On January 15th, the Fordham Rams hosted the UMass Minutemen in an Atlantic 10 matchup coinciding with the 100th Anniversary of the opening of Rose Hill Gym. On the hunt for their first win of Atlantic 10 play, a game against a similarly struggling Minutemen squad would be a key opportunity for not only a win, but for time to improve on key areas in which the Rams have struggled over their four previous losses.
“We need a little bit more consistency,” Coach Urgo said following a 20-point loss to St. Bonaventure on January 4th. “We’re getting pockets of really good play from some guys, but not a full 40 minutes. That’s what we’re looking towards.”
While Wednesday’s matchup with the Minutemen was expected to be a get-right game, Fordham’s eventual 120-118 loss in triple overtime would finish as an all-time Atlantic 10 classic.
Fast Opening Tempo
UMass G Rahsool Diggins opened the scoring early for UMass with two quick three pointers to give the Minutemen a 6-0 lead. Within the arc, F Daniel Rivera made powerful drives to the hoop to help keep UMass on top. Familiar offensive woes showed up again for the Rams as they struggled to find open lanes to the basket against a tough UMass defense. Despite consistent aggressive defense from the Rams, Fordham once again had a tough time capitalizing off of stops in the first half, scoring just 4 points in the fast break and 6 points off 9 UMass turnovers in the opening 20 minutes.
Down 12-5 after the first media timeout, the Rams managed to cut into UMass’ lead over a solid offensive stretch. Movement both on and off the ball was much improved early for Fordham in comparison to their last few games, with 5 of Fordham’s 9 first half buckets scored off assists. More importantly, Fordham adjusted to match the Minutemen’s physically en route to outscoring UMass 20-16 from the end of the under-16 media timeout to the under-8. Fueling the Rams throughout this run was a packed Rose Hill Gym. The Arena’s 100th anniversary celebration was also the first game since students returned to campus from Winter break, leading to a packed Herd section next to the UMass bench.
“That was the most energy we’ve had here all year long,” Coach Urgo said following the game. “I think it was the reason why we were able to keep fighting and stay in the game.”
With momentum shifting slowly in Fordham’s favor out of the under-8, play was briefly stopped after Rahsool Diggins vomited on the court with 6:37 left in the half. While he sat with the trainers off to the side for a few minutes, UMass strung together two inside shots from Jaylen Curry and Akil Watson to help get their lead back up to 7. Diggins would return to the court at the 3:41 mark, recording an assist, a rebound, and a block in the final minutes of the half to help UMass lead 39-31 at the break.
Curry Hicks Sage, a popular UMass fan account on X and the host of the #SearchSZN Spaces, sat courtside for last Wednesday’s game. While he did not get a clear view of Diggins vomiting on the court, he did see the senior guard head to the sidelines to finish puking.
According to Sage in a phone interview, the incident was the first of many in a night he described as “quite absurd.”
“If you’re capturing the sum total of the evening, that yacking moment was really just one in a flurry of dozens of absurd moments that, as a collective, formed a spectacle unlike any I’ve seen in 30-plus years of watching Atlantic 10 basketball.”
Diggins finished the half with 8 points. Daniel Rivera led all scorers with 11, while Jackie Johnson led all Rams with 10.
UMass Surge, Fordham Comeback
Daniel Rivera hit the first bucket of the second half, a three-pointer to put UMass up 42-31, but two straight buckets from Jackie Johnson and a make from Abdou Tsimbila quickly shrunk UMass’ advantage to 5. However, after seemingly purging anything that could hold him back in the first half, Diggins rattled off another 3 pointer, followed by a Rivera bucket in transition to get the Minutemen back up 49-39.
Out of the second half under-16, Fordham once again could not find an open lane, committing a shot clock violation, their eighth turnover of the game. While unable to crack the lead, the Rams kept the Minutemen from running away with the lead in the middle portion of the second half by shutting down almost all UMass scorers from the field. The only Minuteman to hit a field goal in from the under-12 timeout to the under-8 was Rahsool Diggins, who scored another 10 points to bring his personal total up to 23 and keep his team’s lead at 5.
A key to Fordham’s success in the second half was their ability to get to the line. Both teams played a very physical game all throughout regulation, but Fordham’s performance at the line in the second half served as the foundation for closing the gap, and eventually taking the lead, late. Fordham made more second half free throws (17-23) than UMass shot (8-14) in the period.
Out of the under-8, Fordham compounded their success from the line with quality looks from the field. Down by 4, Jackie Johnson grabbed a defensive rebound and went coast-to-coast to get the Rams within 62-60, then hit a jumper 50 seconds later to keep the Rams within 64-62. As UMass took the ball back up the court, Coach Urgo jumped up and down on the sideline, waving his arms in the direction of the student section to get them on their feet. The Herd, led by members of the swim team in nothing but their caps and Speedos, broke out into applause as Daniel Rivera turned the ball over.
Fordham would end up completing the comeback, and taking a 67-66 lead, with two free throws from Jahmere Tripp with 5:10 remaining in the second half. A second chance rebound on an ensuing play gave Tripp the opportunity to sink a three pointer from the right side, giving Fordham a 70-66 lead and forcing UMass Coach Frank Martin to call a timeout with 4:31 remaining in the game.
Out of the timeout, Daniel Hankins-Sanford drove inside only to have his layup emphatically blocked by Abdou Tsimbila. Retaining possession, UMass would get back within one point on a catch-and-shoot three from Rahsool Diggins. In the final minutes of the second half, Fordham and UMass once again resumed their foul fest, shooting a combined 12 free throws over the course of three-and-a-half minutes.
