Bronx, N.Y. – Today is St. Valentine's Day but the Fordham men's basketball team may be wishing it was September 29, the feast day for Saint Raphael the Archangel, the patron saint of healing. It's believed that Raphael serves people who need to heal in body, mind, and spirit and the Rams could have used his powers tonight. Playing without the service of injured senior guard
Will Tavares and junior guard
Joseph Chartouny proved to be too much for Fordham, who fell to Saint Joseph's University, 71-55, in an Atlantic 10 contest in the Rose Hill Gym.
With the loss, Fordham falls to 9-16 overall, 4-9 in the Atlantic 10, while Saint Joseph's improves to 11-14 overall, 6-7 in the conference.
The Rams were led by sophomore guard
Cavit Havsa, who scored a team-high 12 points and dished out eight assists while junior guard
David Pekárek added eleven points and seven rebounds and freshman guard/forward
Ivan Raut finished with ten points and a season-high nine boards.
Unlike their last game, the Rams got off to a slow start, shooting 34.8 percent (8-23) in the first half, including 14.3 percent (2-14) from behind the arc.
Despite the slow start, the Rams trailed by just three, 15-12, with 10:48 left in the half following a
Perris Hicks three-pointer when the Hawks used an 11-3 run to take a 26-15 lead five minutes later.
A Havsa driving layup at the 4:14 mark made it a nine-point game again, 26-17, but Saint Joseph's closed out the half with an 11-2 spurt to take a 37-19 lead into the break.
The Rams managed to whittle away at the Hawks' lead, eventually getting it to ten, 44-34, on a Pekárek three-pointer just over five minutes into the second half but that was as close as Fordham would get.
Takeaways
Cavit Havsa has played every minute except one over the past five games.
Cavit Havsa is averaging 9.0 ppg and 2.8 rpg over the past five games, shooting .750 (18-24) from the field.
Havsa has also dished out 31 assists with just nine turnovers, over that stretch.
Havsa also has nine steals over the past four games, including five against George Mason.
It was the first time this season that Havsa led the Rams in scoring and the ninth time he led the team in assists.
Freshman Peter Burquest dressed for the Rams for the first time this season.
The Hawks now lead the all-time series with Fordham, 37-18.
The Rams are now 191-209 against other Jesuit schools.
The matchup tonight was part of the
Jesuit Basketball Spotlight. Dedicated to academic rigor, research, faith and serving others, Jesuit Catholic education stands at the intersection of minds, hearts and souls. The Jesuit Basketball Spotlight (JBS) is a nationwide effort to capitalize on basketball games between Jesuit schools and, through those games, bring greater positive awareness and exposure to Jesuit education and its shared mission.
By the Numbers
3 – Offensive rebounds by the Rams, matching a season-low.
5 – Points by
Thomas Sanchez, a career-high.
5 – Scholarship players who dressed for Fordham tonight.
8 – Assists by
Cavit Havsa, tying his career-high set against George Mason earlier this year.
12 – Points scored by
Cavit Havsa, tying his career-high set against George Washington last year.
86 – Number of missed games by Fordham players this year.
What's Next?
The Rams travel to Dayton, Ohio, to face the University of Dayton Flyers in an Atlantic 10 matchup in the UD Arena on Saturday, February 17, at 7:00 p.m.
Dayton leads the all-time series, 29-5.
The Flyers have won the past 13 meetings, including a 75-66 win in the Rose Hill Gym last year behind 25 points from Kendall Pollard and 14 from Charles Cooke.
