BRONX – The game day promotion for the Fordham men's basketball game tonight with Georgian Court College was free Coke Zero to all students to celebrate National Carbonated Beverage with Caffeine Day. Well the Rams had no need for any extra energy tonight as they came out fast and furious and ended the same way as Fordham defeated Georgian Court, 101-61, in the Rose Hill Gym.
With the win, Fordham improves to 3-2 on the year while Georgian Court falls to 0-4.
The Rams were led by freshman center
Jaden Smith, who recorded his first collegiate double-double with 14 points and a game-high 13 rebounds, while junior forward
Joshua Rivera added 14 points and six rebounds and sophomore forward
Jahmere Tripp finished with 12 points and three boards. Senior guard
Jackie Johnson III (11) and junior forward
Romad Dean (10) also scored in double figures for Fordham with Johnson adding four assists.
The Rams outscored the lions 19-8 over the first six minutes before Georgian Court cut the Fordham lead to nine with a basket at the 11:45 mark.
But a Tripp three-pointer 16 seconds later were the first three of seven straight Fordham points as the Rams took a 26-10 lead midway through the half on a pair of Tripp free throws.
Later in the half the Rams turned a 27-14 lead into a 44-16 lead with a 17-2 run. Johnson led the run with a pair of three-pointers.
Fordham took a 56-32 lead into the intermission and maintained at least a 20-point lead with the largest advantage of 40 points occurring in the final two minutes.
Takeaways
• Tripp was making his first appearance of the year, missing the first four games with an injury.
• Sophomore guard
Jameson O'Toole scored his first collegiate points in front of his father, Pittsburgh assistant coach Tim O'Toole, finishing with eight points.
• Tim O'Toole was Fordham head coach
Keith Urgo's college head coach at Fairfield.
• Freshman guard
Aleksander Pachucki also scored his first collegiate points in the game, netting seven points on 3-for-4 shooting.
•
Jackie Johnson III has scored in double figures in all five games this year.
•
Japhet Medor, who was 3-for-3 from long distance tonight, is shooting 9-for-11 from behind the arc over the past two games.
• The game marked the first time since a 105-58 win over CCNY on November 6, 2018, that the Rams hit the 100-point mark.
• The Rams outrebounded the Lions, 46-27.
• The game was late getting started as the Georgian Court bus was delayed by an accident.
By the Numbers
8 – Blocks by Fordham, led by two each from
Romad Dean,
Japhet Medor, and
Abdou Tsimbila.
12 – Different Rams to score in the game.
27 – Assists recorded by the Rams on 34 made baskets, the most assists for Fordham in a game since dishing out 28 against Coppin State on December 13, 2015.
+34 = +/- for
Jaden Smith in the game.
100 – Years since the opening of the Rose Hill Gym.
168 – Career blocks for
Abdou Tsimbila, who had two tonight, fourth on the Fordham career list.
691 – All-time Fordham wins in the Rose Hill Gym.
1,594 – All-time wins for the Rams.
What's Next?
• The Rams will remain in the historic Rose Hill Gym to host the Drexel University Dragons on Friday night, November 22, at 7:00 p.m.
• The game will be part of the Sunshine Slam tournament.
• It will be the third meeting between the Rams and the Dragons on the hardwood, the first since 1994.
• Drexel has taken both of the previous meetings, a 64-57 win in the Rose Hill Gym in 1994 and a 70-65 victory in 1993 at Drexel.
• The Rams are 26-18 against schools currently in the Coastal Athletic Conference.
