On the morning of Saturday March 9th, in Olean, NY, Mack Rosenberg and I sat down with Fordham Men’s Basketball Head Coach Tom Pecora for the final time this season. Fordham’s final game with Saint Bonaventure was just hours away, so we took the chance to look back on this season, and look ahead to next year.
Heading into their regular season finale at St. Bonaventure, the Fordham Rams didn’t appear to have much to play for. They had no chance of making the A10 tournament, and they hadn’t won a road conference game in four calendar years. On the other side, the Bonnies had everything to play for. A win for the Bonnies put them into postseason play. It was also Senior Day at the Reilly Center. Despite the odds, the young Fordham team played hard for 40 minutes, and their senior leader Chris Gaston stepped up when it mattered most, leading the Rams to an improbable 76-72 win to finish out the year.
Entering the Rams’ second matchup of the season against the Saint Joseph’s Hawks, the Fordham Rams had a lot of hope. In their first matchup with the Hawks this season, Fordham played them incredibly close and were a few missed free throws and turnovers away from coming out with a win. Saint Joe’s won that first matchup 66-62. The second time around was not nearly as close, as the Hawks cruised to an 82-56 victory.
The regular season is headed toward the finish line for Fordham Men’s Basketball. Before the Rams’ Saturday night matchup with the Saint Joe’s Hawks, Mack Rosenberg and I sat down with Head Coach Tom Pecora .
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.
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.
The Fordham Rams closed out the 2012 calendar year the right away, defeating the Monmouth Hawks 82-71 at the Rose Hill Gym on New Year’s Eve. With the win, the Rams have now won three out of their last five games. That may not sound like much, but the team has shown much improvement since their 1-8 start.
Fordham committed 14 turnovers in a very sloppy first half. Those turnovers, combined with the fact that Chris Gaston and Branden Frazier, the team’s two top scorers, combined for just 8 first half points, had the Rams down 33-28 at intermission.
By Chris Marasco
Yesterday in One on One Kenny and I were joined by Tom Pecora, Fordham Men’s basketball coach. During the interview we had a chance to ask him about recruits for next year, injury updates for Chris Gaston and Devon McMillan, and the team’s upcoming games.
The Fordham Rams are back in the Preseason NIT for the first time since 2006, and the 4th time since 1990, when they received their first invite. They hadn't won a game in six tries coming into the tournament, and they failed to change their luck Monday night in Pittsburgh, losing 86-51 to the Panthers.
In a game that was quite literally a must win for Fordham, the Rams emerged victorious in a closely contested match with La Salle 67-62.
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