University Park, Pa. (November 16, 2014) - After opening the season scoring 94 points on Friday night, the Fordham men's basketball team had its offense cooled off by Penn State as the Rams could only manage 54 points in a 73-54 loss to the Nittany Lions in the Bryce Jordan Center.
Inexperience caught up with the Rams, who started three freshmen, while Penn State used a veteran lineup, starting two seniors and a junior.
"Life with seven freshmen is interesting," said head coach Tom Pecora. "We've got to use this game as a learning experience and take something from it as we move on."
The Rams jumped out to a 10-5 lead following a Christian Sengfelder basket with 16:8 left in fist but the Fordham offense then went cold as Penn State scored the next eleven points to take a 16-10 lead with 11:32 on the clock.
An Antwoine Anderson free throw with 11:07 left in the half stopped the Fordham scoring drought but it was only temporary as the Nittany Lions netted eight unanswered points to take a 24-11 lead with just over eight minutes remaining in the half.
A pair of Nemanja Zarkovic free throws and a Manny Suarez three-pointer over the next 2:14 provided Fordham some momentary relief as the Rams pulled to within nine, 25-16, but Penn State outscored Fordham 13-5 over the final five minutes of the half to take a 38-21 lead into the break.
Ross Travis scored the first six points of the second half for Penn State as the Nittany Lions took a 23-point lead, 44-21, and the closest the Rams would get from that point would be 18, which happened three times.
Zarkovic led the Rams with 14 points while Sengfelder added ten points and eight rebounds. Ryan Rhoomes added eight points, eight rebounds, three blocks and three steals.
The Rams return to action on Thursday, November 20, as they face their second straight Big 10 opponent, traveling to College Park, Maryland, to face the Terrapins at 7:30 p.m. in the Xfinity Center.
