BASKETBALL
?KeifA Stagg of the Pharaohs
B'"rs to the basket.
?' ?PwPiffii '
Photo by Cnug T. Greenlee
QEA post player Pape
Ndiaye (22) scored a
season-high 23 points
against Washington
Academy.
Relentless Pharaohs
take care of business
BY CRAIG T. GREENLEE
FOR THE CHRONICLE
Quality Education
Academy (QEA) started
slowly and finished with a
"rush. The end result was an
overwhelming 97-42
home-court victory over
Washington Academy last
week.
The first quarter was
relatively competitive. By
the start of the third quar
ter, however, the Pharaohs'
suffocating defense set the
tone for a 35-point lead
(72-37).
"Our guys came out
flat," said coach Isaac Pitts
of QEA, whose team
improved to 6-0.
"We talked a lot about
that at halftime. If we are to
have a championship pedi
gree, we can't afford to be
up and down.
"You can't win champi
onships by turning it on
and turning it off. You have
to play with the same focus
and intensity all the time.
We went with a more up
tempo approach in the sec
ond half and it made a dif
ference."
The Pharaohs got a big
lift from Pape Ndiaye, who
had struggled to find his
shot during the season's
opening weeks. The 6-foot
9 center/power forward
finished with a game-high
23 points and 8 rebounds.
Ndiaye missed all of last
season with a torn ACL and
did not play on the AAU
circuit this past summer as
he has during the previous
two years.
This game was the first
time this season that
Ndiaye showed the form
that attracted intense inter
est from Washington State,
Mississippi State, UNC
Charlotte and Oklahoma.
He scored on mid-range
jumpers, hook shots and
offensive put-backs.
"It was the game that
all of us had been waiting
for," said Pitts. "In our first
five games, Pape was so
so. But at the same time, he
was out for an entire sea
son. It takes time to get
back into the flow. That's
why I advised him to be
patient because I knew that
his time would come, and
against Washington
Academy, it did."
QEA went on a ram
page at both ends of the
floor in the second half.
During that span, the
Pharaohs overwhelmed
Washington by a count of
57-17. The defense forced
multiple turnovers, which
led to uncontested dunks at
the other end of the floor.
Perhaps it was fitting
that QEA's final points of
the game came on Keith
Stagg's windmill slam right
before the buzzer sounded.
Ndiaye wasn't a solo
act for the home team.
Deshawn Corprew (21
points) soared and scored
and played stifling one-on
one defense. Stagg finished
with 12 points, and four
other QEA players - Malik
Brevard, Jaylan McGill,
, Andre' Toure and Marsellis
Purvis - contributed eight
points apiece.
There have been some
anxious moments for
Ndiaye in the early going.
He had hoped to get off to
a better start. At the
Phenom High School
Showcase held last week at
Forsyth Country Day,
Nidaye was eager to prove
himself in the two-day
event, which annually
attracts a herd of scouts
from high-level college
basketball programs.
In both games,
Ndiaye's shot was off. But
what concerned him most
was his inability to estab
lish his on-court presence
as he had two seasons ago
prior to his injury.
"We won, but I still felt
like I should have helped
out a little more," said
Ndiaye. "The game
(against Washington
Academy) was one that I
really needed. My team
mates got me the ball and
everything worked very
well. Things are slowly
starting to come together
for me."
For Washington
Academy (3-1), the only
player to reach double dig
its in scoring was A.J.
Gaston with 12 points.
Rams clip Vikings
73-68 in overtime
SPECIAL TO
THE CHRONICLE
Winston-Salem State
overcame a sluggish start
and a 17-point first half
deficit to slip past the
Elizabeth City State
Vikings, 73-68, in overtime
Saturday at the CE Gaines
Center.
With the win, Winston
Salem State improves to 2
2 overall, while Elizabeth
City State falls to 1-2 on
the season.
The WSSU Rams fell
behind big early on, as they
could not find the range,
missing their first 13 shots.
Their saving grace was
their free throw shooting
that kept them in the game
until they could start mak
ing baskets.
Trailing 23-8, a steal
and subsequent layup by
Carlos Rankins finally got
the Rams their first field
goal and their commitment
on the defensive end kept
the team within striking
distance.
Winston-Salem State
would finish off the first
half on a 12-3 run to pull
within four points at the
half, 26-22. ^
Early in the second
half, WSSU woqld take
their first lead of game on a
three pointer from Demone
Harrison, but the visiting
Vikings seemed to have an
answer for anything the
Rams threw at them.
Midway through the
second half, ECSU would
go back up by double dig
its, 46-35, before the Rams
would call a time out to
readjust their strategy.
Once again, WSSU
would rely on their defense
and rebounding to get them
back into the game and
would finish off regulation
with a 15-8 run to the lead
at 56-54 with 1:18 remain
ing.
Both teams converted
free throws down the
stretch and at the buzzer,
the game would be tied at
58-58 and headed into
overtime.
Winston-Salem State
would outscore ECSU 15
10 in the extra period and
the Rams' Jamel McAllister
would knock down a big
three pointer with 1:13
remaining to give WSSU
the lead for good in over
time.
Demone 4 Harrison
would sink two free throws
with four seconds left to
give WSSU their final
points and secure a 73T68
win for the Rams.
Ray von Harris led the
Rams with 15 points, seven
rebounds and two steals,
while Keith Armstrong
added a double-double
with 14 points and 12
rebounds. TJ Wilson had a
strong game off the bench
with 14 points, eight
rebounds and three steals.
Demone Harrison scored
13 points, and Carlos
Rankins chipped in 10
points, four rebounds and
five assists.
Elizabeth City State
was led in scoring by
DeCarlos Anderson, who
scored a game high 21
points. Miykael Faulcon
added 15 points, and
Clayton Cowell chipped in
10 points.
Winston-Salem State
will wrap up their five
game home stand to start
the season and returns to
action on Tuesday,
November 24th, when the
Rams host the Hornets of
Morris College at 7:00 p.m.
in the CE Gaines Center.
*
Dec. 22- 6:00pm (3rd place), 7:30pm championship
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