Women's Basketball Hosts VCU Saturday

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Bronx, N.Y. – The Fordham women's basketball team (15-6, 6-1 A-10) saw a six-game winning streak end in Philadelphia on Wednesday night at the hands of Saint Joseph's. The Rams remain atop the A-10 standings and will look to rebound by improving on their 11-2 record in the Bronx when VCU comes to the Rose Hill Gym on Saturday afternoon. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m.
 
Women's Basketball Promotions
There are several promotions going on associated with the Fordham women's basketball program.
 
Tomorrow will feature several big promotions:
                - Bring Your Best Day: Bring your best grade to the game, show it at the ticket table, and receive FREE admission. This can be a test, a quiz, a homework assignment, anything from your current school year!
                - Super Hero Day: Dress up as your favorite super hero and cheer on the team! Special contests and prizes throughout the game plus the chance to win a FitBit during the second half!
                - Super Hero Giveaway
                - Run with the Rams: Stay in your seats at halftime watch the Somers 5^th grade girls basketball team play a mini-game as part of the Run with the Rams package.
                - Post-Game Vacation Shootout: Students who stay the duration of the game can participate in a half-court shot competition to win a hotel stay at any Marriott location (restrictions apply)!
 
Finally, interested youth groups should check out the Women's basketball program's Harry's Hustler's young group initiative to attend home games and participate in a variety of activities and opportunities.
 
Last Time Out at Saint Joseph's (1/18)
Wednesday saw a long-standing winning streak end for Stephanie Gaitley and the Rams and it's not the six-game winning streak over the past three weeks. Fordham had previously won the past 38 games in a row dating back to the 2013 Postseason WNIT when holding opponents below 50 points. However, the Rams were unable to overcome their shooting woes at the Hagan Arena and fell, 47-44. Coincidentally, the last time they'd lost in such an instance came in the 2013 A-10 Championship, to the Hawks, at the Barclays Center. G'mrice Davis was Fordham's offense and defense on the night, piling up 22 points and 19 rebounds, neither season-highs, in front of many friends and family. Davis was 9-of-19 and had a clutch and-one with under a minute to play but Fordham couldn't capitalize on several missed Hawk free throws. No other Ram finished in double figures although Hannah Missry notched eight points on 3-of-8 shooting, including a big three with 1:20 to play. The other three starters finished 3-of-27 from the floor. Fordham shot 25.4% from the field, the second-lowest mark of the year despite winning the rebounding battle, 42-36, and matching a season-high with 18 offensive boards. The Rams committed 15 turnovers and had just six assists.
 
Series History vs. VCU
Fordham owns a 3-1 advantage in the new rivalry, dating back to a February 2013 meeting in the Bronx, the first season the Virginia Rams competed in the Atlantic 10. The Rams won, 71-41, and the next two contests, as well, playing VCU once each season the last four seasons. Last year, however, VCU claimed its first victory in the series, 61-51, in Richmond last January 27. Hannah Missry scored a team-high 15 points on 5-of-7 shooting from downtown, while Samantha Clark double-doubled with 13 points and 10 rebounds.
 
Scouting the Rams
Head Coach Beth O'Boyle, in her third year at the helm, has her Rams at 10-10 on the season and 3-4 in conference play. VCU began the year with four wins in six games, winning the San Juan Shootout with a win over Villanova in the final, but finished nonconference play 3-4. After a December 2 loss at George Washington, the Rams rebounded with two wins against La Salle and Richmond to begin the new year but fell in the next three contests, against Saint Louis and at Saint Joseph's and at George Mason. However, VCU took its latest contest, home against Rhode Island, 68-57. VCU is led by Keira Robinson's 11.4 points per game, the lone Ram to average double digit points. Mooriah Rowser and Curteeona Brelove both average 9.3 points, while Brelove leads the squad with 6.9 rebounds and shoots at a 47.3% clip. Robinson's 40 steals leads the team and her 60 assists are second, next to Galaisha Goodhope's 63. O'Boyle has a 10-player rotation with all featuring in every single game thus far.
 
Gaitley Three Wins Away
Stephanie Gaitley reached 100 wins with the Fordham program against Little Rock on November 19 and is currently at 113 for her Rams career. Gaitley needs just three more victories in the Bronx to surpass Kathy Mosolino ('74-'80) to become the all-time winningest head coach in Fordham history. She would also match the 116 wins she accrued while at Richmond, the second-most at any one school in her career.
 
