Box Score

SALISBURY, NC – The Livingstone men's basketball team battled hard, but fell short of pulling off the season sweep of Winston-Salem State Monday, falling 81-73 to the Rams inside Trent Gymnasium.

Winston-Salem grabbed the first three points of the game, but then Livingstone went on a strong 11-1 run in just less than three minutes to go up 11-4 with 15:22 left in the half.  The Rams responded with a quick 6-0 run to get within one at 11-10.  With 13:39 left in the opening half, the Blue Bears continued to hold a four-point edge before Winston-Salem went on a 9-0 run to go up 21-16 with 9:22 left.

Livingstone responded to the Rams' run with a 10-0 run of their own and took a 26-21 edge with 6:56 left in the half.  The Blue Bears extended their lead to seven points with 3:37 left, but were outscored 12-4 over the remainder of the half as Winston-Salem took a 37-36 lead into the break.

The first five minutes of the second half were very hotly contested and Livingstone held a two-point edge with 14:28 left.  Winston then went on a 10-0 run in just over two minutes and took a 54-46 lead with 12:19 remaining.  The lead was short-lived as the Blue Bears went on an 8-0 run of their own to tie the game 54-54 with 9:29 remaining. 

Winston-Salem State kept their composure after the Livingstone run and opened up a seven-point advantage with 6:31 left in the contest.  Over the final five minutes, the Rams clung to a slim lead and Livingstone got within five points with 1:46 left, but couldn't get the critical stop on the defensive end.  Winston-Salem went 8-for-8 from the free-throw line in the final minute to hold on for the victory.

Darius Cox and Donte Durant both led the Blue Bears with 17 points apiece while Cox recorded a double-double by pulling down 13 rebounds.  Carl Boswell also scored in double figures, adding 12 points.

Livingstone shot 37.5 percent from the field including 40 percent from three-point range.  Winston-Salem State shot 45 percent from the field including 50 percent from beyond the arc.

The Blue Bears fell to 12-9 overall, 7-6 in the CIAA and 3-4 in the division with the loss while Winston-Salem improved to 17-5 overall, 10-5 in the conference and 5-2 in the Southern Division with the victory.

Livingstone will host its final inter-divisional contest on Wednesday when Virginia Union University comes to Trent Gym for a 7:30 p.m. contest.