Box Score Johnson City, Tenn. - Javontae Hawkins scored 18 points in his Fordham debut but it wasn't enough as the Rams fell to East Tennessee State, 96-59, in the season opener for both teams at Freedom Hall.

The Rams started out hot from behind the three-point arc, hitting their first four attempts over the first eight minutes but then cooled down, hitting just three of their final 15 long distance shots.
 
David Pekarek hit the fourth of the four straight Fordham three-pointers to open the game and put the Rams up five, 18-13, with 12:03 left in the first but ETSU used a 12-3 spurt to take a 25-21 lead with 8:24 on the clock.
 
A Hawkins jumper and Joseph Chartouny layup, sandwiched around a Buccaneer free throw, cut the Fordham deficit to one, 26-25, at the 6:48 mark before ETSU scored nine straight points to take a double digit lead, 35-25, with 4:37 remaining in the first half.
 
The Rams managed to cut the ETSU lead to six twice over the next three minutes, the final time at 41-35 following a Hawkins layup with 1:30 left but the home squad took a 47-37 lead into the break.
 
ETSU scored the first eleven points of the second half to take a commanding 58-37 lead three minutes into the half and the closest the Rams would get from that point would be 14, 65-51, on an Antwoine Anderson dunk with 10:51 remaining.
 
Pekarek and Anderson each netted eleven points for Fordham while Chartouny added eight.
 
The Rams return to action on Monday night, November 14, as they host the NYIT Bears on the Rose Hill Gym at 7:00 p.m.­