Gaitley's 900th Game
The double overtime win over Albany on November 22 was Stephanie Gaitley's 900 career contest as a head coach. She has a 577-340 record over 31 seasons with five different schools.
 
Second-Most Wins in A-10 History
Continuing the trend of Gaitley milestones, the win over Albany was Gaitley's 157th all-time as a coach of an A-10 school (Saint Joseph's and Fordham), passing Theresa Grentz for second-most all-time. Gaitley now has 170 but needs 71 more to break Joe McKeown's all-time record of 240 that he accumulated in 17 seasons at the helm of George Washington from 1989-2008.
 
Missry Hits 1,000 Points
Senior guard Hannah Missry needed nine points entering the New Year's Day matinee at Rhode Island to reach the career milestone and, fittingly, knocked down her first three triples in the first quarter to become the 19th Ram to ever reach the mark. The Manasquan, N.J. native accomplished the feat in her 110th appearance (105th start). With three points on Sunday following a season-high 19-point performance last week and eight points at Saint Joseph's on Wednesday, the senior has broken a tie with Stacey Paukovitz '93 and has the 17th-most points in program history (1,056). Next up is former teammate Erin Rooney '14 with 1,062.
 
Conference-Only
Fordham is 6-1 in conference play and currently alone atop the A-10 standings. The Rams had won three at home and three on the road to match the program's best-ever start to conference play before Wednesday night's three-point loss. In those games, Fordham is outscoring opponents 63.9 to 53.3 (+10.6) and outshooting foes, 41.3% to 38.3%, including a 33.6% mark from downtown to opponents' 24.1% clip. G'mrice Davis leads the way with 17.0 points and 12.6 rebounds per game and has a double-double in all but two games - against Duquesne where she missed it by one point (9 pts, 10 reb) and at St. Bonaventure where she finished with just seven rebounds. The junior is also converted her attempts at a 56.5% clip (48-of-85). Danielle Burns has been solid against conference foes, with 12.9 points, 6.9 rebounds, and a team-leading 22 assists. Hannah Missry has hit 44.7% of her A-10 three-point attempts (21-of-47) and averages 11.1 points per game, while Kate Kreslina has converted on 39.5% of her attempts (15-of-38) across six games.
 
The Bronx is Our House
The Rams are 11-2 this season in the Bronx, as opposed to a 3-3 record on the road and 1-1 at neutral sites. Fordham began this season with six straight home victories before falling to St. John's in mid-December and have now won three straight in the Bronx.
 
Defense, Defense, Defense
Wednesday's game at Saint Joseph's ended a 38-game winning streak dating back to the end of the 2012-13 season in which Fordham won when holding opponents below 50 points. Coincidentally, the last time the Rams lost in such a fashion was to the Hawks in the 2013 A-10 Championship game at the Barclays Center, 47-46. Fordham was 7-0 this season in such instances this season and had won three in a row holding conference opponents under 50. Overall, under Gaitley, the Rams are 47-5 in this situations.
 
Defense Part Deux
Through 21 games this season, Fordham's defense has limited opposing scoring to just 55.8 points per contest, ranking 24th in the country. Part of that is due to the Rams' stingy perimeter D that has held opponents to just 25.9% (68-for-263) shooting from beyond the arc, currently situated at eighth nationally. The Rams limited UNC Asheville, Rhode Island, Davidson, George Mason, Richmond, St. Bonaventure, and now Saint Joseph's to just 16-of-76 shooting from downtown the last seven contests (21.1%). Breaking it down further this year, overall,, in losses, the Rams have allowed opponents to shoot just 25.9% from behind the arc (15-for-58) but 40.5% (134-331) from everywhere else on the floor. In wins, the numbers have been nearly the same, at 25.9% (53-205) and 39.5% (335-848), respectively.
 
Three and D
Fordham is 44th in the country in three-point attempts (409) and 49th in makes (134) while playing terrific defense along the perimeter that has led to teams shooting just 25.9% from deep (8th in the nation).
 
