Nov.10, 2006- The smell of fresh hot dogs in the corner concession stand just next to the student section. The sound of loud music, balls bouncing and a student section rolling loudly. A blank page, a chance to take the next step toward the top of the Atlantic 10 conference.

Fans file into the maroon-backed seats for a chance to see room service assists from junior Kevin Anderson, fellow juniors Sebastian Green and Michael Binns sharpening their edges as the tertiary, versatile inside/outside threats, the scoring machine Marcus Stout and the do-it-all Bryant Dunston. 

The Rose Hill gym was a magical place that year. Every home game, the air was thick with anticipation and excitement. This was the start of the 2006-2007 Fordham Men’s Basketball campaign.

A six-foot-four-inch junior guard… from Southfield, Michigan… number one… Marcus Stout!

The greatest shooter I’ve ever seen walk the Rose Hill campus, from both three point land and the field overall, Stout was lights out offensively and equally as annoying on defense.

Stout had an ability to send opposing guards packing with his stellar on-ball defense and communication skills. He finished this season averaging 1.6 steals, totaling 49 on the season, both good for second in the conference behind George Washington University’s defensive guru Carl Elliot.

On the offensive side, Stout really took the step as a junior and became one of the best offensive forces in the conference. To add to his elite defense, Stout finished top eight in three point makes (74) while remaining efficient, shooting at a 38% clip for the second straight year.

There are two games that have been ingrained into my memory: The Temple University Topple in March 2007 and the Duquesne University destruction just after New Years.

The Temple game was played at home.. The Owls, a few seasons removed from the John Chaney era, possessed talent none bigger than 2007 scoring champion, future NBA player Dionte Christmas. Christmas earned the A-10 Most Improved Award, an All A-10 Second Team selection and went on to make first teams in 2008 and 2009. 

Christmas wrapped up 26 points and 11 rebounds under the tree, but Stout outplayed the future NBA player with an even better game. He scored 27 points on 10–13 shooting (77%), 3–5 from range (60%), in the 80–73 win over the Owls.

Jan.14, 2007, at the Palumbo Center in Pittsburgh. The Duquesne Dukes were a pesky bunch headlined by another future NBA player: Aaron Jackson. Like Christmas, Jackson went on to win the 2009 Most Improved Award in the A-10, as well as earning  a first team selection the same year.  

Stout once again got the job done: 10–12 shooting (83%), tallying 26 and pumping six threes on six attempts, leading the Rams to a 71–59 victory in a hostile environment.  

Stout finished the season with an honorable mention for the A-10 teams, second team all-MET honors and as the 32nd 1,000 point scorer in school history. Stout currently sits sixth all time on the school scoring charts with 1,709 points, has the second most made threes in school history with 259 and holds a spot in the Fordham Hall of Fame.

A six-foot-three-inch junior guard… from Westerville, Ohio… number 14… Kevin Anderson!

Kevin Anderson was one of the smartest, most well-rounded and organized players to come through Fordham, primarily because of his defense and passing.  

Anderson’s defense was equally as lethal as Stout’s incredible ball-hawking ability. Anderson’s lanky 6’3”, 195-pound frame allowed him to squeeze into gaps and poke the ball free at will. 

Anderson was second on the team in steals (42) as he had done so the previous two seasons which put him seventh in the A-10. Anderson also had a great basketball IQ, where he finished second in the conference in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.37), only trailing Xavier University’s Drew Lavender, and led the Rams in assists that season with 121.

The Rams visited the University of Maryland, who had Greivis Vazquez and DJ Strawberry, again two future NBA players, in December 2006. Anderson had his best defensive game, notching six steals in the 20-point loss while committing only two personal fouls.

Anderson’s best game was, without a doubt, on Feb. 28, 2007, against St. Bonaventure University when the Rams dismantled the Bonnies 91-60 in a true team effort. He contributed 16 points on 7-8 shooting (88%), seven boards, seven dimes and a steal with only two turnovers.

Anderson was the glue man that made everything go, doing the majority of the dirty work. He ranks tenth all time on the school steals chart (154), tenth in career assists (359) and led the team in assists this season.

A six-foot-seven junior forward… from Aurora, Illinois… number 21… Michael Binns!

Michael Binns was a quality fifth starter on a team loaded up front. Binns covered just about every area of the game from ferocious rebounding to team defense, and even a bit of shooting. 

Binns showed out in game one of the season, gobbling 13 rebounds against Sacred Heart University. He took care of things inside while Stout and Anderson manned the perimeter with freshman standout Brenton Butler. Binns’ best attribute was rebounding. He finished third on the team in rebounds (3.6) and third on the team in offensive boards with 43. 

Binns was also an effective three point threat at his 6’7” stature, hitting 44% of his attempts in the ’06-’07 campaign. At the time, Binns’ ability to be a stretch big was something rather seldom in that era of college basketball. With his touch outside, it opened up driving lanes for Stout, Butler and Anderson while simultaneously allowing more space for Bryant Dunston to eat in the paint and Sebastian Greene to play his inside and out game.

The Jaspers bussed to Rose Hill for the November 2006 installment of The Battle of the Bronx, the annual game between Fordham and Manhattan College.

Binns showed off his entire skillset and had his best game that season with 16 points on 5-8 shooting (63%), two of three from deep, six rebounds and one swipe in the 70-66 win.

