WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. (Jan. 14. 2019) -- "Same story, different day" the old saying goes and for the Viking basketball team this rings true. After coming off a nail biter at Johnson C. Smith on Saturday afternoon, the Vikings would again face a late deficit at Winston-Salem State.
ECSU had already faced their fair share of adversity on the evening as sophomore
Zaccheus Hobbs went down with a leg injury in the first half.
The Vikings fought through that adversity but still trailed by five with 4:23 left to go in the second half. Five straight made free throws from Shyheid Pettewaw, Jonari Hill and
Corey Mendez would tie the game at 65. WSSU came back to outscore the Vikings 6-2 over the next 45 seconds to take a 71-67 lead with 1:11 left.
John Maynor would get a crucial steal with 30 seconds left and would hit two free throws following a WSSU foul to bring the Vikings within two. Julius Barnes would miss two free throws with 26 seconds left and a Jonari Hill rebound gave ECSU the final possession of regulation. In that final possession the Vikings set up
Justin Faison with a shot but Faison missed, however,
Joseph Allen was there to gather the offensive rebound and would score off of a layup wth seven seconds left to tie the game at 71.
In overtime, the Vikings would go on a 5-0 run to lead 76-71 and take the lead for good. From that point, the Rams were not able to get any closer than three and the Vikings would win 82-79.
"First off, our thoughts and prayers are with
Zaccheus Hobbs after his injury tonight. We played tonight with him in mind. My team showed a remarkable display of character tonight and once again they have left their coach amazed at their effort. We are growing steadily and our defense is swarming right now. I am very happy to get another conference road win tonight" ECSU head men's basketball coach
Shawn Walker said.
The Vikings were led by
John Maynor with 21 points on 7-of-14 shooting, 5-of-9 from long distance.
Shyheid Petteway notched 16 points and
Joseph Allen scored 11 to pace the offensive attack.
Both teams will be off until Saturday afternoon when the Vikings will take the short trip up to Murfreesboro, N.C. to face off against Chowan University. Game time is slated for 2:00 and 4:00 p.m.
