(Sept. 7, 2005) - The 2005-06 Fordham University men??s basketball schedule features a sixteen-game Atlantic 10 Conference schedule and 12 home games, as well as a home game on ESPN, an appearance in the 2005 Paradise Jam and a trip to Notre Dame. The highlight of the schedule is the ESPN appearance when the Rams host one of the newest Atlantic 10 members, Charlotte, in the Rose Hill Gym on Saturday, February 18th at 2:00 p.m. The Rams will also travel to South Bend in 2005-06 to face Notre Dame, the first match-up between the Rams and the Irish since the 1994-95 season and the first appearance in South Bend for the Rams since 1993-94. Eight of Fordham??s 2005-06 opponents saw postseason action last year with four teams appearing in the NCAA Tournament: Charlotte, George Washington, Old Dominion, Pennsylvania; and four others receiving bids to the NIT (Holy Cross, Notre Dame, Saint Joseph??s, and Temple). Additionally, the Rams could face 2004-05 NCAA participants Wisconsin and Eastern Kentucky in the Paradise Jam Tournament. Fordham??s Atlantic 10 schedule includes home-and-home games with Duquesne, Rhode Island and St. Bonaventure as well as home dates with Charlotte, Dayton, George Washington, La Salle and Richmond. The Rams will play Atlantic 10 schools Massachusetts, Saint Joseph??s, Saint Louis, Temple and Xavier on the road. The conference will be comprised of one, 14-team league in 2005-06 with the top 12 teams advancing to the Atlantic 10 Championship Tournament in Cincinnati from March 8-11, 2006. Times for the conference games will be set once the 2005-06 Atlantic 10 Television Network schedule is complete. In non-conference play, the Rams will open the season by participating in the Paradise Jam Tournament in the Virgin Islands from November 19-21. Fordham opens the tournament with Old Dominion University on November 19th and then faces the University of Georgia on November 20th before closing out the tournament on November 21st against either Eastern Kentucky, Norfolk State or Wisconsin. Fordham will open its home schedule on Saturday, November 26th by hosting St. Francis (NY) College in the Rose Hill Gym at 1:00 p.m. Fordham will play six of its ten non-conference games on the road including trips to cross-Bronx rival Manhattan College and Jesuit rival Holy Cross. The Rams will also take trips to Virginia, Fairfield, Siena and Notre Dame. Besides St. Francis, Fordham will host Ivy League champions Penn, Iona and Lafayette. Fordham will be led into the season by third-year head coach Dereck Whittenburg, who returns a plethora of talent from last year??s team, including sophomore Bryant Dunston, the 2005 Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year. Season ticket information is available by calling the Fordham Ticket Office at 718-817-4300. Individual tickets will soon be on sale and may be purchased at the Fordham Ticket Office or online at www.fordhamsports.com. For a downloadable schedule, click on ??2005-06 Fordham Men??s Basketball Schedule?? under Files Available to Download on the men??s basketball web page.