Second halves have been a challenge for the Fordham Rams in conference play. Despite some impressive first half performances with an average margin of -2 in their first three A10 games, Fordham’s injury-riddled roster has led to short rotations, tired legs, and an average second half margin of -6. Against St. Bonaventure in Olean Saturday afternoon, bucking the trend of second half collapses was a high priority for the Rams.
While Fordham was once again without Roor Akhuar, Abass Bodija, and Ryan Pettis, Christian Henry (12.3 PPG) was cleared to start. In a tight first half, Henry was crucial in pushing the pace of Fordham’s offense, recording 5 first half assists as the Rams traded big buckets with the Bonnies. According to Rams head coach Mike Magpayo, having Henry back in the lineup was “huge.”
“He brings a certain energy [to the team],” Magpayo said. “You know, we talk about point guards and how important they are. If you ever watch Christian out there, he’s always touching, high-fiving his teammates…He really believes in himself, and he’s a winner.”
Henry finished the game with 9 assists, tying his career high.
Fordham came out the gate hot to lead 12-8 at the first half under-16. Rikus Schulte and Akira Jacobs had 6 points apiece, and each of Fordham’s first 5 field goals were assisted. In previous games this season, Fordham was able to keep games close with lots of offensive boards. However, a 53.6% performance from the field in the first half took away the need for dominance on the glass.
The Bonnies kept pace offensively, shooting 46.4% from the field in the half. Out of the under-16, Cayden Charles hit a three-point jumper to bring the Bonnies within one. On the ensuing Fordham possession, Rikus schulte lost the ball on an errant pass, allowing Charles to take it up in transition. Dasonte Bowen’s ensuing three-point attempt was no good, but Charles snagged the offensive rebound and dished it to Darryl Simmons on the right wing to hit a three and give the Bonnies a 14-12 lead.
With 1:18 left before halftime, Dey Dey Reaves broke the relative stalemate with a layup to put Fordham up 36-29, the largest lead for either team at that point in the game. However, two quick buckets from Achille Lonati and Cayden Charles brought the Bonnies back within 36-34. With time expiring, Rikus Schulte hit a three at the top of the key to send Fordham into the break with a 39-34 lead.
Fordham stayed hot coming out of halftime. Akira Jacobs hit another three to bring his total at that point up to 12, matching his best performance of conference play against Dayton. He would finish with 14 points overall. Dey Dey Reaves, who scored 11 points in the first half, weaved his way through two defenders and spun right in front of the basket to give the Rams a 46-36 lead. A few possessions later, Rikus Schulte hit another three, assisted by Henry, to put Fordham up 51-38, their largest lead all game.
Andrew Osasuyi hit a quick hook shot to send the Bonnies into the under-16 down 11. Out of the timeout, they whittled Fordham’s lead down to 4 by the under-12. Defensively, the Bonnies smothered Fordham during this stretch. On one play, Daryl Simmons ripped the ball out of Christian Henry’s hands to hit a three in transition. On another Fordham possession, the Rams had to fight through several double teams before eventually getting called for a shot-clock violation. The Bonnies eventually tied the game at 51 on a Lonati free throw with 10:53 left to play. Of Bonaventure’s 13 unanswered points in this run, 6 came at the free throw line.
Dey Dey Reaves stopped the bleed for a moment with 2 free throws to put Fordham back up 53-51. After two makes from Bona to go back up 56-53, Jack Whitbourn hit a layup, Fordham’s first field goal in 7 minutes, to put the Rams back within 56-55. At the under-8, Bonaventure led 61-55. Once again, Coach Magpayo and his Rams were on the ropes late in a game which started off on a relatively positive note.
“We’re talking as a team, and they’re up at that point,” Magpayo said. “It was just talking about [and saying that ] ‘now, you’ve gotta respond.’ And our guys did. It was an incredible response in a hostile environment.”
Out of the timeout, Fordham broke into a quick 8-2 run to tie the game at 65. The tying bucket, an Akira Jacobs layup with 4:26 to play, was Fordham’s first second chance field goal of the game. Daniel Egbuniwe hit a right wing three to make it 68-65 Bonnies, but Jack Whitbourn put the Rams back within a point on a tip-in. Dey Dey Reaves sent Fordham into the final media timeout with a 69-68 lead on a contact-filled driving layup.
With 3:06 left to play, Reaves already had 21 points. He was just getting started.
Tied at 71, Reaves hit another driving floater to put the Rams up 73-71 with 1:26 left to play. Simmons followed it up on the other end with a huge three-pointer to put the Bonnies up 74-73. As the game entered its final minute, Christian Henry drew Frank Mitchell’s fifth foul to hit two free throws and put the Rams back up 75-74.
After a timeout called by Bonnies head coach Mark Schmidt with 42.7 seconds to play, the Bonnies inbounded the ball. Darryl Simmons caught a screen and dribbled left, dishing the ball to Cayden Charles on his right. Charles missed a three, and Dey Dey Reaves was fouled after snagging the rebound. He hit both free throws to put Fordham up 77-74 with 28 seconds to play. Moving quick, the Bonnies drove to the basket, but Reaves snagged the ball and hit a layup in transition to extend Fordham’s lead to 5. Despite a quick simmons three to make it 79-77, Reaves was fouled once again with 4.1 seconds remaining. He hit two more free throws to seal the game for Fordham, 81-77.
“You could see it early,” Magpayo said. “He was feeling it, he was hot. I don’t know if it’s because we’re upstate. He said we’re not really close to his hometown, but it was great. He had some family in the crowd.”
Reaves, a native of Syracuse (roughly a 3-hour drive from Olean), finished the day with a career-high 31 points to go along with 4 rebounds, 6 assists, and 4 steals.
Fordham’s road trip continues Wednesday, when they take on the 15-1 Saint Louis Billikens in Chaifetz Arena.
