Amherst, Mass. – The Fordham University men's basketball squad was greeted with photos of the R&B vocal group Boyz II Men as they boarded the bus on Tuesday afternoon for the trip to UMass because that was the theme of the trip. It was time for the young Rams to mature. And they took the message to heart, playing one of their best games of the year, defeating Massachusetts, 85-67, in an Atlantic 10 game in the Mullins Center.
With the win, the Rams snap a nine-game losing streak and improve to 10-12 overall, 1-8 in the Atlantic 10, while Massachusetts falls to 8-15 overall, 1-9 in the conference.
"This was one of the best games we played all year," said Fordham head coach
Jeff Neubauer. "We did a great job at valuing the ball as our two freshman guards (
Nick Honor and
Jalen Cobb) combined for 12 assists with no turnovers. I think having the weekend off from playing really helped."
It was a total team effort as four Rams finished in double figures, led by junior guard
Antwon Portley, who scored a game-high 22 points, hitting six three-pointers. Freshman guard
Nick Honor added 18 points, shooting 4-for-5 from behind the arc, and six assists while junior forward
Chuba Ohams added 13 points and three assists and junior forward
Jesse Bunting chipped in with 12 points, shooting a perfect 6-for-6 from the field.
The Rams never trailed in the game, jumping out to a 13-point lead in the first half which they increased to 21 at the break, 47-26.
Fordham built the lead to as many as 30 in the second half, 66-36, before UMass attempted a comeback, getting the Ram lead down to 13, 72-59, with 6:12 left but Portley sandwiched a pair of threes with an Honor layup that got the Fordham lead back to 21.
Takeaways
• The game was Portley's team-leading third 20-point game of the season.
•
Chuba Ohams is averaging 10.0 ppg and 8.0 rpg over the past four games.
• Ohams' three assists ties his career-high.
• The Rams have taken the past five meetings with the Minutemen, including the past three game splayed in the Mullins Center.
• Fordham outscored Massachusetts 42-22 in the paint.
• The Rams won despite being outscored 19-6 from the free throw stripe.
• Fordham head coach
Jeff Neubauer is a perfect 5-0 all-time against UMass.
• The Mullins Center was the site of Fordham's first Atlantic 10 road win, a 66-60 win over the Minutemen in 1999.
•
Ty Perry, who hails from Boston, had a number of family members in attendance.
• Former Rams John Pugh and Hank Downey were at the game. Pugh had the game-winning tip-in in Fordham's first ever A-10 road win at UMass in 1999.
By the Numbers
.550 – Fordham's shooting percentage from behind the arc (11-20) in the game, a season-high.
.607 – Fordham's shooting percentage (34-56) in the game, a season-high.
6 – Made three-pointers by Antwon Portly, tying the Fordham single-game high this season (
Ty Perry and
Nick Honor also hit six threes in a game this year).
6 – Turnovers by Fordham, one shy of the season-low.
11 – Three-pointers made by the Rams, the eighth time this year they have connected on ten or more long-range shots.
23 – Assists by Fordham, tying the Rams' season-high (set against CCNY in the opener).
47 – First half points by Fordham, the most first half points in a game this year for the Rams.
What's Next?
• The Rams return to action by hosting the Duquesne University Dukes for an Atlantic 10 game in the historic Rose Hill Gym on Saturday, February 9, at 2:00 p.m.
• It will be the will be the 40th meeting between Fordham and Duquesne on the hardwood.
• The Dukes lead the all-time series, which started in the 1949-50 season, 23-16.
• Duquesne took this year's first meeting, 66-61, in Pittsburgh on January 9 as Eric Williams, Jr., recorded a double-double for the Dukes with 16 points and 13 rebounds while
Jalen Cobb led the Rams with 16 points.
