Men’s Basketball Dropped by Davidson

Bronx, N.Y. – The day before the country honors a leader in the Civil Rights Movement, the Fordham men's basketball squad took one of Martin Luther King Jr.'s quotes to heart. The Christian minister once stated, "We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope." Today the Rams experienced disappointment but gained hope as underclassmen stepped up in the absence of injured upperclassmen to give Davidson College all they could handle before falling to the Wildcats, 74-62, in an Atlantic 10 game in the Rose Hill Gym.
 
With the loss, Fordham falls to 6-11 overall, 0-5 in the Atlantic 10, while Davidson improves to 8-9 overall, 2-3 in the conference.
 
The loss overshadowed a career-day for sophomore forward Onyi Eyisi, who netted a career-high 17 points, and recorded three steals, while sophomore guard Ty Perry chipped in with 13 points, shooting 3-for-5 from behind the arc, and sophomore guard Jalen Cobb and freshman guard Chris Austin each added eleven points.
 
Fordham led by as many as nine in the first half, 29-20, and took a 41-37 lead at the intermission.
 
Davidson opened the second half with some hot shooting, connecting on six of its first nine three-point attempts, to erase the Rams lead and take a 62-48 lead on a Jon Axel Gudmunsson three with 12:15 remaining.
 
The Rams managed to get the deficit down to nine twice over the next seven minutes, the second at 66-57 following a pair of Kyle Rose free throws with 5:19 on the clock, but that was as close as they would get.
 
Takeaways
• 57 of the 62 Fordham points were scored by freshmen and sophomores.
 
• Fordham took the lead into the half for the second straight game but fall to 6-4 when leading at the half this year.
 
• It was the fourth straight game the Rams played without the services for three of their top four scorers (Chuba Ohams, Antwon Portley, and Erten Gazi).
 
• Fordham shot 55.2% (16-29) from the field in the first half but just 32.0% (8-25) in the second.
 
• The Rams held Davidson leading scorer Kellan Grady, who entered the game averaging 16.0 ppg, to nine points.
 
• Davidson shot 28.6% (4-14) from behind the arc in the first half but 50.0% (8-16) in the second.
 
• Davidson junior forward Bates Jones is the brother of New York Giant quarterback Daniel Jones.
 
By the Numbers
3 – Steals by Onyi Eyisi, tying his career-high.
 
5 – Assists by Jalen Cobb, tying his season-high.
 
7 – Rebounds by Jalen Cobb, a season-high.
 
9 – Lead changes in the game.
 
11 – Points for Chris Austin, a career-high (previous high was eight which he accomplished twice, most recently at St. Bonaventure last week).
 
17 – Points by Onyi Eyisi, a career-high (previous was 13 which he accomplished twice, the most recent at VCU).
 
23 – Rebounds by Fordham, a season-low.
 
41 – First half points by Fordham, a season-high (previous high was 39 vs. Coppin State).
 
What's Next?
• The Rams continue Atlantic 10 play on Wednesday, January 22, as they host the George Washington University Colonials in the historic Rose Hill Gym at 7:00 p.m.
 
• It will be the 36th meeting between Fordham and George Washington on the hardwood.
 
• The Colonials lead the all-time series, which started in the 1914-15 season, 28-7.
 
• Fordham defeated George Washington, 67-56, in the Rose Hill Gym last March 6 behind 15 points from Jalen Cobb and 14 from Ivan Raut.