Feb. 15, 2008
Game #23 at Howard University Notables...The Rams and the Bison will tip-off on Saturday, Feb. 16 at 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time at Burr Gymnasium in Washington, DC...The two teams will meet for the second time this season...The game is a conference match-up as both teams are members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) but does not count in the MEAC's overall standings...The Bison hold a 5-19 record overall and sport a 2-8 mark in the MEAC...The Rams enter Saturday's contest with an 8-14 record overall...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 11 times and the Rams lead the series 6-5...The Rams will attempt to go 2-0 over the Bison this season; the Rams defeated Howard 64-56 on Jan. 19.
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Game Details
The Winston-Salem State University Rams (8-14) versus the Howard University Bison (5-19, 2-8 MEAC) at Burr Gymnasium (2,700 capacity) in
Setting the Scene
Saturday's contest will mark the second game between the two programs since the 1993-94 season. The Rams look to snap a three-game losing streak after they fell to
The Series In Depth
The Rams and Bison have met 11 times in history with the Rams holding a 6-5 edge in the series. The teams met less than a month ago, Jan. 19, when the Rams downed Howard 64-56 at home. The teams first met during the 1965-66 season and before this season's meeting, Howard defeated WSSU 71-63 during the 1993-94 season.
Streaks
Winston-Salem State extended its losing streak to three games after falling to Coppin State on Feb. 11, while Howard has also struggled, losing its fourth straight game over the weekend.
Television Coverage
There will be no live television broadcast of the game between the Rams and the Bison.
WSSU Radio Coverage
The Rams will broadcast the contest versus the Bison 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 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 Sharrod Patterson providing the color analysis.
As of press time, there are no plans for Howard to broadcast the game between the Rams and the Bison. For additional broadcast details, contact the Howard University Office of Sports Information and Sports Information Director, Ed Hill, Jr. at (202) 806-7184.
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 Bison 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.
Websites
WSSURAMS.com, the official website for
Whom To Contact
The
National Rankings
Neither the Rams nor the Bison 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 (8-14)
The Rams hold an 8-14 record overall and hope to snap a three-game losing streak when they face Howard on Saturday.
The Rams turned in another poor performance on Monday against Coppin State shooting 26.3 percent from the field on 15-of-57 shooting, but did out-rebound their opponent 39 to 33.
The Rams continue to be led by Jamal Durham who is averaging 11.5 points per game.
Freshman Paul Davis leads the team with 5.8 rebounds per game.
The Rams are shooting only 38.2 percent from the field and are allowing opponents to hit 42.4 percent of their shots.
WSSU is still looking for its first road win of the season as the Rams have posted an 0-9 record away from home during the 2007-08 season. WSSU's will play seven of its final 10 games on the road.
The Book On Howard (5-19)
The Bison enter into the contest with the Rams sporting a 5-19 record overall and hold a 2-8 record in the MEAC. Howard is also looking to snap a losing streak after dropping two games at home over the weekend.
Howard is led by Eugene Myatt, who is averaging 14.3 points per game and 3.4 rebounds per game, while Randy Hampton is averaging 11.0 points per game and is second on the team in rebounds, averaging 5.2 per game.
Season Two For Collins
The 2007-08 season marks the second season at WSSU for head coach
3rd Season For
The Bison are led by Gil Jackson, who is in his third season as Head Men's Basketball Coach. Prior to Howard,
Collins Versus Howard
WSSU head coach
Collins Versus the
Last Action
For the third consecutive game the
The Rams tallied only six field goals in the game's final 20 minutes of play as WSSU missed 22 of their 28 shots from the field en route to a 21.4 percent second-half shooting percentage.
Conversely, the Eagles hit 52.6 percent of their shots in the second half as they turned in a 10-of-19 shooting performance and used a 16-7 run to open the half to secure their seventh win of the season.
Despite his shooting difficulty,
Antwan Harrison led the Eagles with 15 points as he paced four
Manic Mondays
The Rams have had their share of difficulties playing on Mondays this season.
Sophomore Slump?
WSSU guard Brian Fisher may be hitting a sophomore slump as he has been held scoreless in two of the Rams' last five games. Versus
Tough Time In
Since the Rams' transition to Division I, WSSU has dropped four straight games in the "
First Half Woes
The Rams' 13 first-half points versus
Cold Shooting
The Rams' first-half shooting percentage of 18.2 percent versus the Bears of Morgan State on Feb. 9 marked the lowest single-half shooting percentage of the season for the Rams easily surpassing the previous single-half low of 21.9 percent that WSSU shot in the season-opener on Nov. 9 at Iowa State. Monday's loss at
Largest Halftime Deficit
The Rams' 26-point deficit to the Bears on Saturday marked the largest halftime deficit of the season for the Rams. The Rams' previous season-high halftime deficit was 16 points.
Winless On The Road
The Rams fell to 0-9 on the road overall in 2007-08 after their loss at
14 Consecutive Road Losses
WSSU has lost 14 consecutive games on the road dating back to the 2006-07 season. The Rams have dropped all eight road contests in 2007-08 and closed the 2006-07 season with five road losses for a total of 13 straight road losses.
Gonna Be Four?
The Rams' loss at
Three Straight And Six Of Seven
The Rams have lost three consecutive games and have dropped six of their last seven contests. WSSU has only one win (over Florida A&M on Feb. 2) since the 21st of January, a span of seven games.
G-Lew A No-Show
WSSU senior forward Greg Lewis did not make the trip with the Rams to
Only 12 Field Goals
The Rams recorded a season-low 12 total field goals at
Next Up
Following the Rams' game versus
A Look Back At Last Year
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 7-5 at home this season, 1-3 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 nine 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). WSSU will look for its first road win on Feb. 11 when it faces
Lineup Shake-Up
WSSU head coach
Julian's First Start And Two Straight
WSSU junior forward/center Julian Murphy-Long made his first start of the season versus
Peake's Streak Snapped
Senior guard Roy Peake saw his streak of 21 consecutive games started snapped versus the Rattlers of Florida A&M on Feb. 2. Peake had started 21 straight games dating back to last season and had started 33 of the Rams' last 34 contests. He missed his second consecutive start on Monday, Feb. 4 versus Bethune-Cookman. Peake returned to the starting lineup on Feb. 9 at
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
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 6-3 overall record. WSSU has posted a 2-11 record when they are held to less than 10 steals.
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 11 times in 2007-08 and have posted a 3-8 record when doing so.
Morris Not Redshirting
Prior to the season, WSSU head coach
Home Sweet Home
The Rams, a team that posted 23 road games last season, will benefit from 15 contests played in
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 11 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.
Taking Charge
The Rams have taken 32 charges through 21 games of the 2007-08 season, an average of 1.52 charges taken per contest. Seniors Darrell Wonge and Roy Peake lead the Rams with a team-high six charges drawn. Four other players have tallied at least three drawn charges this season.
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.
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 2010-11 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).
62nd Year
The Rams have turned in an overall record of 1062-633 over the span of 61 completed seasons of men's basketball competition for a winning percentage of 62.4%. 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