Fast forward to Feb. 24, 2007, as Fordham traveled to the University of Rhode Island for the annual clash of the Rams. 

The Fordham Rams were down 31–30 at the half, the game teetering in the balance as both teams played to a stalemate. 

Enter Binns to turn the game in Fordham’s favor: Binns poured in 13 points and eight rebounds to sway the Rams to a 71-62 victory over Rhode Island. 

Binns is not very high on any of the Fordham record charts, but delivered when called upon, more than enough in that campaign to turn some 50-50 games into Fordham wins.              

A six-foot-nine junior forward… from Klein-Gerau, Germany… number 30… Sebastian Greene!

Following two low usage seasons in his first seasons at Fordham, Sebastian Greene turned in his best season in 2006-07. He averaged 9.5 points per contest and played 32.9 minutes, tied first on the team with Stout after Greene had previously played under 17 minutes his first two years.

Greene’s game was in the post, transition finishing and shooting from the midrange. Greene was just as effective an offensive rebounder; he was second on the team in offensive rebounds (58) and total rebounds (5.5).  

Greene was not an outside threat by any means, but his two point percentage was astonishingly efficient: a career 58% from two point area and 50% overall. Greene shot 57% on all his two point attempts this season and 49% overall from the field.

He also played excellent defense that had a major effect on games beyond the blocks and steals. Greene had many games with one block, four with two rejections, but knew how to move his feet, position himself under the basket and fit within a team defensive system. He also finished with 36 total steals in ’06-’07.

Greene was incredibly consistent and often stepped up, especially in December. 2006 when Fordham welcomed the Iona Gaels to Rose Hill.

Green performed his nightly “Mr. Efficiency” routine, shooting 8-10 (80%), pouring in 20 points and collecting nine rebounds — five being offensive. He even added a three pointer, four steals and hit all three of his free throws in the 16 point victory.

“Seabass” was ahead of his time; playing with efficiency well before it dominated the sport. While he was mainly an outstanding rebounder, Green sharpened a number of edges to have an effect on the game.

And starting at forward… a six-foot-eight junior from Queens, New York…number 42…Bryant Dunston!

Dunston came into Fordham ranked as a two star recruit, a clear underestimation of what he became.

Bryant dominated inside with ferocious dunks that rocked the gym to its core, steamrolled defenders for layups and drilled jumpers at a 53% clip across his career. Dunston finished the season as the team’s second leading scorer behind Stout (14.5 PPG), but led them in rebounds (7.2), field goal percentage (55%) and started all 30 games.  

Dunston was just as destructive defensively, proving a powerful force  as a shot blocking extraordinaire, leading that category on the season with 2.2 per game. 

The future Fordham hall of famer had two 30 point performances in his Fordham tenure. One came his freshman year in 2005, where he dumped 34 on the Bonnies, and another his senior year in 2008, painting 30 against Saint Louis University.

Dunston had his best game of the 2007 season on Feb. 3 against Rhode Island in the battle of the Rams. A defensive power struggle resulted in a 45–44 final score in Rhody’s favor. 

Dunston single handedly kept Fordham in the game with 29 points on 13-15 shooting (87%), 13 boards, four denials, one assist, a swipe, a three and two more on free throws.  

Bryant currently sits atop Fordham’s all-time rejections list with 292. He made more free throws than everyone except Jim Cunningham, scored more points than everyone except Ed Conlin

(Dunston finished with 1,832), picked up the fourth-most rebounds (993) and had two games with eight blocks recorded which he managed to do twice in his tenure.

My personal favorite team moment came in a roller coaster January 2007 game against St. Joseph’s at the Rose Hill Gym (with the place packed to the brim). I can’t distinctly remember what transpired in the entire game, but the overtime period has stuck with me through the years.

The Rams and Hawks battled it out to a stalemate that required overtime. Freshman sensation Brenton Butler nailed a baseline jumper to knot things up at 52, but St. Joe’s hit some free throws. Then, Dunston stroked a jumper via a Fordham offensive rebound, before St. Joe’s went down the floor again and scored a layup to give the Hawks a 55-54 lead.

Fordham inbounded the ball following a timeout, Butler brought the ball past half court, probing to the far end of the court near the Fordham bench and handing it off to Marcus Stout. Stout then rejected a screen and accelerated towards the basket for a double clutch layup to deliver the Rams the lead and the victory. 

I’ve lived so many great Fordham Men’s Basketball moments, and Marcus’ game is in the top three best moments of the 21st century in Fordham Basketball history.

The “fab five” arrived in the fall of 2004 under the tutelage of second year head coach Dereck Whittenburg, who had just finished leading a 6–22 Fordham team in 2004. Come the fall of 2004, the arrival of those five instantly turned the program around. They finished with a 13–16 record and won over 12 games the next three seasons. The Rams finished 18–12 (11-3 at Rose Hill) and went to the quarterfinals of the A-10 tournament this particular season.

They grew together and guided a program back to its winning ways of old. A group so rare, so well assembled and so versatile makes them unique in every way. 

When it came time to say goodbye in 2008, the group received a well deserved ovation on senior day from all in attendance in the Rose Hill gym. It was a bittersweet day as they left Fordham Basketball in a much better place than when they found it.

Fordham is not a four year commitment, it is a life commitment. They embodied that, and deserve to be embraced every chance they return.