CHICAGO – The Fordham University men's basketball team didn't get a chance to celebrate Fat Tuesday yesterday, as the Rams made their way to Chicago for tonight's game with Loyola University Chicago. Instead of enjoying a time of merrymaking on Tuesday, the Rams celebrated in the locker room tonight following a 71-69 Atlantic 10 win over the Ramblers in the Gentile Area.
With the win Fordham improves to 22-6 overall, 10-5 in the Atlantic 10, while Loyola falls to 9-18 overall, 3-12 in the conference. The 10 Atlantic 10 wins tie the most for the Rams in a single-season since joining the conference in 1995.
Grad student guard
Darius Quisenberry led the Rams with 26 points, hitting four three-pointers and dishing out five assists, while fellow grad student forward
Khalid Moore added 19 points and six rebounds.
Abdou Tsimbila finished with eight points, eight boards and four blocks, highlighted by a perfect 2-for-2 trip to the stripe with seven seconds remaining to push the Rams' lead to five.
Fordham led for the final 6:25, but never by more than five points. Fordham led 61-56 with 5:24 on the clock but Loyola was able to come back and tie the game at 64 with just over a minute remaining.
After a critical 3-pointer from Quisenberry to put the Rams up three, the Ramblers cut the deficit down to one, 67-66, with 34 seconds left. Free throws from Quisenberry and Tsimbila bumped it back to five, 71-66, before Loyola hit a three with four seconds on the clock for the final points of the game.
The first half was close, with neither team leading by more than five points. The Ramblers took an early five-point lead, 13-8, four minutes into the game and lead by five again, 22-17, with 7:38 left. The Rams then used an 11-3 run to take their largest lead of the half, 28-25, on a Tsimbila alley-oop dunk from Quisenberry.
The Ramblers responded with a 9-1 spurt to take a 34-29 lead with 1:34 remaining before a Moore three at the halftime buzzer pulled the Rams within, 36-35, at the break.
Takeaways
•
Darius Quisenberry has scored in double figures in 24 of his 27 games this year.
•
Khalid Moore scored in double figures for the 21st time this year.
•
Abdou Tsimbila, the Atlantic 10's leading shot blocker, rejected four shots and has now recorded at least one block in 23 of the 28 games this year.
• Fordham is now 4-0 vs. fellow Jesuit schools this year.
• The Rams are one of three Atlantic 10 teams with winning road record in conference play.
• Fordham improved to 5-3 in A-10 road games, matching the 2006-2007 and 2016-17 teams for the most A-10 road wins in program history.
• The Rams have only had one two-game losing streak this year.
• It was Fordham's first game in the Windy City since the Rams played at Loyola Chicago in 2011.
• The win broke a streak of seven straight games in which the Ram played before a sold out arena.
• The Fordham managers defeated the Loyola Chicago managers, 80-67, on Tuesday night.
By the Numbers
10 – Atlantic 10 wins for the Rams, tying them with the 2006-2007 squad for most A-10 wins in a season.
31 – Career double-figure scoring games for
Khalid Moore.
53 – Blocks this season by
Abdou Tsimbila.
108 – Career double figure scoring games for
Darius Quisenberry.
195 – All-time Fordham wins vs. fellow Jesuits schools.
910 – Career points for
Khalid Moore.
2,099 – Career points for
Darius Quisenberry
What's Next?
• The Rams continue the 2022-2023 Atlantic 10 season by returning to the friendly confines of the historic Rose Hill Gym to host the University of Rhode Island Rams on Saturday, February 25, at 2:30 p.m.
• It will be the 72nd meeting between Fordham and Rhode Island on the hardwood.
• Rhode Island leads the all-time series, which started in the 1941-42 season, 41-30.
• Rhode Island took this year's first meeting, 82-79, in Kingston on January 4 behind 23 points from Malik Martin and 17 from Ishmael Leggett while
Darius Quisenberry led all scores for Fordham with 33.
