Winston-Salem State Rams | |
---|---|
University | Winston-Salem State University |
Conference | CIAA |
Location | Winston-Salem, NC |
Head coach | James Wilhelmi (1st year) |
Arena |
LJVM Coliseum Annex (Capacity: 4,000) |
Nickname | Rams |
Colors | Red and White |
The Winston-Salem State Rams men's basketball team is the men's basketball team that represents Winston-Salem State University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States. The school's team currently competes in the NCAA Division II Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association. 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 (MEAC); it returned to Division II in 2010 for financial reasons.
Among its coaches was noted 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 in 1982. Noted players under Gaines' era were Earl Monroe; Cleo Hill, the first African-American from an historically Black college and university to be drafted #1 by the National Basketball Association (St. Louis Hawks, 1961); and sports commentator and columnist Stephen A. Smith.