Pittsburgh, Pa. – American actress, dancer, choreographer, and singer-songwriter Debbie Allen, the wife of Duquesne's all-time leading scorer Norm Nixon, is best known for her portrayal of Lydia Grant in the series Fame. Every show opened with Grant telling her students: "You've got big dreams? You want fame? Well, fame costs. And right here is where you start paying ... in sweat." Tonight the Fordham men's basketball team paid in sweat, leading from start to finish, in a 65-54 Atlantic 10 win over Duquesne in the UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse.
With the win, Fordham improves to 11-12 overall, 4-7 in the Atlantic 10, while Duquesne falls to 6-16 overall, 1-9 in the conference.
The Rams were led by grad student forward
Chuba Ohams, who recorded his 13th double-double of the year with 18 points and 14 rebounds, both game-highs, while grad student guard
Josh Colon-Navarro added 15 points and sophomore guard
Antrell Charlton finished with ten points, six assists and two steals.
The Rams led by ten at the half, 34-24, and led by 8-10 for most of the second half until Duquesne pulled within five, 57-52, with 3:14 left. However, back-to-back trees from Colon-Navarro bumped the Rams' lead back to eleven, 63-52, with just under two minutes remaining.
The Rams jumped out to an 8-4 lead 5:15 into the contest and then used a 13-4 run to take a 21-8 lead midway through the half on an Ohams layup.
The Dukes cut the Fordham lead to six, 21-15, with7:22 left but the Rams managed to extend the lead back to double figures, taking a 34-22 lead on a
Kyle Rose layup with 43 seconds on the clock before a later Duquesne basketball made it a ten-point game at the break, 34-24.
Takeaways
• Fordham had 16 assists on 25 made baskets in the game.
• The Rams outrebounded the Dukes, 48-25, with 16 offensive rebounds.
• Fordham held Duquesne leading scorer Primo Spears to eight points after he scored 20 in the first meeting.
• With
Darius Quisenberry missing the game with an injury,
Antrell Charlton and
Kyle Rose are the only two Rams to appear in all 23 games this year.
• Former Rams Jack Burik and Tom Pipich, both members of the amazing 1970-1971 team, attended the game.
• The game was a sort of homecoming for two Fordham assistant coach,
Ronald Ramon and
Tray Woodall, who each played collegiately down the street at the University of Pittsburgh.
• It was the third of three straight road games for the Rams, the first time since 2002 that the Rams played three straight conference road games.
• Duquesne was committing just 13.2 fouls/game entering tonight, second fewest in the NCAA, and were whistled for 14 tonight.
By the Numbers
5 - Assists for
Kyle Rose, tying his career-high.
5 – Number of held balls in the game.
8 - Rebounds for
Abdou Tsimbila, a career-high (previous high was seven)
16 – Offensive rebounds for the Rams, tying a season-high.
41.2% - Fordham's three-point shooting percentage (7-17).
101 – Career blocks for
Chuba Ohams, tenth all-time at Fordham.
634 – Career rebounds for
Chuba Ohams, 16th on the Ram career list.
What's Next?
• The Rams return to action and continue Atlantic 10 play on Tuesday, February 15, as they host the VCU Rams in the historic Rose Hill Gym at 7:00 p.m.
• It will be the first of three straight home games for the Rams.
• It will be the 12th meeting between Fordham and VCU on the hardwood.
• VCU leads the all-time series, 11-1.