A-10 Ranks
The Rams are back atop the league in scoring defense (55.8 pts/game), after holding Richmond, George Mason, St. Bonaventure, and Saint Joseph's all under 50 points the last four games, and are also first in rebounding defense, holding opponents to just 33.5 boards per game, and free throw percentage (74.8%). Fordham is also second in three-point defense (25.9%), third in scoring margin (+4.9) and field goal percentage (40.1%), and fifth in assist/turnover ratio (0.9) and three-pointers per game (6.4). On the individual level, G'mrice Davis' 12.5 rebounds per game leads the league as does her 9.7 defensive boards. Davis' 51.0% percentage from the field ranks fourth. Hannah Missry's 2.2 triples per contest ranks third-most in the conference.
 
A Look Inside the Six-Game Winning Streak
The Rams were on a six-game winning streak after a tough 58-54 loss to Buffalo in the opening round of the Fordham Holiday Classic, rattling off wins against UNC Asheville, at Rhode Island, Davidson, at George Mason, Richmond, and at St. Bonaventure. Several members of the team during this period fell ill with a stomach virus, causing starters Kate Kreslina and Lauren Holden to miss two and one game, respectively, plus two games for key reserve Mary Goulding. The Rams were averaging 65.7 points per contest during the stretch and allowing just 52.8, while outshooting opponents 43.8% to 39.5%. Consistent with the team's success in defending the perimeter, the six schools combined to shoot just 21.5% from downtown (14-of-65). Individually, G'mrice Davis led the way with 16.2 points per game on 60.9% shooting (42-of-69) and 12.2 rebounds per contest. She also had two blocks and eight steals across 32.0 minutes. Hannah Missry averaged 11.5 points per game on 42.3% shooting and 43.9% shooting from deep across 34.0 minutes, while Danielle Burns' notched 12.7 points and 7.3 rebounds go with a team-leading 19 assists across a team-high 35.2 minutes. Anna Kelly paced the bench with 6.3 points per game, thanks to her 18-point performance against Davidson, and Asnate Fomina was second to Burns with 15 assists.
 
Davis Boarding with the Best
G'mrice Davis has been a force on the glass this season, putting up career numbers across the board that has her near the top of Division I's rebounding lists (as of 1/19/17): Davis' 263 rebounds rank first in all of DI, while her 9.7 defensive rebounds per game and 12.5 rebounding average are second in the nation. Additionally, her 12 double-doubles rank fourth in the country. Davis has tallied 13 or more rebounds in 12 contests and had rattled off six straight double-doubles before grabbing just seven on Sunday. She began a new streak with 22 points and 19 rebounds on Wednesday night in her hometown.
 
It Takes Two to... Rebound at a Historic Rate
Anne Gregory ('80) is one of the NCAA's all-time best rebounders. She is the only Ram in school history to average 10 or more rebounds over a single season and she did it all four of her years in the Bronx. Her lowest total, 12.4, came in 1979-80 during her senior year and G'mrice Davis currently bests that by .1 through 21 games. She's at the very least on pace to become just the second Ram to ever grab double figure rebounds per contest over a season. Samantha Clark averaged 9.6 last year, the fifth-highest clip ever in school history.
 
Actively One of the Best from Deep
Hannah Missry has amassed 286 three-pointers in her career in the Bronx and is fifth among active players in Division I for all-time downtown makes. Missry has recently passed Suntana Granderson (Xavier '04-'07), Lisa Cermignaro (George Washington '94-'97), and now Amy Waugh (Xavier '00-'03) in A-10 history to sit sixth all-time in league history. Missry needs just three more makes to enter the top-five by supplanting Stefanie Collins (St. Bonaventure '02-'06). Missry is on pace to finish her career in the top three.
 
Davis, Kreslina Sweep A-10 Awards
G'mrice Davis and Kate Kreslina each earned their second weekly A-10 honors of the year last Monday afternoon. This was Davis' second consecutive award and she has found her groove in recent weeks. The previous week, the junior notched her fourth and fifth straight double-doubles and averaged 20.5 points and 13.5 rebounds over two wins against Davidson and at George Mason. Davis tallied a career-high 27 points against the Wildcats in the Bronx on 11-of-15 shooting, a new career-high for makes. Kreslina, meanwhile, returned from a three-game absence due to illness, slotted right back into the starting lineup, and played 32 minutes against Davidson, scoring 14 points on 5-of-7 shooting, including 2-of-2 from deep, to go with three rebounds, two assists, and a steal. At George Mason, Kreslina only played 21 minutes but hit the go-ahead bucket on a nice offensive move with just under three minutes to play and helped ice the game with 3-of-4 shooting from the line. The redshirt freshman averaged 11.5 points on 8-of-13 shooting (61.5%).
 
