Feb. 16, 2008

Final Stats

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The second half was not kind to the young Winston-Salem State Lady Rams (2-20) as the team suffered a 91-62 loss to the Howard Lady Bison. The 91 points scored by the Lady Bison marked a season-high in points allowed by the Lady Rams this season as the squad took its third straight loss.

It was a poor second half that cost the Lady Rams in the loss as the squad allowed 51 second half points to the Lady Bison, marking the second time this week that the squad has allowed over 50 second half points to their opponents, including allowing 52 second half points to the Coppin State Lady Eagles, Monday evening. The later minutes of the half proved to be the worst for the Lady Rams as the squad failed to convert a field goal in the final seven minutes of the game.

As a team, the Lady Rams shot 39.3% from the field, but could not stop a Howard team that took advantage of home court and shot 43.4% from the field in the game. The young Lady Rams struggled to hold on to the ball, committing 33 turnovers in the loss. The loss also marked the second time this season that the squad has lost despite outrebounding their opponent. As a team, the squad held a 46-41 edge on the boards.

Three Lady Ram scorers recorded double-digit performances in the loss with freshman guard Corbin Bradford leading the way with 17 points in the loss. Fellow freshman Vontisha Woods added 14 points and eight rebounds in the game, while freshman guard Rene Rector scored 11 points, all in the first half of play.

The early going was tough for the young Lady Rams who struggled against a Howard team that sprinted out to an early 21-6 lead. It was a lay-up by WSSU freshman guard Corbin Bradford who snapped the run hitting a lay-up at the 11:11 mark that snapped the Howard run. The squad would battle back, however, going on a 9-0 run, capped by a Bradford three-pointer that pulled the team back into the game, 25-15 with 9:58 left in the half. The squad continued to chip away at the Howard lead, ending the half on an 8-2 run to nearly eliminate the deficit and head into the locker room trailing by just three points, 40-37.

The young Lady Rams' struggles began early in the second half as a Bradford lay-up in the first minute of the half was the team's only field goal of the first five minutes of the half. The Lady Bison went on to take advantage of the Lady Rams' offensive struggles to push their lead to 18 points, 61-43 with 12:59 left in the game. The Lady Rams would get no closer than 17 points for the remainder of the half as a Woods lay-up wit 7:00 left to play would leave the Lady Rams trailing, 72-55. The 17-point deficit turned out to be as close as the Lady Rams would get for the remainder of the contest.

The young squad won't have long to rest with the Lady Rams heading to Hampton, VA to take on the Hampton Lady Pirates in a Monday evening match-up at the Convocation Center.