Women's Basketball Travels to Penn State

Watch | Listen | Live Stats
 
Bronx, N.Y. – The Fordham women's basketball team (4-2) has won three straight, including Sunday's three-point victory over Pittsburgh, and now set its sight on Penn State (7-2) in a rematch of last March's WNIT second-round loss. The Nittany Lions outlasted the Rams in that contest and have won all five of their home games to begin the 2017-18 season.
 
Upcoming Promotions
Toy Drive: The women's basketball teams have been collecting toys over the last two home games and Saturday's contest against Iona (Dec. 9) is the last chance for fans to make donations for the Maria Fareri Children's Hospital. Fans that bring toys will get a ticket voucher for the women's game against George Washington on December 31.
 
Last Time Out vs. Pittsburgh
The Rams were without the nation's leading rebounder and senior tri-captain G'mrice Davis but overtook an early deficit to lead throughout most of Sunday's contest, holding off the Panthers down the stretch for their fourth win of the season and third straight. Redshirt freshman Bre Cavanaugh stepped up with a team-high 21 points on an efficient 7-of-13 shooting from the field, including 2-of-5 from behind the arc, and 5-of-6 from the free throw line, while junior tri-captain, now unrestricted in her return from injury, tallied her first double-double of the year, with 17 points and 11 rebounds, plus a team-high three assists, across 29 minutes before fouling out. The Panthers led early and then again when they surged ahead briefly at the end of the third quarter, but the Rams, specifically Cavanaugh and Goulding, battled and eventually retook the lead. It was freshman Johanna Klug with her first points of the game, that proved to be the eventual game-winning basket, but it was off a smart feed from Goulding, who was double-teamed in the post.
 
Series History vs. Penn State
The two schools have met four times since 1994 and the Nittany Lions have won all four. All four contests have taken place in State College and three of the four have come in the last five years. Last year, Penn State downed the Rams, 70-51, in the second round of the WNIT. G'mrice Davis double-doubled with 20 points and 15 rebounds in 37 minutes. In 2015, Fordham opened its season at Penn State and Davis started and nearly had another double-double, with 15 points and nine rebounds in just 23 minutes.
 
Davis Scores 1,000th Point
G'mrice Davis entered her senior campaign with 970 career points scored and knowing it wouldn't be long to become the 20th Ram to ever accomplish the feat of scoring 1,000 career points in maroon and white. After scoring 28 combined points in her first two games, she was able to reach 1,000 quickly at Albany, midway through the first quarter on a textbook midrange jumper from near the left elbow off a pass from Lauren Holden. Davis would go quiet thereafter but explode in the second half, scoring 15 of her 17 points, including the go-ahead basket with 20 seconds left in regulation. The Philadelphia native has since scored 33 points over her last two contests and now sits on 1,048 career points, having just passed Carol Elser ('86) and Stacey Paukovitz ('93) to reach 18th all-time.
 
Cavanaugh Named A-10 Rookie of the Week
Redshirt freshman Bre Cavanaugh was named the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week on Monday afternoon after two standout performances last week. The Allamuchy, N.J. native set two new career-highs in scoring when she scored 16 points at Manhattan and then a team-high 21 points against Pittsburgh.
 
Fourth-Ranked Defense
Fordham comes into the week allowing the fourth-fewest points per game in the country, allowing just 49.3 points to opponents. The Rams sit atop the Atlantic 10, as they did a year ago, and are behind just Green Bay, North Texas, and Central Arkansas, and are tied with Clemson, as the only programs to allow 50 or fewer points per contest. Last year, the Rams held opponents to 56.2 points per contest, ranked 19th by season's end.
 
Davis as Division I's Top Rebounder
G'mrice Davis, the nation's returning leading rebounder, hasn't missed a beat, leading all of Division I with 14.6 rebounds per game and 12.2 defensive boards per contest. The senior forward missed Sunday's contest but her five straight double-doubles rank 11th in the country and her 73 total rebounds rank 67th.
 
National Ranks
It's never too early to cast an eye towards the Division I national statistics. Davis is once again doing her thing on the glass, but the Rams rank highly in several other team and individual categories, as well. Coming into the contest against Northern Colorado, junior guard Lauren Holden led the nation in minutes per game, at an unsustainable clip of 41.3 minutes per game, longer than the actual 40 minutes of regulation. After playing just 33 minutes against the Bears due to foul trouble, she played all 40 minutes at Manhattan, and 40 more against the Panthers on Sunday, and now sits third in the nation at 39.5 minutes per contest. She is behind two players from Creighton, who had already played double overtime and four-overtime contests. Redshirt freshman Bre Cavanaugh has made a big impact in the Fordham starting lineup and has been asked to log heavy minutes, averaging 38.3 per contest, which ranks 11th overall. Cavanaugh's been deadly from the free throw line thus far, as well, converting on 89.3% of her attempts, which ranks 37th in DI.
 
