Annex. The Rams vs. Rattlers contest will be broadcast live on the radio on WSNC 90.5 FM. WSNC is the flagship station of the Rams Radio Broadcasting Network and will carry all WSSU home games live on the radio in the greater Winston-Salem, NC area and worldwide on the Internet at www.WSSU.edu. Alan Chavous will provide all the play-by-play action with Kim Spears providing the color analysis.
The Spartans will broadcast the contest on WNSB 91.1 FM, the radio home of the Norfolk State Spartans radio network. Ross Gordon will provide the play-by-play coverage with Terence Green providing the color commentary. The game will also be simulcast live on the Internet at NSUSpartans.com.
Live Statistical Broadcast
WSSU partners with CSTV Online and the Office of Athletic Media Relations will air a live statistical broadcast of the game between the Rams and the Spartans on the Internet utilizing CSTV's GAMETRACKER software application. WSSU's live statistical broadcast will be available at WSSURams.com. The broadcast is free of charge to any viewer wishing to take advantage of the live statistics feature. The Spartans will broadcast a live stats feature at NSUSpartans.com.
Websites
WSSURAMS.com, the official website for
Whom To Contact
The
National Rankings
Neither the Rams nor the Spartans are ranked in either the AP Top 25 poll or ESPN/USA Today poll. Neither team has been ranked this season and neither have received votes in 2007-08. Neither team has defeated a ranked team.
The Book On WSSU (7-10)
The Rams head to
The Rams have reached the midway point of the season and have already surpassed last season's win total of five games by posting seven wins thus far in 2007-08. WSSU checks in with a pair of scorers averaging in double-digits and one on the cusp of double-figures.
Jamal
The Rams are scoring 64.2 points per game and are holding opponents to 69.4 points per contest. Defense is the Rams' key to success as all offensive production starts through that defense and the transition game.
The Book On
The Spartans enter into the contest on Monday sporting an 8-9 overall record and are quietly one of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference's best teams.
While the attention and the fanfare is being placed upon the Pirates of Hampton and the Hornets of Delaware State, the Spartans are slipping in the back door and making a run for a MEAC title much like their football counterparts did in the fall.
NSU is led by senior guard and All-MEAC selection Tony Murphy. Murphy is one of three Spartan players averaging in double figures with 18.2 points per game. Hitting 35.7 percent of his shots from the field, Murphy is a threat from long range as 122 of his 277 field goal attempts are from long range.
Joining Murphy in double-digits are a pair of juniors in Corey Lyons and Michael Deloach who are scoring 15.3 and 11.8 points per game, respectively. The pair are deadly as
The Spartans are a battle-tested team with impressive victories at
Season Two For Collins
The 2007-08 season marks the second season at WSSU for head coach Bobby Collins. Collins, a 1991 graduate of
First Season For Evans
The Spartans are led by first-year head coach Anthony Evans. Evans assumed the head coaching position at NSU after Dwight Freeman was let go in the summer of 2007. While at NSU Evans has amassed an 8-9 record and has posted an 8-9 career coaching mark as a Division I head coach. Evans has never faced WSSU head coach Bobby Collins in a head-to-head coaching matchup.
Head-To-Head Coaching Matchup
WSSU head coach Bobby Collins and
Collins Versus
WSSU head coach Bobby Collins has amassed an impressive career mark over the Spartans as he has posted a career 6-5 record versus
Collins Versus the State of
Last Action
The Rams are coming off of a 75-56 loss at arch-rival North Carolina A&T on Jan. 26. The Rams never got into the contest as the Aggies used a 14-3 run to start the game and never looked back as they blazed to a 19-point victory in front of a raucous crowd of over 7,000 fans at the
The loss, the Rams' second consecutive defeat, drops the Rams to 7-10 on the season and runs WSSU's losing skid to two games. WSSU shot a dismal 32.8 percent in the contest as the Aggies' Steven Rush tallied a game-high 23 points, including 15 from long range as the Aggies defeated the Rams.
Jamal
A Look Back At Last Year
Next Up
Following the Rams' game at Norfolk State on Monday WSSU will return home on Feb. 2 and Feb. 4 as they host Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman and will then head out on the road for four straight games (at Morgan State, at Coppin State, at Howard, at Hampton). The Rams spend nearly the entire month of February on the road as they continue their road swing at the end of the month when they head to
Less Hostile Than The Last Game
The Rams will benefit from a quieter Echols Hall on Monday evening as they will face a less hostile crowd at Norfolk State than the 7,000-plus Aggie fans that they had to play in front of in their last action. The Rams vs. Aggies contest was a sold-out affair and the NC A&T Facilities Management personnel had to stop allowing paying attendees nearly 30 minutes before tipoff.
