PHOTO GALLERY | Virginia Union University's Terrell Leach scored 14 points as the Panthers downed Winston-Salem State University 63-59 on Saturday, December 14, at Barco-Stevens Hall in Richmond, Va.

VUU had honored Leach and women's basketball player Shareka McNeill for scoring their 1,000th point in their careers during the 2019 CIAA Tournament.

"Another good solid defensive game for us today against a very good Winston-Salem State team," said VUU Head Men's Basketball Coach Jay Butler.  "We preach everyday defense wins games and the men are starting to buy into playing good defense for 40 minutes.  Freshman Charles Tart III continues to play great defense for us but I was happy to see him get going offensively. He works so hard on the defensive end we would like to see him score more often.  Tyriek Railey continues to give us that scoring off the bench going a perfect 4-for-4 from the field in the first half.  I think the fellows really wanted to win this game for Bilal Abdur Rahim. We are finding ways to close out these close games early in the season hoping it gives us the experience needed for CIAA Tournament time."

Rahim was injured in VUU's win over Fayetteville State University on December 12.

Railey and Tart scored 10 points apiece while Jordan Peebles pulled down 10 rebounds.

The win raised Virginia Union's record to 7-4 overall and 3-0 in CIAA play.  The win was also the fifth straight for the Panthers, marking VUU's longest win streak since 2017-18.

Winston-Salem State fell to 4-5 overall and 2-3 in the CIAA.

Virginia Union wraps up the 2019 portion of its schedule when the Panthers host Johnson C. Smith University at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, December 18, at Barco-Stevens Hall in Richmond, Va.