Box Score Dec. 13, 2009
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Queens, N.Y. -
Fordham head coach Jared Grasso wasn't sure which team would show up for today's game at St. John's, his third contest as the Rams' leader. Would it be the team from his first game, one that had problems scoring? Or would it be the squad from his second game, the one that scored a season-high 93 points? To everyone's surprise, both teams were on display at Carnesecca Arena as the Rams experienced problems scoring in the first half before playing a stronger second half in falling to the Red Storm, 73-56.
With the loss, the Rams fall to 2-6 on the season while St. John's improves to 8-1.
"I'm pleased with the way we played and competed in the second half," said Grasso. "The effort got better in the second half and I tell the guys that we have to keep getting better every day and if we do, we'll be successful."
The loss overshadowed a tremendous day for Fordham freshman Chris Gaston, the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week, who led all scorers in the game with 32 points while also grabbing 15 rebounds for his sixth straight double-double and his seventh in eight games this year. He is the first player in the Atlantic 10 to score 30 points this season and is the first Ram to net 30 points in a game since Marcus Stout scored 31 at Temple on February 28, 2008. He scored 18 of his 32 points in the first half, hitting eight of his nine field goal attempts in the period.
"Chris showed today why he is one of the top freshmen in the country," said Grasso. "We ask him to do a lot for a freshman but he is a special player who can compete with anyone."
Gaston's first half heroics weren't enough to keep the Rams from falling behind as the only other Fordham players to score in the half were Alberto Estwick and Brenton Butler, who combined for five points. The Red Storm jumped out to a 4-0 lead 3:24 into the game before an Estwick three-pointer made it a one-point game 15 seconds later.
St. John's then used a 12-2 run to build a 16-5 lead with 11 minutes left in the half and the Red Storm would lead by 19 at the break, 42-23, as Fordham recorded 15 turnovers in the half.
A different Fordham team emerged from the locker room for the second half, opening the period with eight straight points to cut the deficit to 11, 42-31, on a Gaston jumper just under four minutes into the half. Butler opened the run with a pair of free throws 1:13 into the half and Gaston followed with a layup 46 seconds later. A Lance Brown jumper made it 42-29 with 16:57 left before Gaston made it an 11-point game with his jumper.
The Red Storm responded to the Fordham run with a 9-0 spurt to extend the lead to 20, 51-31, on a DJ Kennedy three-point play with 13:06 remaining.
Later in the half, St, John's held a 64-45 advantage with 6:50 left when the Rams scored seven straight points to cut the Red Storm lead to 12, 64-52. Butler started the run with a jumper and Estwick followed with a three-pointer. A pair of Herb Tanner free throws capped the run with 5:10 remaining but that was as close as the Rams would get.
Butler finished with 11 points for the Rams while Jacob Green added six rebounds and three blocks and Brown grabbed eight rebounds to go with his five points.
Fordham will next be in action on Saturday, December 19th, as they host the third-ranked Villanova University Wildcats at the Izod Center in East Rutherford, N.J. at 2:00 p.m.
Notes
The last Fordham player to record six straight double-doubles was Bryant Dunston in 2007-08...Gaston's seven double-doubles this year ties him with Duquesne's Damian Saunders for the Atlantic 10 lead...He is also tied with Saunders for most ten-rebound games this year (7) in the A-10...Gaston is now averaging 19.1 ppg and 12.0 rpg, both team highs...Brown's eight rebounds is a season-best, surpassing the six he grabbed against Stony Brook last Tuesday...The Red Storm, who have won three straight over Fordham, now lead the all-time series, 61-20...It was the first time the two teams squared off since December 7, 2002 and was Fordham first visit to Queens since December 19, 1998...The game was the first on the Fordham bench for new Ram assistant coach Joe DeSantis, Grasso's college coach at Quinnipiac.
