Women's Basketball Kicks Off Holiday Classic with 69-44 Win over Hartford

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Bronx, N.Y. – The Fordham women's basketball team got back to its winning ways with a 69-44 win over Hartford on Thursday afternoon, kicking off the 11^th annual Fordham Holiday Classic, which also features UC Davis and Yale this year. The Rams will play the winner of that game tomorrow at 3:30 p.m. With the win, Fordham improves to 8-4 on the year, while the Hawks fall to 7-5.

"Today was a great team win over a very good Hartford squad," Head coach Stephanie Gaitley said, "This is one of the most balanced tournaments we have had and it will take another strong defensive effort tomorrow to secure the championship."
 
Eight days from a loss to #11 UCLA that snapped a three-game winning streak, Fordham bounced back in a big way by leading from start to finish against Hartford to begin its annual Holiday Classic. Senior forward G'mrice Davis conjured a big double-double, with 21 points on 7-of-12 shooting and 13 rebounds, plus three assists and a steal, in 36 minutes. Davis began the year with eight straight double-doubles but had missed out her last two contests entering the day. She was helped by a combined 35 points from junior Lauren Holden and freshman Johanna Klug.
 
Davis got the game started with two straight baskets and the Rams jumped out to an early 9-0 lead after Bre Cavanaugh sank two buckets, too, one from downtown. Fordham eventually pushed its lead to 17-4 and finished the quarter with a 22-6 advantage. The second quarter was a slow affair, with the Rams outscoring the Hawks, 14-7, to take a 36-13 lead into halftime. At the break, Fordham was up, 27-9, on the glass, and Davis nearly had her double-double, with 12 points and nine boards. The hosts had 15 second-chance points and 11 points off turnovers and were holding Hartford to just 5-of-24 shooting from the floor (20.8%).
 
Hartford bounced back in the second half, scoring 16 and 15 points in the third and fourth quarters, respectively, but Fordham kept pace with its opponent, outscoring the Hawks by one point in each period.
 
In addition to Davis' big double-double, Klug set a new career-high with 18 points on an efficient 8-of-10 from the floor before fouling out. The freshman forward added seven rebounds, two assists, and two blocks across 26 minutes. Holden chipped in 17 points, one shy of her career-high, to go with five boards. Cavanaugh, who had started the season with 10 straight double-digit performances, made it two straight in single digits, finishing with eight points on 3-of-13 shooting, but set a new personal-best with eight boards, also adding a pair of assists and three steals over 35 minutes. Kendell Heremaia led the team with four assists off the bench in 19 minutes, while Halei Gillis returned from an eight-game absence to grab five rebounds and notch a steal over 14 minutes.
 
The Rams finished the day shooting 43.4% from the floor (23-of-53) but shot just 27.3% from deep (6-of-22). Fordham continued its terrific free-throw shooting this season, draining 17-of-21 attempts from the line. The Rams have won the battle of the boards now in 10 of 12 contests this season and outrebounded Hartford, 49-21, including a 14-5 margin on the offensive glass, which helped lead to 21 second-chance points.
 
Thursday was the fifth time in the last six games that Fordham has scored 60 or more points, after beginning the season with six straight under 60. It was also the fourth time this season when an opponent has been held below 50 points and the 58^th time since Gaitley took over at Fordham. Over those 58 games, the Rams are 53-5 when an opponent scores below 50 points.
 
The Rams will play the winner of UC Davis/Yale on Friday afternoon at 3:30 p.m.