Forty minutes wasn’t enough. Neither was 45 minutes. It took 50 minutes for the Winston-Salem State Rams to slip past the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats, 76-71, in double-overtime Monday evening in Daytona Beach, Fla. The win snapped a one-game losing skid for the Rams.

The game provided 10 lead changes and seven ties.

The Rams started the contest on a 9-2 run rendering a seven point lead over the Wildcats. The Wildcats responded with a run of their own as they closed the gap, eventually retaking the lead in the final three minutes of the first half.

On the heels of their 8-0 run to close the first half, the Wildcats held a three-point advantage, up 32-29 headed into the locker room.

Second half action was calm for the first 15 minutes of play with the two teams separated by less than eight points for the entire period of play.

A Dewayne Pettus jumper with 2:40 remaining put the Wildcats in the lead by six points, ahead 60-54.

The Rams mounted a 6-0 run in little more than a minute of play to tie the game at 60.

A jumper by Rams’ senior forward Darrell Wonge as time expired was off the mark and the two teams headed to the first overtime.

Winston-Salem State jumped out to a four-point lead in the first overtime before the Wildcats, much like the Rams did in regulation, rallied down the stretch and retook the lead late in the first extended time period.

A Darius Floyd jumped with less than one minute to play in the extra frame forced a second, and final, overtime period.

The second overtime session proved to belong squarely to WSSU as the Rams closed out the final three minutes of the contest on a 6-1 run en route to the 76-71 double-overtime victory.

Senior forward Darrell Wonge and sophomore guard Darius Floyd led the Rams with 17 points each. Five WSSU players recorded double-digit scoring on the night. Jamal Durham finished with 14 points and Brian Fisher and Paul Davis each tallied 10.

Leading Bethune-Cookman was Dewayne Pettus who paced all scorers with 22 points. Dominique Whatley chipped in with 13 points and Kevin Crappy and Jordan Carrier each tallied 10 points in the losing effort.