For Fordham Women’s Basketball, the general theme of the new year has been one step forward, two steps back. When the flashes of brilliance came, they wouldn’t stay long enough to build meaningful momentum. That theme went out the window this past week. For the first time since Nov. 28, head coach Bridgette Mitchell’s squad won back-to-back games, gaining some confidence and closing the gap in the Atlantic 10 standings in the process.
The Rams entered this week with a 2-9 conference record and reeling from two tough losses against a pair of elite A-10 opponents. But a return home didn’t just bring the luxury of playing in the comforts of the Rose Hill Gym — it also brought forth an exciting opportunity to execute one final run.
Wednesday’s game against the 10-12 University of Dayton marked the start of a noteworthy stretch. Of the seven games remaining until the start of the A-10 tournament, five would come against opponents with a sub-.500 conference record. With the first-round bye still attainable, Fordham could make some headway in the standings despite their early conference struggles.
If such a run were to take place, it needed to happen immediately. For the Fordham Rams, there were no more games left to waste. It was now or never.
That sense of urgency transferred over to the court as Fordham put together one of their most complete games of the year, defeating Dayton 70-48 in their largest margin of victory in A-10 play to date.
The Rams entered halftime with a six-point lead, but it wasn’t per the usual game plan. Senior Taylor Donaldson, the A-10’s leading scorer and Fordham’s primary source of offense, was held to just two points. Instead, graduate student Amina Ly led the first-half charge with eight points accompanied by six apiece from graduate student Emy Hayford and junior Taya Davis.
Fordham may have had a lead, but it was certainly not a comfortable one. Dayton had cut the lead to as little as four with a late second-half surge that saw the Rams held scoreless for over three minutes. Add to that Fordham’s second-half struggles, both recently and in the season as a whole, and there was understandably cause for concern.
The Rams quickly alleviated any concerns, putting together one of their best second halves of the year as they outscored the Flyers 43-27 and ran away with the game in convincing fashion.
“I gave it to the girls at halftime,” said Mitchell with a laugh. “I asked them ‘Do you really want to do this again?’ and they responded.”
The 22-point victory was a statement on multiple fronts. Featuring a tall frontcourt led by Arianna Smith, whose 11.2 rebounds per game rank ninth in the NCAA, Dayton is a force on a glass. Yet Fordham stayed right with them physically, marginally losing the rebound battle 40-37 while getting over half of their offense from inside with 40 points in the paint.
On the defensive end, the Rams held Ivy Wolf, Dayton’s leading scorer at 12.2 PPG, to just three points and the reigning A-10 Rookie of the Week Eve Fiala to just four.
Arguably most impressive was Fordham’s balanced offensive attack. One of the major criticisms of this team has been the overreliance on Donaldson and Hayford for the team’s offensive production. Just two games ago against George Mason University, Donaldson accounted for over half of Fordham’s total points. Donaldson reached double figures with an eight-point second half, but she was far from the only Ram to do so.
Four different Rams recorded double figures, the most since five different players did it on Nov. 25 versus the University of Massachusetts Lowell. Hayford led the way with 16, while Donaldson, Ly and Davis all recorded 10. Not far behind were graduate student Mandy McGurk and senior Matilda Flood with nine each. Mitchell confirmed after the game that it was the most balanced her offense had looked in conference play, believing it to be one of their most complete games of the season.
The Rams stayed at Rose Hill for a Saturday matchup against 3-21 University of Massachusetts (UMass). UMass, like Fordham, was under new leadership after its all-time winningest head coach Tory Verdi accepted the head coaching position at the University of Pittsburgh.
Without last year’s A-10 Player of the Year Sam Breen and their three all-conference selections, the Minutewomen had fallen on hard times, returning just three players from last season’s 26-6 team. At 1-11 in conference play and in the midst of a 10-game losing streak, UMass provided the perfect opportunity for Fordham to stack wins.
The Rams didn’t take it for granted. Thanks to a second quarter that saw UMass outscored 20-6, Fordham took a commanding 21-point lead into halftime. The lead would grow to 29 by the third quarter. In the final frame, the Minutewomen showed some life with Kristin Williams leading 24-9 fourth quarter charge, but it was too little too late.
Despite a 3-11 fourth quarter, Fordham still managed a highly efficient 49% from the field, knocking down buckets in bunches to put the game out of reach early. For the second game in a row, Hayford led the offensive attack with 17 points, followed closely behind by Donaldson’s 15. With the exception of freshman Cassidy Mahaney, who logged just four minutes, every single player recorded at least three points in the contest.
It was a big week for Ly, who has emphatically returned to form. Missing over a month with a concussion in late November, it took a while for the 6-foot-4 center to work back into game shape.
“It was a difficult recovery process for Mina,” noted Mitchell. “She didn’t just have to work to get back to 100% physically. She had to earn her way back into the starting lineup.”
Ly has done just that, starting the last six games. With 10 points and seven rebounds versus Dayton and six points and eight rebounds versus UMass, Ly is playing her best basketball since the head injury.
Similar praises go to sophomore Rose Nelson, who is arguably playing the best basketball of her young career. Averaging 6.0 PPG in her last four games and blocking shots at the seventh-best rate in the A-10, Nelson’s confidence is showing on both sides of the court.
It may not have been the smoothest road getting there, but it does seem as if things are finally clicking for the Rams. With the wins, Fordham improves to 4-9 in conference. They didn’t technically jump any spots as they’re still in 11th place in the A-10, now tied with Dayton. However, they’ve significantly cut down the gap ahead of them.
The Rams sit a half game back from 4-8 La Salle University in 10th place and just one game back from 5-8 Saint Louis University in ninth place.
Ninth place is the golden number as the top nine teams in the A-10 earn a first-round bye in tournament play. With one game separating the quartet of Fordham, St. Louis, La Salle and Dayton, it’s shaping up to be a tight race for the ninth seed. Luckily for the Rams, they hold a tiebreaker over Dayton and will play St. Louis and La Salle in the upcoming weeks.
Fordham will enjoy a full week off following the UMass game. When they return, they’ll look to grab their first road win of the season as they take on a 4-19 St. Bonaventure University team that they defeated by eight earlier in the year. With the Bonnies riding an 11-game losing streak, the Rams have a chance to keep the good times rolling and continue their A-10 climb.
