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BRONX, N.Y. (Nov. 14, 2024) – The most frequently played rivalry in Fordham Men's Basketball history will resume on Friday night when the Rams travel to face Manhattan in The Battle of the Bronx.
Tip-off from Draddy Gymnasium is set for 7 p.m. on ESPN+. The game will also air live on 90.7 FM WFUV with Lou Orlando and Nick Guzman on the call.
Fordham and Manhattan will face off for the 115
th time since the 1911-12 season. With campuses located less than three miles apart, the Rams and the Jaspers have played every season but two since the end of World War II. Manhattan owns a slight 59-55 edge in the series, but the Rams are coming off a convincing victory last November at the Rose Hill Gym, when four Rams scored 14 or more points in a 93-61 win.
Japhet Medor led all scorers with 16 points thanks to a 4-of-7 shooting performance from beyond the arc. It marked Fordham's largest margin of victory in the series since a 93-57 win on Feb. 4, 1986.
The Rams (2-1) will head to Riverdale on the heels of back-to-back victories, taking down Seton Hall, 57-56, in South Orange on Saturday before bouncing Binghamton, 78-63, in their home opener on Tuesday. The win over Seton Hall was the Rams' first road win over a high-major opponent since beating Virginia on Dec. 7, 2005, and the program's first road win over a BIG EAST team since outlasting No. 24 St. John's on Dec. 9, 2000, at Madison Square Garden. Fordham's win over Binghamton on Tuesday marked the Rams' fourth straight win in a home opener, coinciding with
Keith Urgo's arrival on campus as the team's associate head coach in 2021-22 before taking over the reins of the program the following season.
Senior guard
Jackie Johnson III has been the Rams' undeniable star over the first three games of the season. After scoring no more than 17 points in 59 games at UNLV over the past two years, Johnson has scored no fewer than 18 as a Ram, averaging 21.3 points on 47.9 percent shooting from the floor. He also ranks second on the team in assists (2.7) and steals (1.7). He hit the game winner against Seton Hall, a 17-foot running floater to beat the buzzer. Against Binghamton, he scored 23 points on 8-of-12 shooting with five rebounds, four assists and three steals.
Junior forward
Joshua Rivera ranks second on the squad at 9.7 points per game while Medor's 7.0 points per contest are good for third on the squad.
Despite ranking fourth on the team in scoring at 6.7 points per game,
Will Richardson has affected the game in other ways. The junior from Teaneck, N.J., leads the team in assists (4.0 apg) and steals (2.0 spg) while turning in a 4-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. He also ranks second on the team with 4.7 boards per game.
Senior guard
Zach Riley is coming off a solid outing against Binghamton, matching a career-high with 11 points after connecting on three of his five attempts from beyond the arc.
Manhattan (1-1) gets ready to welcome the Rams after picking up its first win of the season, 88-71, against Division II Mercy on Tuesday night at Draddy. Senior guard Shaquil Bender led the way with 28 points on 10-of-19 shooting while freshman forward Will Sydnor posted a 17-point, 11-rebound double-double in his Draddy debut.
The Jaspers opened the season with a 79-49 loss to Maryland on Nov. 4. Bender led the way in that game as well, scoring a team-high 12 points. Manhattan shot just 27.1% from the floor against the Terps, including a 5-of-27 (18.5%) effort from deep.
Despite having yet to leave the Tri-State Area, 2024-25 marks the first time that Fordham will play three of its first four games away from home since 2012-13. The last time the Rams played three true road games out of their first four was in 2007-08.
