With little coming easy for the Winston-Salem State Rams this season, it was no surprise that clinching the CIAA's Southern Division on Saturday night was hard work.
The Rams nearly let a 17-point lead slip away before holding off Fayetteville State 74-69 in front of more than 4,000 at Capel Arena. And when it was finally over, there was plenty of celebrating, especially among the veterans on the team.
"Wow, that's really all I can say," said Coach Bobby Collins of the Rams, whose team will get a top seed in this week's CIAA Tournament in Charlotte. WSSU will have a first-round bye and won't play until Thursday's quarterfinals.
It was WSSU's first division title since the 2004-05 season, but it needed a late steal by senior Andrew Jackson to help secure the victory.
The Broncos (13-13) had the ball and a chance to tie the game on a 3-pointer. It appeared as if Sidney Evans was going to take a 3-point attempt, but Jackson pounced on Evans and he coughed up the ball into the waiting hands of Marcus Wells.
"I think he second-guessed himself a little and put it on the floor, and once he did that, since he was a big man, I figured I would stick my hand in there and get a piece of the ball and Marcus got the steal," Jackson said of the best defensive play of the night.
The Rams (19-6) were in great shape when Stephon Platt converted a 3-point play with 6:42 left for a 17-point lead. But that's when the Broncos turned up their pressure and the Rams nearly wilted. The Rams didn't score another field goal the rest of the game.
"It was a good team and they gave us their best shot, especially down the stretch," Collins said. "They did a very good job of executing and attacking our post. They didn't go away when we got up by (17) and we knew they were going to make a run and my team showed great character."
In the final 1:14 WSSU hit just enough free throws, making eight of 12.
"Honestly, I was never worried," Collins said. "I felt like we were going to win even if it went into overtime. But my guys never stopped fighting, they believed in what we wanted to do." Platt, a sophomore, had the best all-around game of his young career with 14 points and eight rebounds in 21 minutes off the bench. Wells, another sophomore, was effective at point guard with 13 points, three assists and three steals, and Shelton Carter added 12 points.
The Rams had one of their most balanced games of the season with McIntoche Alcius, Paul Davis and Jackson each contributing nine points. Davis also had nine rebounds and two blocked shots, and Lamar Monger added six assists to go along with seven points.
What had Platt excited was the chance to play in front of his grandmother, Sarah Reed, for the first time. She lives near Southern Pines and was at the game, along with others from Platt's extended family.
Platt filled in nicely after Alcius fouled out with 3:45 to go.
"I was a little nervous in the first half," Platt said, "but Coach Collins just told me in the second half to calm down and play."
The Rams fell behind by 10 in the first half, but by halftime led 36-30. They extended their lead to 13 by scoring on five of seven possessions to start the second half and appeared to have it on cruise control when Platt converted the three-point play.
The Broncos went on an 18-3 run to cut the lead to 68-66 when Seth Hawkins (17 points) converted two free throws with 45.2 seconds left. Wells then hit two free throws to push the lead back to four.
With 17.1 seconds left, Carter hit one of two free throws for a 71-68 Rams lead.
But on the next possession Evans, who was named All-CIAA last week, got the ball on the left wing and Jackson made the key play. "The move that Sidney made he was unsure and I thought Andrew had the experience and made that steal," said Coach Alphonza Kee of the Broncos.
The Broncos struggled from the foul line, going 10-for-25. But they made nine of 24 3-pointers.
Now the Rams will focus on trying to win the CIAA Tournament for the first time since 2000.
"We got a banner tonight and the rights to the Southern Division," Jackson said. "We're happy, but at the same time we understand it's not over with yet."
jdell@wsjournal.com
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