The first Saturday of the month can mean just one thing: Fordham Athletic Director David Roach on One on One. Despite the fact that Mack Rosenberg and I were in Philadelphia to call the Fordham/St. Joe’s game, we couldn’t miss the opportunity to get caught up on all things Fordham sports.
Despite the fact that Richmond defeated Fordham on Saturday afternoon, a good crowd was on hand to watch Fordham senior Chris Gaston play one of his final games at Rose Hill. Part of that crowd were a few notable Fordham athletics alumni who came back to their old stomping ground.
It was Senior Day at the Rose Hill Gym Saturday. Along with senior team managers, there was one player who walked out to celebrate his Fordham career: Chris Gaston. Gaston has had a prolific career at Fordham and he received a huge ovation in front of the Fordham fans. Unfortunately, there was not much to celebrate after the opening tip, as the Richmond Spiders dominated Fordham, winning 72-55.
Fordham is peaking at the right time, and a chance at a first round bye will be at stake as Fordham closes its conference season with a pair of contests this week. With a chance to become the "Super Rams" (against Rhode Island) and to prove their legitimacy on their home court (Saint Joseph’s), last week was a telling one for Fordham’s chances come tournament time.
The Fordham Rams have lost 23 consecutive games on the road, and haven't won a road game in conference play since 2009. All of this the result of last night's 68-60 loss at George Washington, a game in which the Rams played down to their opponent and make mistake.
It would be easy for a team to be content with securing an A10 berth with four games remaining in the conference slate. Of course the Fordham Women’s Basketball team isn’t nearly done completing one of the most drastic turnarounds in the nation just yet.
The atmosphere at the Rose Hill Gym Saturday evening was the way it should be every game, and Fordham gave the sell-out crowd many reasons to cheer. But they couldn't finish off the upset of #11 Butler at home, losing 68-63. Fordham has now lost six straight contests, and this once certainly bites.
Brad Johansen, a national basketball broadcaster for CBSSports Network and the voice of the Xavier Musketeers on Fox Sports Ohio was at the Cintas Center on Wednesday to see his Musketeers take on Fordham. He may have been at the arena to watch Xavier, but surely he was also scouting the Rams before he commentates the Fordham v. Butler clash on Saturday afternoon in the Rose Hill Gym.
Xavier’s home court advantage is well documented – they are 51-1 against Atlantic 10 opponents in the Cintas Center since 2007. That home court advantage was significant tonight as the Musketeers used a strong second half run, fueled by a near sellout crowd, to finish off Fordham. Mandell Thomas dropped a career high 23 points, but the Rams (6-19, 2-8 A10) fell to Xavier (14-9, 7-3 A10) in Cincinnati, 79-66.
Prior to Sunday’s matchup against #18 Dayton, the Fordham Rams Women’s Basketball program had never beaten a top 25 opponent. The Rams remained winless against nationally ranked opponents with a tough 68-57 loss. Despite only trailing by 3 points at the half, the Maroon and White just didn’t have enough to take the next step in the Atlantic 10.
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