The Winston-Salem State Rams men's basketball team is the men's basketball team that represents
Winston-Salem State University
Winston-Salem State University (WSSU) is a historically black public university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina.
History
Winston-Salem State University was founded as Slater Industrial Academy o ...
(WSSU) in
Winston-Salem, North Carolina
Winston-Salem is a city and the county seat of Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States. In the 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the second-largest municipality in the Piedmont Triad region, the 5th most populous city in N ...
, United States. The school's team currently competes in the
NCAA Division II
NCAA Division II (D-II) is an intermediate-level division of competition in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). It offers an alternative to both the larger and better-funded Division I and to the scholarship-free environmen ...
Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association
The Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division II level. CIAA institutions mostly consist of historically black coll ...
. The school won the
1967 NCAA Division II championship. Winston-Salem State competed in
Division I from the 2007–08 season to the 2009–10 season as a transitional member of the
Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference
The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) is a collegiate athletic conference whose full members are historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the Southeastern and the Mid-Atlantic United States. It participates in the National C ...
(MEAC); it returned to Division II in 2010 for financial reasons.
Among its notable coaches was
Clarence "Big House" Gaines (1923–2005): during his 47-year tenure at WSSU as coach, professor, and athletic director, his men's basketball team compiled a record of 828–447. Gaines was inducted into the
Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an American history museum and hall of fame, located at 1000 Hall of Fame Avenue in Springfield, Massachusetts. It serves as basketball's most complete library, in addition to promoting and pres ...
in 1982.
Noted players under Gaines' era were
Earl Monroe
Vernon Earl Monroe (born November 21, 1944) is an American former professional basketball player. He played for two teams, the Baltimore Bullets and the New York Knicks, during his career in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Both teams ...
,
Cleo Hill
Cleo Hill (April 24, 1938 – August 10, 2015) was an American professional basketball player who was selected by the St. Louis Hawks in the first round (8th overall) of the 1961 NBA draft. A guard from Newark, New Jersey and the Winston-Salem S ...
and sports commentator and columnist
Stephen A. Smith
Stephen Anthony Smith (born ) is an American sports television personality, sports radio host, and sports journalist. He is a commentator on ESPN's ''First Take'', where he appears with Molly Qerim. He also makes frequent appearances as an N ...
.
[Biography Of A Legend: Clarence "Big House" Gaines]
Winston-Salem State University, April 20, 2005, Accessed December 12, 2012.[Richard Sandomir]
''The New York Times'', July 31, 2005, Accessed December 12, 2012. Alumnus
Earl Williams, an
American-Israeli
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basketball player, played for the school.
Postseason
NCAA Division II
The Rams have made the
NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament
The NCAA Division II men's basketball tournament (officially styled by the NCAA as a "Championship" instead of a "Tournament") is an annual championship tournament for colleges and universities that are members of NCAA Division II, a grouping of ...
fourteen times. The Rams have a record of 11–16.
See also
*
Clarence Gaines College Basketball Coach of the Year Awards
The National Sports Media Association (NSMA), formerly the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association, is an organization of sports media members in the United States, and constitutes the American chapter of the International Sports Pr ...
References
External links
Team website
{{NorthCarolina-basketball-team-stub