Welcome to A10 Talk’s Top 25 Player Countdown. Each day, we publish a new article counting down the 25 best players in the Atlantic 10 this past season. Today, we feature #15 Ryan Rhoomes.
One of the biggest breakthrough players of this past A-10 season came straight from the heart of New York City with Fordham’s Ryan Rhoomes. A senior, Rhoomes displayed a dynamic shift in productivity from his previous year, upping his points per game from 6.4 to 14.6 and his rebounds per game from 8.6 to 9.7. While the Rams failed to make the NCAA tournament yet again, Rhoomes did lead his team to a CIT berth and their best overall record since 2006-07. His presence will be a near-irreplaceable loss for the Fordham program this coming season.
Best Performances:
A categorical ‘bruiser’, some of Rhoomes’ best performances this past season came when he was most physical. In the non-conference, he bullied St. John’s for 26 points and 12 rebounds on 10-13 shooting. Against La Salle, he battled in the paint for 25 points and 18 rebounds, another one of his twelve double-doubles on the season.
Rhoomes’ season-high in points came on March 5th when he dropped 27 points on Rhode Island to end the regular season. He followed up that performance with 18 points and 14 rebounds against Richmond in the A-10 tournament, albeit in a losing effort.
This was by-and-large the best season of Rhoomes’ career as he topped the feats of all previous years and prevailed as his team’s highest scorer, best rebounder and leader in minutes played.
Key Stats:
Ryan Rhoomes finished with the sixth highest field-goal percentage in the nation, 64.7%, as nearly all of his points came in and around the basket. This is FG% led the A-10 and is a record that will likely stand at Fordham for a long time. However, despite being an incredibly accurate close-range shooter, Rhoomes struggled severely from the line, shooting just 58.6% on the season. This was the one of the worst percentages on the team and while he was often able to get to the line, he could only convert infrequently.
Team Effort:
Fordham missed the NCAA tournament, but they still won the most games in a season since 2007. The Rams lost in the first round of the CIT against Boston University, but given the fact that they picked up seven more wins than the previous season, Fordham appears to be heading in the right direction. The impact that Rhoomes leaves on the program could be a plus in terms of boosting future recruiting, but unfortunately the best year of his career was unable to go to great use for the Rams.
Previously: #16 Jordan Price
1 Comment
He might have improved, but I don’t like players who turn on his coach. To me, he is just a street player and self-promoter.