Feb. 27, 2010
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Bronx, N.Y. - The Fordham women's basketball team will host No. 5 Xavier in the regular-season finale on Sunday, Feb. 28 at Rose Hill. The Rams and the Musketeers were originally scheduled to tip off on Saturday, Feb. 27, but the game was postponed due to weather.
Xavier is the highest ranked team Fordham (8-20, 2-11 A-10) has played at Rose Hill in eight years. In 2002, the Rams' hosted No. 5/6 Stamford on Jan. 5, 2002.
Sunday's contest will also mark another milestone, it is the final game for senior forward, Randall Hurst, a West Bloomfield, Mich., native who transferred to Fordham in 2008.
Fordham is 6-7 at home this year and 2-4 in conference games, the Rams are looking to break a 0-6 skid, since Jan. 30 when they defeated La Salle at home.
Xavier (23-3, 13-0 A-10) is the only undefeated team in the conference. The Musketeers started the season 13-0, the best start in school history.
The last time the Rams and Musketeers met, exactly one year ago, Xavier was No. 13 in the country.
SCOUTING XAVIER: Ranked No. 5 in the country, Xavier is on a 14-0 win streak dating back to Jan. 5. With an overall record of 23-3, Xavier has only lost to then No. 21/24 Michigan State (Dec. 9, L, 66-53), Michigan (Dec. 14 - L, 72-71), and then-No. 11/12 LSU (Dec. 30, L, 56-47).
Xavier's closest Atlantic 10 loss was at Dayton on Feb. 17, when Dayton was receiving votes in both polls. Xavier pulled out a one-point victory, 80-79 in overtime.
Xavier's Amber Harris and Ta'Shia Phillips were among 30 student-athletes named midseason candidates for the 2010 Women's Naismith Trophy on Feb. 25. Only four schools, including UConn, Ohio State, Stanford and Xavier received a pair of nods on the distinguished list.
The Musketeers are led by Harris, who averages 15.4 points per game with a field goal average of .571. Phillips is second on the team in scoring with 13.7 points per game. Phillips leads the Musketeers at the boards with 282 total, 10.8 rbg.
Head coach Kevin McGuff became Xavier's all-time winningest coach when the Musketeers defeated Kentucky by a 67-44 margin on Dec. 2, 2008.
RAMS VS. MUSKETEERS - THE SERIES: Sunday's contest marks the 20th meeting between the two teams, in a series dating back to Feb. 3, 1973. Fordham won the first two games in the series, easily defeating the Musketeers 46-28 in the premier contest in neutral ground (New Haven, Conn.), and 79-76 in Queens, N.Y., on Dec. 28, 1983, a ten-year difference.
On March 5, 2004, Xavier and Fordham met in the Atlantic 10 tournament, in Philadelphia, Pa. The Muskateers go the better of the Rams in a double-overtime contest, winning 63-57.
Fordham has only won one other meeting, besides the first two, and that was at Xavier on Jan. 25, 1987. The Rams won by a 60-55 margin.
WHEN LAST THEY MET: The teams last saw each other exactly one year ago, on Feb. 28, 2009 in Cincinnatti, Ohio. The then-No.13 ranked Musketeers defeated the Rams, 75-47, the regular season-finale for Fordham.
Randall had a team-best 16 points for Fordham off of 8-for-16 shooting. Becky Peters was next closest with nine. Annie Zopf was the Rams' rebound leader with five.
Ta'Shia Phillips led the Musketeers with 22 points, shooting 8-for-11 from the floor and sinking 5-of-10 free throws. Three other Musketeers also scored in double figures. Phillips had a double-double with 18 rebounds as well.
LAST TIME OUT: On Feb. 20, Fordham traveled to Washington, D.C. to play its last road game of the season against George Washington. The game was a key factor in determining a possible post-season situation for both teams. The Colonials pulled away in the final minutes to seal their fate and a spot in the Atlantic 10 tournament with a final margin of 56-47.
The Colonials led by eight, 30-22, with 16:37 in the second half. Fordham used a four-minute, 11-5 run to cut the GW lead to two, 35-33 with junior forward Tiffany Stokes at the line for two free throws with 11:56 left. The run was sparked by a jumper inside from Hurst, followed by a three-point play from Weekes on the subsequent possession. A quick six points from junior guard Kristina Bell, Hurst and Stokes had the Rams down 34-33 with 12:37 left. Stokes missed both shots from the line but, tied the game at 35, a minute later with an inside jumper dished in by rookie guard Arielle Collins.
George Washington used a 10-4 run from 9:36 to 5:52 to go ahead 45-39 on Fordham, but two made free throws by Bell at 4:25 gave the Rams a two possession chance, 45-41 with 4:24 left in regulation.
With the Rams in double-bonus play, sophomore guard Becky Peters missed two key free throws at 3:11 that would bring Fordham within one possession.
The scored stayed the same until 2:07, when Colonials' sophomore guard Kay-Kay Allums sank two charity shots to extend the George Washington lead to six, 47-41. GW jammed it inside to score a layup and inside jump shot to extend their lead, 51-41 with 1:13 remaining.
The fouling game commenced as Bell quickly fouled sophomore guard Tiana Myers on the next possession. Myers hit 1-of-2 to give the Colonials an 11-point advantage with 51 seconds left.
Collins hit a shot from long range to cut the Colonials lead to eight, 52-44 with 36 seconds left. The Rams called a 30-second time out to draw up a strategy for the next possession. Despite another three-pointer from Weekes, George Washington was able to hit 4-of-5 chances at the free throw line to keep a steady lead and win, 56-47.
In the last 1:39 of play, the Rams missed five opportunities to score, including three from long range and two inside.
STATS TO WATCH: Both Kristina Bell and Randall Hurst are in range of hitting two career stat marks. Bell will enter the game with 398 career-rebounds, two away from 400. Hurst has a career mark of 199 free throws made. One more will put her at 200.
Hurst is also looking at a possible 400 points this season. She currently has 398, one layup will do the trick. With 98 defensive rebounds, Stokes is two away from 100, Bell has 95, five away from the 100 mark.