The 30-Point Club
Darrell Wonge's 30-point performance versus the Pirates of Hampton on Jan. 21 marks the first 30-point individual scoring performance by a Ram in WSSU's Division I era and is the first time a WSSU player scored 30 points since Audly Wehner recorded 30 points at North Carolina Central on Feb. 5, 2005 a span of nearly three years (1,080 days).
Injury Update
The Rams have only one player on the injury report as freshman forward/center Paul Davis first appeared on the injury report prior to the North Carolina A&T game.
Home Is Where The Heart Is
The Rams have hosted home games in three different venues this season. WSSU is 6-4 at home this season, 1-2 in home games at the Coliseum Annex, 4-2 in home games at the LJVM Coliseum; and a perfect 2-0 in games at the
Not Road Warriors
The Rams have yet to post a win on the road in 2007-08. WSSU has dropped all six contests on the road this season and the closest WSSU has come to posting a road win is a neutral site win over Lipscomb (68-58 from the American Family Insurance Cyclone Classic held at Iowa State on Nov. 10).
Puckett's Buckets No More
Junior transfer Michael Puckett was as good, if not better, than advertised. Puckett led the Rams in scoring three times in the Rams' first 11 games of the 2007-08 season and recorded six games this season where he scored in double-figures.
Unfortunately for the Rams, Puckett was ruled academically ineligible (his GPA was too low) for the Spring semester of 2008 and will sit out the remainder of the Rams' season.
Commenting on Puckett's ineligibility, WSSU head coach Bobby Collins noted: "We have to get others to step up more with Mike no longer out there. It will be a big loss, but at the same time, we have some guys capable of filling his shoes."
Most Lopsided Win Since 1977-78
The 105-59 win over UMES, a 46-point margin of victory marks the Rams' most lopsided win since a 111-58 win over the Delaware State University Hornets that came in 1977-78 season.
Gotta Get To 10
When the Rams record 10 or more steals in a game they have posted a 5-2 overall record. WSSU has posted a 2-8 record when they are held to less than 10 steals.
Floyd Back In Action
Sophomore guard Darius Floyd sat out the Rams' contest versus Columbia Union for an unspecified violation of team rules. As expected he returned to the Rams' lineup for the contest versus
Finally Held A Lead
The Rams' 67-61 win over
Comeback Kids
The Rams' come-from-behind 78-76 victory over the Bulldogs of
Giving Up Double-Doubles
The Rams have surrendered a double-double performance to an opponent 10 times in 2007-08 and have posted a 3-7 record when doing so.
Morris Not Redshirting
Prior to the season, WSSU head coach Bobby Collins announced his intentions to redshirt Corey Morris, a freshman center. However, Morris appeared in the contest versus Wake Forest and has since appeared in seven more games for the Rams thus indicating that Coach Collins has decided not to redshirt the man they call "Big C".
"Big C" Makes First Start
Corey Morris made the first start of his career in the Rams' loss on Saturday, Dec. 29 at the
Lineup Shake-Up
WSSU head coach Bobby Collins has used seven different starting lineups this season and not a single player on the WSSU roster has started every contest. Seniors Roy Peake and Darrell Wonge have started 16 of 17 contests and sophomore guard Brian Fisher has started all but two games this year.
Home Sweet Home
The Rams, a team that posted 23 road games last season, will benefit from 15 contests played in
Highs A Plenty
The Rams' 82-61 win over Columbia Union on Jan. 9 helped to set new season or career highs for seven players on the current WSSU roster.
• Paul Davis had a career-high 12 total rebounds and a career-high 10 defensive rebounds.
• Jamal
• Vaudrey Funderburke tallied a career-high five points and career-high three rebounds.
• Greg Lewis had a career high four rebounds versus Columbia Union.
• Corey Morris had a career high six points versus Columbia Union in only four minutes of playing time.
• Julian Murphy-Long had a season-high four points and two rebounds versus Columbia Union.
• Isiah Tucker, playing in place of the suspended Darius Floyd, tallied a career-high 27 minutes.
Been There, Done That
The Rams have faced teams from eight different Division I conferences this season. WSSU has faced the Big 12 (Iowa State and Kansas State) twice and the MEAC six times and WSSU has faced the Atlantic Sun (Lipscomb), Atlantic 10 (Duquesne), Colonial Athletic Association (Georgia State), South Western Athletic Conference (Alabama A&M), Atlantic Coast Conference (Wake Forest), Western Athletic Conference (Fresno State), and the BIG EAST (USF) one time each.
