Fordham Head Coach Jeff Neubauer (Image Credit: Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports0
Fordham’s woeful shooting in the first half put them in a big hole. At halftime they were down by 21 to La Salle while just shooting 27 percent from the field. Despite shooting over fifty percent in the second half Fordham lost to La Salle Saturday afternoon at Rose Hill Gym, 73-60.
In the first half, Fordham struggled on defense and on the boards. La Salle out-rebounded Fordham 27-11, eight of those rebounds came from sophomore guard Saul Phiri. For much of the first half, La Salle had a small lead until about the five minute mark where they went on an 11-0 run, led by Amar Stukes. The senior guard finished with 14 points in the first half. Senior center Tony Washington finished with eight points in the first half. The Rams managed only four points in the last eight minutes of the first half.
In the second half, La Salle held control of the game until the 13-minute mark when Fordham cut a 22-point lead down to 10. With the Rams trailing 53-31, senior guard Will Tavares and junior forward Slanina Prokop put together a 22-10 run. Tavares scored 11 points and Prokop added six points. Their second half surge came after both scored an abysmal three points in the first half. With 5:14 left to play and the score 63-53, the Rams looked ready to take over the game. But La Salle managed to pull away with the victory.
Four of La Salle’s starters were in double figures. Senior forward B.J. Johnson led the way with for the Explorers with 23 points, nine rebounds, and two blocks. Stukes added 16 points. Washington had 14 points while junior guard Pookie Powell also chipped in with 14 points.
Fordham has now lost four in a row and sits last in the conference with a 9-19 overall record, 4-12 in the conference. The Rams have two games left in the season and would like to finish strong.
When asked about the team’s struggles and how to cope with losing Fordham head coach Jeff Neubauer said, “I’ve never been apart of this, so I can’t refer back to some other experience. All I can do is tell my team is I’m not going away, I’m not quitting.”
March 3rd is Senior Day for Fordham at Rose Hill Gym. Coach Neubauer shared his thoughts about the day.
“It’s about the emotion the players feel,” Neubauer said. “It’s about the emotion they bring because as a coach you literally go through senior day every year. As a college basketball player you only get one senior day, you’re a senior only one time, so hopefully our team will bring a fighting spirit.”
Fordham’s next game is against George Washington at the Charles E. Smith Center Wednesday 7pm.
