FAIRMONT, W.Va. -- Winston-Salem State knocked down free throws late in the game to edge Fairmont State, 80-75, on Saturday afternoon at Joe Retton Arena.
Fairmont State (5-4) outshot Winston-Salem, 46.6-40.3, and held a nine rebound advantage on the glass. However, the Falcons turned the ball over 24 times and the Rams scored 31 points off turnovers. WSSU struggled from behind the arc (3-of-19) compared to 4-of-12 for FSU. The Falcons struggled from the foul line, knocking down just 17-of-28 attempts.
Thomas Wimbush led the Falcons with 23 points and 16 rebounds, after going 8-of-13 from the floor. The Falcons also got 14 from
Caleb Davis, 12 from
Chase Morgan and 10 from
Nick Harney.
Winston-Salem State (6-1) was led by WyKevin Bazemore with 23 points and a game-high 17 rebounds. Marquez Jones chipped in 14 points and a team-high three assists while Terrell Leach added 13 points and five boards.
The game was tied 12 times and there were 20 lead changes in the contest. With FSU holding its largest lead of the game at the 8:27 mark of the opening half (27-20), the Rams score 12 of the next 17 points over a three and a half minute stretch to tie the game at 32-32. The game was tied three more times in the final five minutes before a pair of free throws by
Brandon Vega sent the Falcons to the locker room with a 41-40 advantage.
The second half margin was just one possession for nearly the entire second half as both teams shot a much lower percentage compared to the first half. Late in the game
Trevor Andrews-Evans grabbed an offensive rebound and slammed it home to give the Falcons their largest advantage since the 18:10 mark (73-69). The Rams tied the game just over two minutes later following a free throw by Bazemore and a three from C.J. Ford at the 2:47 mark to make the score 73-73. From that point, the Rams outscored the Falcons, 7-2 (including a 5-of-5 performance from the foul line), to wrap up the 80-75 victory.
The Falcons will now have a week off before traveling to No. 2 Bellarmine for a 3 p.m. tip next Saturday.