Put That Behind Him
Darrell Wonge, a player that went scoreless for the first time in his career in the Rams' loss at
Not The First Time
The Rams' loss at USF marked the third time this season that the Rams have trailed by 30 points or more. WSSU has trailed USF, Duquesne and
Up Three On The
With the loss at USF, WSSU head coach Bobby Collins' coaching record versus teams from the State of Florida falls to 12-9 overall. Collins has posted a 7-2 record versus Bethune-Cookman (
Taking Charge
The Rams have 29 charges taken through 17 games of the 2007-08 season, an average of 1.66 charges taken per contest. Senior forward Darrell Wonge leads the Rams with a team-high five charges drawn. Four other players have tallied at least three drawn charges this season.
Gotta Get The Shot Off
Versus the Aggies of North Carolina A&T on Jan. 26 the Rams allowed the shot clock to expire twice moving WSSU's season total for shot clock violations to 10.
Second Half Not Kind
In WSSU's loss at USF on Dec. 29 the Rams surrendered a season-high 55 points in the second half. The 55-points surrendered eclipsed the 51-point second half that WSSU allowed at
Fourth Big One
The Rams' loss at USF on Dec. 29 marked the fourth time this season that the Rams lost to an opponent by 17 or more points (see chart on page 8). WSSU dropped decisions at Duquesne (30 points),
Large Deficits
The Rams trailed USF by 43 points with 2:47 to play in the contest on Dec. 29. That 43-point deficit nearly tied the largest deficit of the season that came on Dec. 22 when the Rams trailed
Largest Lead
The Rams' largest lead of the season came on Jan. 12 when they led the Hawks of the University of Maryland-Eastern Shore by 48 points. That lead came only three days after the Rams had led the Pioneers of Columbia Union by 30 points.
Glass Matters
The Rams surrendered 53 rebounds at USF on Dec. 29. That rebounding total is the most that any opponent has recorded versus the Rams this season eclipsing the 52 rebounds that K-State pulled down versus WSSU on Dec. 22. That total includes 21 offensive boards, the exact same number of offensive rebounds that WSSU surrendered to the Wildcats. Headed into this Monday's contest, the Rams are facing a rebounding deficit of -6.4 rebounds per contest.
No Action In The Early Signing Period
The Rams have no scholarships available as WSSU added six newcomers this past off season. WSSU did not sign any student-athletes in the early signing period due to no scholarships being available.
In, But Not Completely
Though the Rams are considered a member of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) they are unable to compete for a championship until the 2009-10 season (per NCAA reclassification mandates). The Rams will play a full slate of MEAC games (18 conference games) but will be ineligible for a conference title, ineligible for postseason awards, and will not be listed in the MEAC statistics at seasons' end.
Movin' On Up
The Rams are currently in the third year of a five-year transition from the NCAA Division II level to the highest level of intercollegiate athletics at the NCAA Division I level. In a drive to support rapid growth and attain higher visibility, the Board of Trustees at WSSU approved a plan for reclassification of the school's athletic programs to compete at the NCAA Division I level. WSSU, formerly a member of NCAA Division II and the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) where they earned 10 conference titles and the 1967 National Championship, began the five-year reclassification process in 2005-06 and will complete the process in 2010-11.
Half-Dozen States
The 2007-08 WSSU men's basketball roster is comprised of team members from six different states. The Rams have nine players from
Increased Size
The Rams will benefit from increased height on the roster this season as all seven newcomers to the WSSU roster are at least 6'1" or taller. The Rams welcome the addition of a trio of players 6'8" (McIntoche Alcius at 6'8", Paul Davis at 6'9", and Corey Morris at 6'10") or taller and a pair of 6'4" guards (Vaudrey Funderburke and Michael Puckett) as well as adding the services of a 6'1" guard (Isiah Tucker).
Do It Again As Sophomores?
The 2006-07 WSSU Rams were led in scoring by freshmen 18 times. Darius Floyd led the Rams in scoring seven times and Brian Fisher led the Rams in scoring eleven times as first-year players combined for nearly 38 percent of the total offense from last season's team. Bobby Collins and the Rams will rely heavily on the pair of talented sophomore guards this season. This season Floyd has led the Rams in scoring once while Fisher has led the team in points twice.
62nd Year
The Rams have turned in an overall record of 1061-630 over the span of 61 completed seasons of men's basketball competition for a winning percentage of 61.9%. The Rams have turned in 49 winning seasons and have recorded only 10 losing seasons.
National Champions
Under the tutelage of legendary coach Clarence "Big House" Gaines and behind the play of Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer Earl "The Pearl"
The House That Gaines Built
Legendary coach Clarence "Big House" Gaines coached at
