Fordham freshman guard Ivan Raut (Image credit: fordhamsports.com)
After being down as many as 17 points in the first half the Fordham Rams made an incredible come back in the second half to secure a 67-66 win over George Mason, at historic Rose Hill Gym in the Bronx.
Prokop Slanina and freshman Ivan Raut led the comeback by shooting 50% from the 3-point line in the second half. Will Tavares and Joseph Chartouny also contributed with each making a pair of threes in the second half.
The game started slow for the Rams. In the first half they shot a poor 31 percent from the field and 18 percent from the 3-point line. In the middle of the first half the Rams gave up a 21-0 run which lasted 8 minutes. That run was led by George Mason’s junior guard Otis Livingston II who scored 8 points in that stretch.
The Rams were killed on the glass, George Mason out rebounded Fordham 28-14 which helped give them a 10 point lead to close out the first half, 33-23. Despite Fordham’s struggles in scoring, junior forward Prokop Slanina led the team in scoring with 9 points while shooting a little under 40 percent.
Rams Begin To Click In Second Half From Three
Within a few minutes into the second half Slanina started the three-point attack cutting George Mason’s 11 point lead down to eight. The next couple of threes came from senior guard Will Tavares and junior forward Joseph Chartouny, cut the lead down to one, at 47-48.
In the six minute mark of the second half the Rams took the lead thanks to a critical 3-pointer from Raut making it 58-56. With the three-point surge coming along, the Rams looked more energized on defense and on the glass. Fordham pushed the lead to five, at 67-62, but George Mason’s freshman guard Ian Boyd hit 2 shots to cut the lead the down to one.
With 24 seconds to go, Tavares struggled down the stretch. He missed a jumper then turned over the ball, which led to a George Mason steal. The Patriots couldn’t convert that turnover into points cause of a missed layup by Javon Greene. Tavares got another chance to score thanks to a block by Joseph Chartouny and he was fouled. Unfortunately, Tavares missed the free throw and the Patriots got one more chance to win the game. Otis Livingston II, with three seconds left, heaved a long distance three that fell short and the Rams won 67-66.
Fordham out rebounded George Mason in the second half 20-19. This was huge given that George Mason destroyed them 28-14 on the glass. The star of the night was forward Prokop Slanina. He was the team leader in points scoring 17 while getting 5 rebounds, 4 blocks and 3 steals.
Coach Jeff Neubauer said of Slanina, “He is the center of our universe, he is important. It’s like asking how important is the sun? The sun is pretty important in this world.”
What’s Next?
The Rams will look to get revenge against Duquesne this Saturday at 12:00pm in A.J. Palumbo Center.