As a team, the Gaitley-led Rams continue to be a top-tier defensive squad, currently ranked fourth overall with just 49.3 points allowed per game. Part of that is the team's success guarding the perimeter, with opponents' hitting just 23.9% of their three-point attempts, ranked 21st in the country and first in the A-10. Opposing teams are also hitting just 34.7 of all shots, too, which ranks 30th and second, respectively.
 
Fordham's 75.8% team conversion rate at the free throw line has the team ranked 30th in the country and second in the conference, while the squad has really committed to minimizing fouls in the early going, with just 14.3 per game and 86 total, ranked 17th and sixth, respectively, overall and tops the league standings. The Davis-inspired attack on the glass has the Rams with a rebounding margin of +7.5, ranked 59th overall.
 
Defense, Defense, Defense
A staple of the Gaitley-led Rams is defense, and no stat better represents that than Fordham's 52-5 record when holding opponents under 50 points during her tenure. Last January, Saint Joseph's defeated the Rams, 47-44, at Hagan Arena in Philadelphia, ending a streak of 38 consecutive contests with such victories. The last time before that loss, coincidentally, was also against the Hawks, in the 2013 A-10 Championship game at the Barclays Center, 47-46. Fordham was 10-1 last year when holding opponents under 50 points and are 3-0 this season.
 
Since Gaitley took over before the 2011-12 season, the Rams have ranked within the top-50 in all six seasons, and within the top-20 at the conclusion of half of them, in scoring defense. The highest a Gaitley-coached defense has finished was 12th during the conference championship-winning 2013-14 campaign, holding opponents at 56.3 points per game, while the 2012-13 squad held opponents to just 52.4 points per game, ranked 16th nationally. Last year, Fordham held opponents to 56.2 points per game and was ranked 19th in the country at season's end. This season, the Rams are 3-0 in such games, holding UMBC, Northern Colorado, and Manhattan all to under 48 points, and rank fourth with 48.2 points allowed per contest.
 
Opponents Scoring <>
The Rams, all-time, since the move from the AIAW to the NCAA in 1983, have held opponents under 40 points 18 times, all coming in 1990 and beyond. Under Stephanie Gaitley, that number is seven, with Northern Colorado's output of 33 points being the latest. The Bears came into that contest averaging 69 points per contest over five game. Their 33 points were the third-lowest by a Fordham opponent all-time.
 
Got a Minute?
Junior tri-captain Lauren Holden sits third in all of Division I in minutes played, currently at 39.5 per game. A starter since midway through her freshman season, Holden passed the 2,000-minute mark against Northern Colorado and is fast approaching the all-time top-20. Bre Cavanaugh's 38.3 minutes per contest ranks 11th overall, while G'mrice Davis' 36.2 minutes rank 51st.
 
Fourth Quarter Rallies
In Fordham's two losses this season, the Rams have faced double-digit deficits but made furious charges in the final period of action to get close or take the lead. At Boston College, the Eagles led by 12 with 3:23 left in regulation. Fordham responded, however, and rattled off an impressive 10-1 run down to the final 20 seconds where the Eagles were able to hit both of their free throws and solidify the victory. At Albany, the Rams entered the fourth quarter trailing by 11. Fordham had shown flashes in the third quarter, outscoring Albany, 12-11, but still unable to make up the necessary ground. The Great Danes began the fourth with a short 4-2 run to lead by 13, but after that last basket, it was all Fordham. The Rams rampaged to a one-point lead with 20 seconds to play, capping a 15-1 run, with G'mrice Davis scoring 11 of those points. Unfortunately for Fordham, the Great Danes would tie things up and go on to win in overtime.
 
Slow Starts, Strong Finishes
Through six games this season, the Rams are being outscored by their opponents, 136-131, in first halves. Thanks to a 19-5 outburst against Northern Colorado and 20-10 at Manhattan, the Rams are now outscoring opponents 88-67 in third periods, plu 94-80 in fourth quarters, despite both the Bears and Jaspers outscoring the Rams in the last two fourth quarters. Combined, Fordham has outscored opponents, 182-147, over the final 20 minutes of this season's contests.
 