With 35 seconds remaining, Jackie Johnson dribbled the ball just in front of the half court line, guarded by Diggins. Driving to the left block, Johnson hit a floater to put the Rams up 79-76 with 24 seconds remaining. On the ensuing possession, Rahsool Diggins brought the ball up the court. UMass did not call timeout, and Fordham did not foul. Unable to find an open opportunity, Diggins kicked out to Marqui Worthy on the right corner, who hit a three-pointer to tie the game at 79 with 7 seconds remaining. This shot would be Worthy’s only made three of the game. Going coast-to-coast the other way, Jackie Johnson would miss a potential game-winner to ensure overtime.
“It was the right call by Urgo to leave him wide open in the corner,” Sage said. “Lo and behold, in fitting fashion given the absurdity of the evening, he buries it to take it overtime.”
Worthy would finish the game with 13 points, his third consecutive double-digit performance.
A Three-Round Overtime Bout
Both UMass and Fordham shot more free throws than field goals in the first overtime period as a result of 9 combined fouls. Down 97-92 with 3 seconds remaining, Romad Dean hit a three from the right wing to bring the Rams within 97-95. After burning their final timeout, Fordham fouled Rahsool Diggins on the ensuing inbound. Diggins hit 1 of 2 free throws, giving the Minutemen a 98-95 lead. With 1.1 seconds on the clock, Zach Riley inbounded the ball to Dean just behind the centre line, who heaved a last-second attempt towards the basket as the clock hit zero. Despite the unlikelihood of such a shot succeeding, Daniel Rivera defended Dean’s attempt, fouling him in the process and giving Dean three shots at the line to tie the game. Dean would hit all three to tie the game at 98 and clinch double overtime.
“Romad Dean is one of the most mentally tough dudes I’ve ever been around,” Urgo said. “[Through] his energy, his effort, he embodies what it is to be a Fordham basketball player. We never had a doubt that he was going to step to the line. He’s earned the right to make those with his work ethic and his mentality, so we never flinched.”
Those three shots for Dean were his only free throws of the game.
UMass ended the second overtime by drawing their own clutch trip to the line, albeit under more tame circumstances. With 31 seconds remaining in double overtime, Zach Riley hit a three from the right corner to put Fordham up 108-107. Taking his time to get up court, Rahsool Diggins missed a right wing three, but Akil Watson drew a foul on Matt Zona on the rebound attempt. Missing the first and making the second, Watson gave the Minutemen five more minutes to try and seal the win. Despite taking a 5-point lead in triple overtime, Fordham could not stop Rahsool Diggins and Daniel Rivera from making several driving layups to tie the game and eventually secure the 120-118 victory, the highest scoring game in the history of the Rose Hill Gym.
According to Frank Martin, a major challenge of the game going into triple overtime was rotation management.
“We had lineups in there that I haven’t played all year,” Martin said. “Offensively, you can’t run any of your complicated stuff, because you’ve got guys in there that have never played the role that we were asking them to play on offense.”
By the end of the game, 5 Fordham players and 4 UMass players had fouled out. Rahsool Diggins led all scorers with 46 points, the most points ever scored by a visiting player at the Rose Hill Gym. Diggins’ final score tally broke the record of fellow Minuteman Julius Erving, who scored 37 points at the Rose Hill Gym on January 21st, 1970. Jackie Johnson led all Rams with 36 points.
This game marked the second consecutive season in which Fordham played a triple overtime game. Their last came on January 3rd, 2024, in a 119-113 win at George Washington.
For more historic numbers from this matchup, check out Kaily Godek’s blog here.
Looking Ahead
With the loss, Fordham sits at the bottom of the Atlantic 10 at 0-5 in conference play. However, when comparing Fordham’s performance against UMass to their previous four outings, Coach Urgo highlighted noticeable improvements.
“We’re being much more physical, and we’re communicating a lot more,” Urgo said. “We’re starting to learn how to trust each other and [we’re] learning how to play with one another a lot more right now, and we’re getting closer. It’ll never be a finished product, but we’re playing much harder and more together.”
Coach Urgo highlighted rebounding as a necessary area for improvement. In the loss, UMass outrebounded Fordham 61-58 overall.
On Thursday afternoon following the game, Fordham announced that they would be self-imposing a four-game suspension for Coach Urgo beginning January 22nd. The suspension comes as part of an ongoing investigation by the NCAA related to recruiting violations. In Urgo’s place, Associate Head Coach Tray Woodall will lead the team. Coach Urgo is expected to return from suspension for Fordham’s February 5th matchup against Rhode Island.
For UMass, the Minutemen followed up their Wednesday night victory with a win the following Sunday over La Salle, 82-60. They return to action tonight, January 22nd, when they host George Washington.
Looking (Further) Ahead
With UMass’ departure to the MAC following the conclusion of this season, future matchups between the Minutemen and the Rams are no longer set in stone. For longtime fans like Curry Hicks Sage, the win was as bittersweet as it was electrifying.
“I thought it was kind of fitting that this game gave us the ultimate capper in terms of the symbolism of the A10,” Sage explained. “Which is, really, kind of a strange, absurd, beautiful league that, even despite all the changes in college athletics and realignment, UMass has been a charter member of, and has remained one of just three teams that’s remained in it [the conference] for basically its entire 50-year history.”
UMass, George Washington, and Duquesne are the only three current programs in the Atlantic 10 to have joined at the league’s formation in 1976. Duquesne briefly left the A10 in 1992 to join the Midwestern Collegiate Conference (now Horizon League) before returning in 1993.
“For me, [I’m] just very sad to move on.”
Fordham returns to action tonight at Loyola Chicago.
