Women's Basketball Hosts George Washington Sunday

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Game Notes
 
Bronx, N.Y. – The Fordham women's basketball team (9-6, 1-1) will look to shake off Wednesday's loss at Davidson, the team's first since November 29, when it hosts George Washington (7-8, 1-1) on Sunday afternoon inside the Rose Hill Gym. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. with CBS Sports Network and WFUV 90.7 FM carrying live coverage.
 
Last Time Out
Fordham saw an eight-game win streak snapped at Davidson on Wednesday. Despite outshooting the Wildcats and committing just eight turnovers, the Rams struggled to stop the hosts from second-chance opportunities, with them scoring 21 points in such instances, and hit a season-low three three-pointers, breaking a stretch of five straight games with double-digit makes from distance. Fordham dug itself into an early hole, hitting just 3-of-13 shots in the opening period, missing both of its three-point attempts and converting just 3-of-6 from the free-throw line. The Rams were down, 16-7, after 10 minutes and down 10, 33-23, at halftime, the first time they've trailed by eight or more points in a game since a win against Lehigh on November 30 in the Bahamas Hoopfest.
 
Bre Cavanaugh led the way offensively with 21 points on 9-of-17 shooting with eight rebounds, while Kendell Heremaia notched her second straight double-double and fourth of her season with 14 points and 11 rebounds, although the junior struggled with her shot, hitting 6-of-19 shots, a new career-high in attempts. Anna DeWolfe and Kaitlyn Downey combined for an efficient 26 points, as well. Fordham recorded just six assists, a season-low and just the second time with under 10 this year.
 
Series History vs. George Washington
The Colonials hold a 20-6 all-time series lead over the Rams since 1996 when the latter joined the Atlantic 10. George Washington dominated the rivalry until Fordham picked up its first win the year before Stephanie Gaitley arrived, in January 2011 in the Bronx, 59-56. Gaitley's Rams are 5-4 against the Colonials since she arrived in the Bronx, including wins in two straight and three of the last four meetings. Last year, Fordham dominated a defensive battle, 50-38, in Washington, D.C. in the conference opener against the then-defending champions. Fordham hit seven of its first nine three-point attempts, including three in a row, to begin the contest, before the two schools combined for a mere 13 points in the second frame. The Rams held the Colonials to just four points and one field in the third, jumped out to a 24-point lead, and coasted the rest of the way.
 
Cavanaugh, Heremaia Back-to-Back as A-10 Players of the Week
Kendell Heremaia picked up her first career conference accolade after nearly triple-doubling in the big win over Samford last weekend, while Cavanaugh garnered her second award of the season and the sixth of her career by averaging 24.0 points with no turnovers over two wins this past week.
 
Busy Bre
Bre Cavanaugh has started all 83 contests in her Fordham career and has been nothing short of spectacular for the Rams during her time in maroon and white. The redshirt junior became the third-fastest Ram to reach 1,000 career points, doing so in 60 contests, and has already entered the all-time top-10 in scoring, amassing 1,427 career points, up to sixth all-time. The Allamuchy, N.J. native has racked up 3,173 career minutes thus far out of a possible 3,350 (94.7%), finishing each of the last two seasons within the top-10 in that category nationally and eighth this year. She's already moved into the top-10 for three-pointers, now sixth with 173, is fourth with 320 free throws, and is joint-third all-time with a 17.2 point-per-game average. She has been held to single digit scoring just nine times in her career and has 33 games of 20 or more points.
 
Bombs Away!
After setting a new program record for made three-pointers last year, it's no surprise to see the 2019-20 Rams are one of the voluminous three-point shooting teams in the land, in the top-20 in total attempts and makes. The Rams have taken the 12th-most attempts (388), have made the 12th-most (130), and are 18th with an average of 8.7 per game. The win at Charlotte was a masterclass in long-range sniping as the team hit 48.4% of its 31 attempts, with the 15 makes ranking second-most all-time at Fordham and most away from home. Kaitlyn Downey hit 6-of-8 in the contest, the most by a Ram since Hannah Missry hit eight against Delaware State in December 2015. Against St. Bonaventure, the Rams hit 10-of-14 from distance (71.4%), a fifth straight game with double-digit makes. Among their A-10 rivals, the Rams have made the most threes and are averaging almost a full make per game more than La Salle (8.1).
 
This is Our House
Since Gaitley took over before the 2011-12 season, the Rams hold a 105-31 (77.2%) record at home across 136 contests. Over the last three seasons, the Rams are 47-11 in the Rose Hill Gym, including a 20-5 mark in conference play and three straight Holiday Classic crowns. Last year, Fordham finished 12-4 at home overall and 6-2 in league action. On the flip side, Gaitley's Rams are 73-69 (51.4%) on the road or on neutral ground during her tenure.
 
Striking the Right Balance
Fordham is seeing plenty of production spread around the members of its rotation. Cavanaugh is unsurprisingly leading the charge in scoring in eight games, but Heremaia (five), DeWolfe (once), and Downey (once) have also stepped up to lead the offense. Four different Rams have led the team in rebounding, six have led the team in assists, eight have had at least one game with a share of or the team-high in steals, and seven have led the way in blocks at least once, as well. Five different players have scored in double figures, with Cavanaugh, DeWolfe, Downey, and Heremaia doing so at least five times apiece.
 
Defense, Defense, Defense
No stat better represents the Gaitley-infused defense than Fordham's 71-6 record when holding opponents under 50 points during her tenure. Two Januarys ago, 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. The team's 47-44 loss to VCU on January 16th snapped a streak of 16 straight wins. A new streak began soon after with a 56-38 win at Rhode Island, which has now reached 10 games with the win over Samford.
 
Cavanaugh Named Player of the Week by Three Outlets
Bre earned Atlantic 10 Player of the Week honors on December 9 after averaging a 22-point, 11-rebound double-double over two wins last week. On Tuesday, she earned the same distinction from the Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association and was named National Jesuit Player of the Week by the AJCU.
 
DeWolfe Named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week
The freshman from Cumberland, Maine was instrumental in the team's first two wins of the season, matching and then surpassing her season-highs in scoring and averaging 20.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.5 steals over 36.5 minutes, while shooting 48.4% from the floor and 41.2% from deep. She was named Rookie of the Week on November 25.
 
Rams in the Pros
G'mrice Davis, who graduated in 2017, currently plays professionally with Bnot Hertzeliya in Israel after spending time in Greece with GAS Kalyvion and Australia with the Rockland Cyclones, which featured her former teammate and 2019 graduate Mary Goulding. Mary finished her season strong and moved on to Sweden, where she now plays for IK Eos. Lauren Holden, who graduated in 2019, immediately moved into coaching, joining up with former associate head coach Angelika Szumilo at Fairleigh Dickinson as one of her assistants.
 
Up Next
The Rams are off during the midweek slate and next play at George Mason next Sunday, January 19, at 4 p.m., again on CBS Sports Network nationally.