BRONX, N.Y. – Less than a year after wrapping a successful collegiate tenure with the Rams, former Fordham standout Rostyslav Novitskyi has signed a professional contract to begin his career with Valmiera Glass Via of the Latvian-Estonian Basketball League.
 
Novitskyi becomes the third member of the Rams' 2022-23 team to play professionally in Europe, joining Darius Quisenberry (Netherlands) and Khalid Moore (Greece).  Chuba Ohams, a teammate of Novitskyi in 2021-22, is currently playing in Finland.
 
Novitskyi played two seasons for the Rams, joining the program in 2021.  During that debut campaign, he appeared in 26 games, averaging 2.2 points, 2.0 rebounds and 0.8 blocks in 10.9 minutes per contest, helping the Rams to a 16-16 record and an appearance in the Atlantic 10 quarterfinals for the first time since 2007.
 
In his second season with the Rams in 2022-23, Novitskyi anchored the frontcourt for a Fordham team that went 25-8, matching the second-highest win total in program history.  The Rams' 12-6 effort in Atlantic 10 play set program high-water marks for both wins and winning percentage since joining the league in 1995.  Fordham advanced to the A-10 semifinals for just the second time in program history (2006).  Novitskyi bolstered his individual production during the Rams' finest season in more than three decades, averaging 6.9 points and 4.5 rebounds per game, the latter of which ranked third on the team.  He blocked 42 shots (1.3 bpg), good enough for second on the team and sixth in the A-10.
 
The Fordham men's basketball team returns to action this evening, hosting George Mason for a 7 p.m. tip-off on SNY and ESPN+.