118 Straight For Burns
Senior Danielle Burns played in her 100th straight game in maroon and white against Little Rock. Burns hasn't missed a single contest since arriving in the Bronx, making 118 consecutive appearances and 66 starts, including 43 straight. Fellow seniors Hannah Missry and Danielle Padovano recently hit the century mark against Grambling State and Princeton, respectively.
 
Burns Flirts with Triple Double at URI
Danielle Burns stepped up at Rhode Island on Sunday in the absence of Kate Kreslina to illness and G'mrice Davis for much of the first half due to foul trouble. The senior guard piled up 18 points, 10 rebounds (five offensive), and a career-high seven assists across 37 minutes. The double-double is Burns' first of the season. Her final basket gave her 700 points in her career.
 
Career-Highs for G'mrice
The junior forward is playing the most minutes of her career this season and is putting up terrific numbers. Davis has set three new career-highs in rebounds, first with 15 at #1 Notre Dame, then 17 against Texas Tech, including seven on the offensive glass, and finally 21 against Grambling State, one of the top single-game numbers in A-10 history. Following the win over Davidson, she has now set three new scoring career-highs, as well, first with 22 points against Boston College, 24 in the Battle of the Bronx, and now 27 against the Wildcats. At Iona, Davis played the entire 40 minutes for the first time in her career and matched that feat at Saint Joseph's on Wednesday.
 
Missry For Three!
Hannah Missry tied and broke the all-time Fordham career three-point record last season against St. Bonaventure (2/24/16) with two timely second-half bombs, tying and moving past Heather Donlon (1989-93) on the all-time list. Missry finished her season with five more long-range efforts over the next three contests and began her senior campaign with 239. This year, the senior is shooting 47-of-131 from deep (35.9%) and has flourished in recent games, hitting between two and five triples in six of the last eight contests. Her 2.2 per-game average is third in the conference.
 
53 To Go
Missry is 53 three-pointers away from breaking Jessica Jenkins' all-time Atlantic 10 record of 338 threes set at St. Bonaventure from 2009-12. The Manasquan, N.J. native is on pace to finish just behind Jenkins somewhere in the top three.
 
100 Starts
Missry made the 100th start of her career in her 105th appearance against St. John's. She was held to just two points on 1-of-5 shooting, however, and without a three for just the 10th time in her Fordham career.
 
Davis Named A-10 Co-Player of the Week
G'mrice Davis rattled off three straight double-doubles over a four-day stretch to earn her first career weekly honor as this week's A-10 Co-Player of the Week alongside Saint Louis' Sadie Stipanovich. Davis averaged 14.0 points and 13.3 rebounds to go with 1.7 steals and 1.0 blocks across just 29.7 minutes per contest. Against Buffalo in the Fordham Holiday Classic's opening contest, the junior tallied 13 points and 15 rebounds (five offensive) to go with two assists, two blocks, and four steals in 34 minutes, although the Rams would fall in the final minute. The forward struggled with some foul trouble the following day but still tallied 10 points and 14 boards. Similarly, the junior picked up her third foul in the second quarter of Sunday's win at Rhode Island, finishing the first half with six points and four rebounds, but busted out in the second half to help her team pick up its first road win of the year with a team-high 19 points and 11 rebounds while shooting 8-of-10 from the floor.
 
Davis' 27 Points, Fourth Straight Double-Double Help Down Davidson
With the team short-handed, the junior forward stepped up and played 39 minutes, tallying a career-high 27 points, on a career-best 11 field goals, and 13 rebounds against the Wildcats for her fourth straight double-double and ninth of the season.
 
Kelly Flourishes Off the Bench Against Wildcats
The freshman guard had scored seven points in three of her first four contests in the Bronx  but had struggled for playing time after that until Wednesday with the team without starting point guard Lauren Holden. Asnate Fomina got the start and matched her career-high of five assists in the first half, but Kelly solidifed the win for the Rams when she came off the bench towards the end of the third quarter, scoring 16 points over 13 minutes for a career-high 18 over a career-best 27 minutes. Kelly was also extremely efficient, with a perfect 5-of-5 shooting from the field and 8-of-9 from the free throw line, including two and-ones.
 