Davis Racks Up Preseason Honors
As mentioned, Davis' breakout junior season saw her earn First Team All-Conference and All-Defensive honors, and it was announced at A-10 Media Day that the league's coaches have predicted her to do so again as a senior. Davis was also recently selected as one of 20 players in Division I women's basketball for the inaugural Katrina McClain Award watch list, to be given out to the country's top power forward, starting this season.
 
Fordham Picked to Finish Fifth in Preseason Poll
Likewise, the league's coaches also predicted an identical fifth-place finish for Fordham in the preseason poll. Dayton, last year's champions, garnered eight first-place votes for a total of 182 points, just ahead of Saint Louis, who tallied 174 points and three first-place votes, and Saint Joseph's, with 170 points and the final three first-place votes. Duquesne, with 160 points, rounds out the top five in a predicted fourth-place finish. George Washington (116), La Salle (114), George Mason (79), Richmond (78), and Massachusetts (73) filled out spots 6-10, followed by VCU (56), St. Bonaventure (50), Rhode Island (46), and Davidson (22).
 
Five Fordham Debuts
Five freshmen made their debuts against UMBC, the most since 2011. Three of those freshmen started the contest, the most in the last 15 years. Joey Klug's 13 points were the most by a freshman in her debut since Hannah Missry scored 14 in 2013. Klug became the first freshman to record both a block and a steal in her debut over the last 15 years, as well, and the first to record at least one block since Samantha Clark had two in her 2012 debut. Cavanaugh's 39 minutes were the most by a freshman making her debut since Megan Mahoney played all 40 minutes in 2007.
 
Gaitley Makes History
Stephanie Gaitley reached 100 wins with the Fordham program against Little Rock on November 19, 2016, and later won her 116th contest at home against Massachusetts, 74-43, in February, passing Kathy Mosolino ('74-'80) for the most wins in program history. Gaitley tied and passed the milestone with two typical Gaitley-inspired performances, with three-pointers and excellent defense, holding both opponents below 50 points. Entering the 2017-18 season, Gaitley had 120 wins across six seasons in the Bronx, an average of over 20 per campaign. Her 124 total wins are the second-most of any of Gaitley's stops in her 32-year career as a head coach, ahead of her 116 wins at Richmond (1985-91) but a ways away from her 10-year stint at Saint Joseph's (1991-2001), in which she racked up 196 wins. Gaitley has a career 588-348 record and has the second-most overall wins among active A-10 coaches, behind Saint Louis' Lisa Stone, and has the second-most wins by any Atlantic 10 coach, with 168 between Fordham and Saint Joseph's, but is 72 behind Joe McKeown's record of 240 that he accumulated during his 17 years with George Washington from 1989 to 2008.
 
This Is Our House
Fordham finished its 2016-17 campaign with a 16-3 at home, as opposed to a 5-7 record on the road and 1-2 at neutral sites. They were also 7-1 during home conference contests for the second year in a row. Since Gaitley took over before the 2011-12 season, the Rams hold a 74-24 (75.3%) record at home. They are 3-0 thus far this season in the Bronx. On the flip side, including this year's 1-2 start, Gaitley's Rams are 50-54 (48.1%) on the road or on neutral ground.
 
November Rams
Under Coach Gaitley, Fordham is 26-15 during the month of November, and 4-3 in season openers. This season they were 3-2.
 
The "Yutes"
The Rams graduated three seniors last May and saw two other players depart. The turnover means there are five returning players and an incoming group of nine freshman, only one of whom will sit out the 2017-18 season. Fordham is one of the youngest teams in the country, with 64.3% of its roster made up of freshman. An unofficial survey yielded that the Rams rank 22nd in terms of percentage of underclassmen on the roster, and, with no sophomores and nine freshmen, rank joint-first with percentage of freshman.
 
Career Numbers Watch
- G'mrice Davis is two points away from 1,050
- G'mrice Davis is seven rebounds away from 850
- G'mrice Davis is nine assists away from 100
- G'mrice Davis is eight steals away from 100
- G'mrice Davis is two appearances away from 100
- G'mrice Davis is six starts away from 75
- Asnate Fomina is two assists away from 150
- Asnate Fomina is 10 steals away from 50
- Asnate Fomina is 13 appearances away from 100
- Lauren Holden is 23 field goals away from 200
- Lauren Holden is seven three's away from 100
- Lauren Holden is five appearances from 75
 
Up Next
The Rams host Iona on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m., the first game of a doubleheader with the men's basketball team. Both games will be shown on the A-10 Digital Network.