Gallery: (2/22/2020) Men's Basketball vs. Massachusetts
Bronx, N.Y. – It was a day that saw numerous college basketball streaks snapped. It started with top-ranked Baylor going down to Kansas to break a 23-game winning streak and continued in the Rose Hill Gym as the Fordham women's team knocked off Dayton to halt the Flyer's 15-game streak. Unfortunately, the Fordham men were on the wrong side a broken streak as Massachusetts defeated the Rams, 57-49, in an Atlantic 10 matchup to stop a five-game Fordham winning streak in the series.
With the loss, Fordham falls to 7-19 overall, 1-13 in the Atlantic 10, while Massachusetts improves to 12-15 overall, 6-8 in the conference.
The loss overshadowed the first career double-double for Fordham freshman forward
Joel Soriano, who scored 14 points and added 16 rebounds, both season-highs, for the Rams. Junior guard
Josh Colon also netted double figures for the home team with eleven points.
A Colon three with 14:51 remaining gave the Rams a 34-32 lead but the Minutemen responded with a 20-8 run to take their biggest lead of the day, 52-42, with 3:30 left.
Fordham got the UMass advantage down to five, 54-49, on a Soriano three-point play with 19 seconds and then forced a five-second call on the Minutemen on the inbounds play. But a
Ty Perry attempted three fell off the rim and the Minutemen hit three of four free throws over the final 14 seconds to clinch the win.
Takeaways
•
Josh Colon recorded his second straight double-digit scoring game and his fourth of the season.
• The 16 rebounds by
Joel Soriano are the most by a Ram since
Ryan Rhoomes grabbed 18 against La Salle in 2016.
• In 23 of the 26 games this season, the Rams have held their opponent to under its season scoring average.
• In 14 of those 23 games, the Rams held the opponent to more than ten points under its season average, including today (UMass entered the game averaging 69.2 ppg).
• Fordham played without the services of
Chuba Ohams and
Onyi Eyisi due to injuries.
• After committing 17 turnovers on Wednesday night at La Salle, the Rams committed just ten today.
• The Rams held UMass' leading scorer Tre Mitchell scoreless in the first half (he shot 0-for-8 in the period) but Mitchell scored 15 in the second half (he shot 5-for-21 in the game).
By the Numbers
10 – Lead changes in the game.
10.5 – RPG average for
Joel Soriano over the past six games.
14 – Points by
Joel Soriano, a season-high (previous high was nine which he did twice, the last time on Wednesday night at La Salle).
16 – Rebounds by
Joel Soriano, a season-high (previous high was eleven vs. Richmond).
24 – Points in the paint scored by Fordham.
What's Next?
• The Rams continue Atlantic 10 play on Wednesday, February 26, as they host the University of Rhode Island Rams in the historic Rose Hill Gym at 7:00 p.m.
• It will be the 68th meeting between Fordham and Rhode Island on the hardwood.
• Rhode Island leads the all-time series, which started in the 1941-42 season, 38-29.
• Fordham took last year's game, 66-63 in overtime, on February 16 in Kingston, as
Chuba Ohams and
Nick Honor each netted 19 points, with Ohams adding nine rebounds, and
Jesse Bunting scored 12 points and pulled down nine boards.