Fordham's Charity
Fordham is 45th in the country thus far with a 74.8% clip from the free throw line. The Rams have spent a large portion of this season atop the A-10 leaderboards before some struggles from the line helped them slip to second. Before a season-high 23-of-29 performance from the stripe against Davidson (1/4), over the team's previous five games, the Rams were hitting just 64.7% (44-of-68) of their freebies, including a 16-for-25 mark at Rhode Island, the most attempts of the season but also the third-most makes. The 10-of-11 shooting from the line in Olean on Sunday helped the Rams again reach the summit in the league. Fordham hit 11-of-16 on Wednesday night.
 
Fomina Facilitating Off the Bench
Fomina is tied for the team lead with 47 assists despite averaging just 15.0 minutes off the bench. Her lone start came against Davidson, playing 22 minutes and assisting on five buckets. Fomina began the year with at least one assist in each of the first 10 games, including five at Iona. After no dimes against St. John's, Fomina played just seven minutes against George Mason but before that had flourished over her previous six and had tallied between three and five assists in every game. Over those five games, she totaled 22 assists. Against Richmond, Fomina tallied three points, two rebounds, and three assists. On Wednesday night, the junior led the squad with three more dimes. 
 
Kreslina Named A-10 Rookie of the Week
Redshirt freshman Kate Kreslina was named the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week on December 12, the first honor of her young career. The Latvian guard averaged 12.5 points against Iona and Princetn, including a career-high 19 points on 6-of-9 shooting in the close win over the Tigers on Saturday. The freshman hit several big shots in the fourth quarter, from the field and the line.
 
Career Numbers Watch
- Danielle Burns is 50 points away from 800
- Danielle Burns is 17 field goals away from 300
- Danielle Burns is two appearances away from 120
- G'mrice Davis is 23 points away from 800
- G'mrice Davis is three rebounds away from 600
- G'mrice Davis is 22 steals away from 100
- G'mrice Davis is 84 minutes away from 2,000
- Asnate Fomina is 19 assists away from 150
- Asnate Fomina is one appearance from 75
- Lauren Holden is 32 points away from 400
- Lauren Holden is 13 assists away from 100
- Lauren Holden is 87 minutes away from 1,500
- Hannah Missry is 46 points away from 1,100
- Hannah Missry is two steals away from 50
- Hannah Missry is eight rebounds away from 350
- Hannah Missry is 14 threes away from 300
- Hannah Missry is 54 minutes away from 3,500
 
Five Sign NLIs in 2016-17 Recruiting Class
Coach Gaitley announced this past week the additions of five student-athletes  to national letters of intent: Halei Gillis, Kendell Heremaia, Zara Jillings, Ralene Kwiatkowski, and Vilisi Tavui. Fordham's global reach under Coach Gaitley continues with two players from North Carolina, two from New Zealand, and one from Fiji. The three international players all have experience playing within their countries' junior ranks.
 
You can read all about the five additions here.
 
Atlantic 10 Preseason Poll
The Fordham Rams were selected to finish sixth in the annual preseason coaches' poll, announced at A-10 Media Day, held in Richmond, Va., the site of the 2017 A-10 Championship. The Rams finished last season tied for sixth, with an 8-8 conference record, and reached the second round of the conference postseason. Saint Louis, who tied for last year's regular season title and reached the third round of the WNIT, garnered nine first-place votes. Dayton and last year's runner-up Duquesne tied for second in the poll with 166 points apiece, with the latter receiving three first-place votes. Two-time defending champion, George Washington, gathered the remaining two first-place votes and is predicted to finish fourth. Following the Colonials are VCU, Fordham, Richmond, and Saint Joseph's to round out the top eight. Rhode Island, St. Bonaventure, George Mason, La Salle, Davidson, and Massachusetts rounded out the preseason rankings, respectively.
 
Fordham WBB Ticket Plans
Two women's ticket options are available:
Flex Plan: $35 for 15 tickets
Community Partner: $100 for 50 tickets
 
With the flex plan option, fans receive 15 ticket vouchers good for use at any Fordham women's basketball game, plus a special Fordham scarf. As a community partner, you also have the opportunity to provide 50 tickets to a group of your choice.

The Rams have four remaining home Atlantic 10 contests, including one nationally televised home contest – the home season finale against Dayton on February 19.
 
You can purchase single game tickets for all home contests here.
 
Up Next
Fordham have the week off before traveling to high-scoring Saint Louis next Saturday night, with tipoff slated for 7 p.m.