Men’s Basketball Defeats Saint Louis, 83-65

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Bronx, N.Y. (February 7, 2015) - There were a lot of happy people in the Rose Hill Gym today. But there was also one who probably wasn't there. Eric Paschall's barber. Paschall made a deal with himself that he wouldn't get a haircut until Fordham won, something that hadn't occurred in the previous nine games. But today, Paschall made sure that he could schedule an appointment for a clip as he scored a game-high 22 points to lead the Rams to an 83-65 Atlantic 10 victory over Saint Louis University.
 
With the win, which snaps a nine-game losing streak for the Rams, Fordham improves to 6-15 overall, 1-9 in the Atlantic 10, while Saint Louis falls to 10-13 overall, 2-8 in the conference.
 
The win also broke a 17-game Atlantic regular season losing streak for Fordham, who won a conference game for the first time since defeating Rhode Island at home last year on February 1. The 18-point margin of victory for the Rams was the largest in a conference game since a 91-60 win over St. Bonaventure on February 28, 2007.
 

Christian Sengfelder matched Paschall's 22 points for the Rams, tying his season-best, while he also added eight rebounds. Jon Severe (12) and Mandell Thomas (10) also finished in double figures for Fordham with Severe adding six assists and five rebounds and Thomas dishing out five assists and adding four boards.
 
Fordham surpassed the 70-point mark for the third straight game and the 83 points netted today are the second most scored by the Rams this year and the second most allowed by the Billikens in 2014-2015.  
 
The Rams, who led just about the entire game, jumped out a 12-0 lead over the first five minutes before Saint Louis started to whittle away at the lead, eventually getting it to two, 17-15, on a Mike Crawford three-point play midway through the half.
 
The Rams used an 11-5 spurt to extend  the lead to eight, 28-20, following a pair of Paschall free throws with 6:08 left but the Billikens were able to trim the Fordham advantage to four, 33-29, at the break.
 
Saint Louis scored the first four points of the second half to knot the game at 33, the game's lone tie, but a Thomas free throw 1:26 into the half gave the Rams a 34-33 lead, a lead they would never relinquish, and start a 10-2 Fordham run to help the home squad go up 43-35 on a pair of Sengfelder charity shots with 16:09 remaining.
 
The Rams led by eight again with 13:40 on the clock, 49-41, when Fordham netted seven unanswered points to take a 56-41 lead with 11:16 left. Paschall led the run with four points.
 
Saint Louis responded with an 11-2 run to cut the Fordham lead back to six, 58-52, at the 8:54 mark. A Sengfelder three-pointer just under a minute later started a 14-4 run as the Rams' lengthened their advantage to 15, 72-57, with 2:26 left and the Rams extended the lead down the stretch to as many as 20.
 
The Rams return to action on Wednesday, February 11, as they travel to Richmond, Virginia, to face the University of Richmond Spiders in an Atlantic 10 contest in the Robins Center at 7:00 p.m.
 
Notes
Sengfelder matched his career-high in scoring, originally set against South Carolina State on December 31… He set season-highs for free throws made (7) and free throws attempted (11)… Paschall is now averaging 18.9 ppg in Atlantic 10 games… Thomas recorded a pair of steals to bring his team-high total to 48… He has at least one steal in all but two games this year… Fordham shot 30-for-39 from the free throw stripe, setting season-highs for both free throws made and free throws attempted… Severe matched his career-high with six assists… He is averaging 14.4 ppg over the past five contests… The 50 second half points were the most for the Rams in a half since scoring 51 in the first half in the season opener with NYIT… The Rams snapped a seven-game losing streak to the Billikens… Fordham shot 50.0% from the field (23-46), the first time the Rams shot 50% or better since the South Carolina State game on December 31… The newest class of Fordham Athletic Hall of Famers, including former men's basketball standout Marcus Stout, were inducted prior to the game and were recognized at halftime… Michael Kay, who emceed the Hall of Fame ceremony, and U.S. Representative Peter King (R-NY) were at the game… Both coaching staffs wore Autism Awareness pins as they celebrated the National College Basketball Autism Awareness Day, raising funds for the Fordham chapter of Autism Speaks… The game was part of the Jesuit Basketball Spotlight, one of more than 90 games this season between teams from the 28 Jesuit colleges and universities across the United States…. Each of the 28 is dedicated to strong academics and teaching women and men to serve others and live a faith that does justice.